Wednesday 30 November 2016

narrowboat living in the winter

Living on a boat is romantic.

Having a fire to keep you warm is a joy in life... it makes me so happy, I feel connected to another element - being surrounded by water it's good to balance it with fire :)
The wood I'm burning to keep me warm I have sourced from fallen trees found this summer and last cut and split them with my bowsaw and axe (Thank you Tom).......I also top it up with braquettes (a new compressed log made from bracken in the Brecon Beacons, it's eco, burns slow and the ash is full of goodness for the garden...and coal not so nice to burn but pretty much essential as it's slow burning so will keep the chill out of the boat whilst your sleeping and if you've got the knack you can wake up and it's still glowing, by adding some coal on top of the red glowing embers and sprinkling ash from the grate it creates a blanket so slows down the burning of the coal)
There is nothing more cosy than lighting some candles, fire blazing in the stove, music, films, drawing, some tasty food (sometimes using the stove to cook a slow curry in a cast iron pot, or jacket potatoes wrapped in foil) . Boat life is lovely.... frost on the windows in the morning is a small price to pay for such a wonderful way to live.... and summer wow....the beauty and wildlife on the river blows my mind... :)