Work so far on our 103 year old flagship

Doing up NB Daisy

NB Daisy is a 70 ft narrowboat, generously donated to us, and in need of some TLC. She's a grand old gal, who was built in 1921 - so she's seen some things! She was commissioned by TSR Elliotts, as a coal butty, working out of Birmingham and Wolverhampton. She worked the cut, pulled by a horse, until 1966, when she was used variously as storage and housing. In 1985 she was sold privately and became a holiday boat.

We'll need some help getting her insides shipshape as she needs a total re-fit, in areas like the bath/shower room.

If you can do a bit of carpentry, handle a sander, weald a paintbrush or heave stuff to the tip, do get in touch. Email - Lizzie@forcesvetsafloat.co.uk

March 2023 -
After Daisy took on a bit of water at Hanbury, we decided to get her out of the water. She's now on hardstanding at Droitwich Spa Marina. We've had her looked at by a welder, while we had the chance, and are waiting for a quote to have a couple of spots sorted.

April 2023
We have covered Daisy's roof in tarpaulins, as there was some water coming in, in places. We've known this for some time but having her out of the water has allowed us to see this more clearly! Another job for the list - and quite an urgent one.

May 2023
Neil the welder has started work on the areas around Daisy's stern which we'd like fixed before she goes back in to the water. It looks worse than it is - honest!

We have now had a fantastic donation of steel, to fix Daisy's hull! It's the wonderful gift of veterans and narrowboat owners, Colin and Sarah Philipson, who we really can't thanks enough! 

The stern did look really ratty - it's so much better now!

Daisy's engine's not running and isn't a priority at the moment - so we have had a bracket made, so an outboard can be attached,  to give her a bit of power when she can't be towed.

January 2024

Daisy  needs a new bathroom and her wiring attended to.  It was hoped to tackle this before she comes back up to Sawley, later in the year. but that didn't prove practical.

April 2024 - Daisy is back in the water, having been successfully re-floated and her ballast adjusted. She is now waiting for our tug, NB Kinver of Ballinger Towage and Steerage, and skipper Pete, to make their way to the top of Tardibigge Flight on the Worcester to Birmingham, where we will hand haul Daisy to meet them. We are going to need LOTS of help getting her up there! At the moment Daisy is moored up and being checked on by Lizzie, Andy and Iain, two veterans, who have boats in the area - many thanks to them both - Daisy's stay at Droitwich Spa Marina would have been a lot harder without their unwavering support and ability to turn up at a moment's notice with everything from a ropes and barrels to a tow boat! Thanks, chaps.

July 2024 - Daisy will begin her journey back to Sawley on 6th July - with us tackling the marathon  that is Tardibigge locks on the 7th. WE REALLY NEED HELP FOR THIS JOURNEY! 

We'll publish a full schedule of her movements on here and on Facebook in the next couple of days. PLEASE COME AND DO A FEW HOURS IF YOU CAN. because otherwise, our Boat Movement Master, Pete, will be by himself.  

July 8th - Daisy is now at the top of the Tardebigge Flight - only made possible by a magnificent team effort by volunteers, who turned out to help Pete and Lizzie.

Team Tardebigge - with Skipper Pete and Captain Max - Sarah, Sue, Scott, and Gareth. Not pictured but part of the team, Iain, and CRT Worcestershire Volunteer lockies - John and David.

Iain and David guide Daisy into a lock - Sues's help in the bow was also extremely helpful to Pete, , she  bakes an excellent cake and can brew tea for Britain!

Captain Max checks on the cake situation and if we were likely to run out of ginger biscuits - fortunately we didn't. 

17th and 18th July - NB Daisy will leave Alvechurch with Skipper Pete and tug, NB Kinver, to make her way to Holiday Inn Wharf. Leave Alvechurch  at 0945 - volunteers welcome.

After spending the night at Holiday Inn Wharf, volunteers are needed to help get her up to Curdworth, where she'll spend the week. Watch this space for the next move and call for volunteers.

24th July - NB Daisy has now reached Curdsworth - stand by for an appeal for helpers for the next leg of the journey.

August 2024 - NB Daisy has arrived back at HQ in Sawley - work can now continue to get her ready  for work!

September 2024 - our working party weekend was used to sort out the barrels of contaminated water on Daisy for disposal, and cleared and dried out the engine room.

3Elements Canopies have fitted a cratch frame to Daisy and are making a cratch cover at a substantial discount. We also discovered, during the work party, why we were getting water in the saloon - the ingenious system of pipes, bucket and bilge-pump hidden under a step, had become disconnected and as Daisy has no power at present, the float activated bilge pump wouldn't have worked anyway. We knew her original owners must have had a way of keeping the water out - we just hadn't found it!  The new cratch cover will keep the water out instead. Until then we are using the not very attractive but effective system of a tarp shut in the bow doors and covering the step down, so any rain drains out of the well deck drains.

Here's NB Daisy with her smart new cratch cover! We can only hope that water pouring in to the saloon is a thing of the past now.