264 - The Long Climb up the Sheffield & Tinsley Canal

Todays vlog was filmed back in December. It's just before Christmas and we travel from Rotherham into Sheffield.
I made the edit a little longer than usual as I thought people might appreciate a longer distraction right now.
We hope everyone is doing okay.
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► FAQ
Q• Why do you speed up some of the footage in your videos?
A• We don't, we film it as time-lapse footage. We do not have the battery capacity or data storage to film in real time as our cruises can last up to 7 or 8 hours. We use to the time-lapse footage to help tell the story of movement rather than showcase the scenery. We limit the amount of time-lapse shots we use in each vlog.

[@holmesjunction]

I remember Rotherham to Tinsley in the sixties and on to Sheffield in the seventies. What changes! There's WATER in the canal - used to be black/brown swirling gunge with a rainbow coloured top. Nearer Sheffield the water 'changed' to ochre if disturbed (iron). Green along the banks - used to be tall sooty engineering brick walls or embankments for miles. The footbridge at Jordan's lock was burned down and you had to walk across the iron sluice gates over 'Holmes Goyte'. Now, tarmac paths instead of oily ash puddles! No ‘proper barges’ taking coal to Blackburn Meadows power station (after Jordan's lock) and no empty barges balanced on the top of the weir after the flooding. Halfpenny bridge used to be a long narrow swing bridge that rocked badly (and terrified me). You can see! - it often used to be damp with a pinky orange smog (courtesy of the steel works). The scrap yards have finished cutting up the steam engines and wagons and mostly gone. And, rats the size of cats! Ah, memories.

[@oceana9294]

Today is the 18th of December, 2020, and I too was up to see the dawn but only because our dogs needed to get out early this morning. Since I rarely am up this early I think seeing the dawn is a glorious way to begin the day and give thanks for being alive, especially since the day is starting out clear, no rain.

[@fdsfpvquadventures1141]

George has perfected the “sad puppy” face when he can’t get off the boat! He is like a wine connoisseur with his canal tasting.

[@MinimalList]

He really is! M

[@markgoodman5781]

Super stuff . My wife is from South Yorkshire. She married a southerner and now lives in Essex. Stay safe during these difficult times.

[@MinimalList]

You too! M

[@JCDiamond]

Always a treat to see George!

[@MinimalList]

Always a treat to be George too! M

[@altacat9702]

Beautiful : )

[@tomrobinson2919]

Your most recent video was fantastic your explanation of the processing and testing was superb thank you so much for taking the time to clarify what we are facing and realistic expectations thank you thank you thank you

[@MinimalList]

You’re welcome... yeah, keeping expectations reasonable and fears understood is going to be really important. M

[@landraver90]

“Have you ever been to Rotherham?” 🤣 I spent the first 25 years of my life there and know exactly what you mean Michael 😂

[@rogerwhittle2078]

Cap'n Land Raver. In other places, I am 'Land Roger', for probably similar reasons? I've been through Rotherham, but I've never been to it, although I have been to Milwaukee numerous times and I've always remarked on the similarity. Nice vlog to effectively end your year. When you eventually arrive in 2020, I would do what you can to avoid the first six months. Our advice would be; just play through to about June or even July and things might begin to look a little less doom laden. Your lifestyle is, almost by definition, self isolating, so you may not be required to go in to quarantine when you arrive from 2019. Thanks for a most interesting and actually quite exciting - for a narrowboat - year.

[@MinimalList]

I’m afraid we’ve arrived ahead of ourselves and found our what happened! M

[@johncassels3475]

Merry Christmas! Another good one. Thanks.

[@MinimalList]

Thank you lol! Thanks for watching

[@peterhartmann489]

Thank"s for this

[@MinimalList]

Thanks for for watching.

[@stephenlittle7534]

Oh my what a lot of locks. I am glad you had help and the lock man. Happy birthday man. Hope you guys had a Great Christmas and can't wait for New Year vids. 😀

[@MinimalList]

Thanks! They’re coming soon! M

[@sallyu1]

Great to watch as always. Keep the vlogs coming as we need some enjoyment in these difficult times. We've now done 7 days of lockdown in Fuerteventura.

[@MinimalList]

Jo’s taking the lockdown we’re in to edit more, so videos on the way soon! M

[@hmarc417]

HAPPY BIRTHDAY ! ! ! ! ! ! ! !

[@bingcrosby2482]

Thank you for posting this. It's my old neck of the woods and I have paddled all that stretch with kayakers on various trips.

[@MinimalList]

Hope we brought back some good memories. Thanks for watching.

[@pilpelet100]

Thanks for posting. It's funny to watch this now, when the world is mostly on lockdown, and hear you talking about your travel plans before christmas. Stay safe.

[@MinimalList]

It’s weird for us watching it back too. Take care too

[@ianofsjkartwork]

Well explained vlog....keep safe....thanks for sharing

[@rogerbond7811]

Please keep posting videos we need to escape to another world. Look after yourselves and George.

[@MinimalList]

We will do. We have quite a bit filmed and we are still moving. Move fiduciary soon. Take care

[@morrislouiseeagle7161]

Ooh longer video - nice one thank you for sharing this with us sending regards and stay safe and well 👏❤️😁

[@MinimalList]

Thanks, you stay safe as well! M

[@susanmartin1779]

Hi thanks for the vlog, and yes any distraction is appreciated at this awful time, we’ve watched many bloggers today and it’s very relaxing, stay safe all

[@MinimalList]

Good. More coming soon, since Jo’s now got nothing to do but edit! M

[@mjallenuk]

How wonderful... I hope you have a huge amount of easy going footage to carry us through the current fun and games Jo.

[@MinimalList]

We’ve got a backlog, more coming soon! M

[@mjallenuk]

@@MinimalList Best news this Pandemic!

[@billrichardson1663]

My wife and I watch you every day from Virginia. Love the videos, and loved Michael's COVID videos. Thanks for the sanity!

[@MinimalList]

Glad you like them... stay safe over there! M

[@creativerecycling6498]

Thanks for last Vlog It was well informative ,keep well

[@MinimalList]

Glad it was useful!

[@creativerecycling6498]

Minimal List , and yet another informative understandable vlog , really good , thanks 😊 Phil

[@trevorsurplice1582]

ever since jo told us about your birhday i have washed my hands abt 25 times Singing HAPPY birthday to you Keep safe

[@MinimalList]

Hah, well thanks for that! Keep singing! M

[@christinehammell6365]

.......and Michael already practising with his mask. I love the way wee George scampers around sniffing the grass . So endearing. 😍

[@MinimalList]

He’s generally pretty endearing, that’s true! M

[@Spawn-td8bf]

Gal, Guy, and Pup, And they say time travel hasn't been perfected yet. These vlogs prove otherwise. Take care and God Bless, Paul from Florida.

[@MinimalList]

Time travel can only be persevered, never perfected! M

[@grahamBearman1]

Happy Birthday for the 16th December Michael and I love Jo tripping over her tongue at the end!!!!

[@MinimalList]

Thanks! Yeah, she can be funny when she gets all tongue twisted! M

[@garybevan1022]

Saturday evening viewing👍

[@MinimalList]

Enjoy

[@SuperEightball1]

You guys Rock Safe travels from Texas.

[@MinimalList]

Thanks! Stay safe down there! M

[@Leonard_Smith]

As many distractions as possible should be appreciated by most for the forseeable. Take care both of you. I think George should be fine.

[@MinimalList]

We will keep pumping out distractions ... we’ve still got some backlog. M

[@christinehammell6365]

Ok , I've flicked through telly channels, nothing I want to watch . I really wanted to keep you for the morning but here we go. Thanks xxx

[@MinimalList]

Eternal problem of the television channels... glad we could help! M

[@davidbrown7769]

Great vlog. Watch out for the ninja finger. 😊

[@MinimalList]

Will do! M

[@ocanadastandinguard6840]

How i would love to see this journey in May or June.

[@MikeAnning]

Time Warping back to December when you could truly say "It's not the end of the world" it's still not the end of the world but here in March it seems we are a few locks closer in a mediacentric way. Hit the nail on the head with previous video. Keep safe and stay cruising in the middle as best you can.

[@MinimalList]

Will do! If all else fails we’ll just anchor out in the middle of the canal! M

[@killjoy1887]

Interestingly around here some folks have started putting up their Christmas lights again just to ease the tension a bit.

[@petersheil641]

Stay safe and virus free!

[@MinimalList]

We are trying! You too. 🤞🏻

[@frglee]

Very nice vid, thankyou for sharing all this stuff. The early morning scenes were really quite magical, quality of light and the calm water with the swans...The industrial and post industrial landscapes maybe not so pretty, but fascinating all the same, as was the artistic graffiti stuff. Methinks there is an art college nearby!

[@MinimalList]

Quite possibly... definitely some talented street artists around. M

[@MadeByMartyn]

Restriction and stoppage notices are abysmal and only updated during office hours. I hope you enjoyed your visit to Sheffield. You got a brief view of our place with the green and purple boats, and skeletons...

[@MinimalList]

Hah, nice skeletons! We did enjoy Sheffield, and were pleasantly surprised to find some incredibly good Ethiopian / Eritrean food close by! M

[@MadeByMartyn]

@@MinimalList Frehiwat Habesha is one of our favourite local eateries. The beeping smoke detector has been like that for the last three years :-)

[@davidhowell2456]

Very fun and enjoyable video! I love the two different accents when you guys narrate. And Micheal could pass for my brother. Same build, same accent, same beard, same hairline, same grey streaks in the same spot in the beard, I'm just a strawberry blonde with a red beard. Anyways, I've subbed and look forward to more of you videos. Stay safe, and may God bless you and yours!

[@MinimalList]

Thanks for joining. Welcome aboard!

[@maggiekavanagh2801]

Merry Christmas, well you never know somewhere in the universe it might will be the Yuletide season. So this was what life was like before Covid 19, you could meet people and chat to them, supermarkets had food, Ikea had customers… and you could go to the cinema. Stay safe you three.

[@MinimalList]

It’s a bizarre new world! Stay safe as well! M

[@willsgetoff1157]

That looked really cold. Not sure I'd like to do that bit single handing those gates looked heavy. Hope you a good break at Christmas and are keeping safe in this current madness

[@MinimalList]

Keeping safe, definitely... it’s a mad new world, that’s for sure! M

[@jiloute22]

I really appreciated your previous vlog, I am of the same opinion as you, I also really liked this one, take care of yourself and protect yourself from this damned virus

[@MinimalList]

Thanks. You too! M

[@lewisheywood1970]

We Loved your video as always my Grandmother made Parkin we loved it still do. Did you know that Parkin has to sit in a tin for no less than seven days. Best at two weeks. See you next vlog 👌👌

[@MinimalList]

Didn’t know that. Maybe we should try and make some. Thanks for watching

[@The101stEagle]

Another nice musical score. Shame I can't get it. Love the info about the lock length as it restricts the travel of boaters.

[@malcolmelliott1876]

yes.. Rotherham!! well George seemed to like it... does he ever bark? Michael as a Ninja... what a thought.. more like avoiding order 66. Stay home - stay safe - stay afloat.

[@MinimalList]

George does occasionally bark. Usually when he thinks he is getting left behind at a lock or if there is food on the table that he is not getting.

[@TheEulerID]

Oh for those more innocent times when all there was to worry about were apocalyptic floods... I should also add, that with so much water going over the upper gates, going down would be a painfully slow exercise.

[@MinimalList]

Deluges do seem less a worry now. M

[@volvov7018]

Hi love the bit at the very end of the vlog where Jo tells Michael to get his finger out, you tell him Jo birthday or not.

[@johnallen148]

Hi j&m great video great commentary jo some interesting views,sure is a lot of water coming over the lock gates. Tell me how many miles do you think you have covered on the canal and rivers, I have found it has been so interesting and enjoyable every mile ,thank you all three of you ,John

[@MinimalList]

It’s hard to say, but I’d guess we’ve done about 1800 miles of canal, not counting doubling back and places where we had to do the same section because of a loop. It’s a long way, that’s for sure! M

[@johnallen148]

Minimal List that’s fantastic all them miles you have seen some wonderful things on you journey,keep safe take care,John

[@stephenfoster5608]

Great video- and I know Rotherham well as originally from Barnsley. Not the best place on the planet. Following your cruise around England at the moment

[@lyns2626]

Filmed in 2017? Y'all must be tired. Find a great spot to stay for a while and get some rest. As always, thanks for sharing your beautiful vlogs. Till next time, continued safe travels and be healthy! Pats for George. :D

[@MinimalList]

Typo 😬 We are very well rested, don’t worry. Stay safe

[@jasonbrant6394]

Great vlog guys although not a section of the system I would especially recommend as idyllic. I think the more you travel the system the more aware you become of the crt,s difficulties and short commings due mainly to lack of money . Hope you are both well amid all the hysteria.

[@MinimalList]

We’re doing okay... strange times, but kind of more ordered than my worst fears, at least here in the UK. M

[@SeanMcPhersonSenior]

2 seconds in and I’m just waiting for status on the birthday cake search after the last video ;)

[@MinimalList]

Haha, sorry to have kept you in suspense.

[@SeanMcPhersonSenior]

Minimal List Cliffhanger episodes are both the best and worst :)

[@christinegibbins6105]

Found that very interesting, dear George, perhaps he needs a vet check if he is so thirsty? Take care and be safe at this difficult time

[@MinimalList]

He’s been to the vet recently, no issues there... we think he’s just curious about the different flavors of canal! And thanks, you take care too. M

[@nb.silverfern1]

Great vlog, thanks. Some of those lock gates were incredibly heavy to move we found. We wondered about the moorings at Victoria Quays too. We weren't able to go back down for 48 hours but the marina were fine with us staying for free beyond the 24 hours. Did you meet up with Lou from 'Maeve and Me'?

[@MinimalList]

We did need up with Lou and Maeve... George tried to steal one of Maeve’s toys, but gave it back eventually! M

[@buss8009]

Do you bring George with you to see family and friends when you travel to the USA / Canada? Thank you for a great vid, and I loved your virus vid as well. Spot on!

[@MinimalList]

No. If we go oversees he will stay with Jo’s parents. He will be much happier there than on a plane

[@buss8009]

@@MinimalList That I can agree on. I have always said. People who love dogs, cats, animals in general, are often more good caring people, and I'm without a doubt 100% sure that you both come in that category...

[@robertmowrey2009]

I like the look in between navy seal and viking, and I appreciate M's responsible demeanor so that folks don't interpret a message of "woo booze cruise, damn the consequences!"... I went to school with a bunch of kids who are still at bottom of the gulf of mexico cuz they didn't care. Just like that one time when M went down, he was on his guard and all the other good things and boom an accident still happened. So, I really adore the message of safety that y'all exude.

[@MinimalList]

I’m quite a proponent of safety first... and even still I’ve had several concussions and about a dozen near death close calls. Never take risk to life lightly. M

[@TheBoatingAdventure]

Merry Christmas there's a few people who have still got the outside Dec's up here. With all that's going on I'm gonna stay in the marina and leave the space for continuous cruisers who may need to move to isolate or get help. Please please stay safe. Hope you can get help if you need it. People round here are going crazy they're acting as though they are invincible I can isolate on the boat in the marina as it's so quiet. I've had some ideas for my vlogs as I've tons of unused footage that I can use. Cheers take care you three. Alan.

[@MinimalList]

Thanks Alan. We’re fine, and for us it’s really just stay on the boat and do what we’ve been doing, it’s everyone else that’s disrupted. Stay safe in that marina, and do put out any videos you can... people need something to watch! M

[@JISJ1964]

Did you get to be in Sheffield for a Wednesday, as they are so popular there?

[@cradleyardfilms2362]

Hi guys, hope you are all safe!! I wonder if you can spot the three now disused canals you past on the way up to Sheffield between Swinton & Sheffield Arena? They are the Dove & Dearne, Fitswilliam (Greasbourgh) & Darnal (long enough to be more than a short branch). Not sure if you have gone back down towards Doncaster yet but if not I am happy to help point them out as I live in the area. Cheers. Steve

[@cradleyardfilms2362]

2 meters away at least of course

[@MinimalList]

I’m afraid we’ve left the area, and I don’t think we spotted them. If we had I’d probably have tried to go down them! M

[@cradleyardfilms2362]

@@MinimalList No probs Michael. Jo mentioned the Greasborough on the video released yesterday. Stay safe!!! Love the videos!!

[@playhooky]

Jo, you sure did look exhausted at the end of that last video! Hope you guys are doing well now during 'coronavirus-mageddon' - crazy sad. Hey, how come you don't ever drive the boat & Michael do the locks? Just wondering. Maybe you've driven sometimes on the canals or rivers but not through the locks & I was blind & didn't notice lol. I've driven a flat bottom boat over here in the U.S.A. but it does look a little challenging to go through the smaller locks there.

[@playhooky]

Well silly me, yep, there you are at the helm & going through the lock! Sorry! And George sure got a nice long walk that day!

[@MinimalList]

No worries. I enjoy driving and I’m pretty confident. I just prefer walking with George.

[@TheFilwud]

Did you really call Meadowhall "Murderhall"? My mates call it that, I really miss the people of Sheffield, biggest village I have ever spent time in! I can't imagine Sheffield in this lockdown though.

[@MinimalList]

Err, not intentionally! It may well have been a slip of the tongue though!

[@ilox11]

Hi guys, hope you are keeping safe and well. Really enjoyed this slightly longer video. Love seeing George supervising, he does it so well. Did like that wall of graffiti, some really talented people left their mark on the world. Hope you got to have a nice Christmas after all. I don't think our respective Easters are going to be all that great seeing as Australia is finally moving towards Shutdown, if not Lockdown. If anything we have learned from COVID-19 is that our respective Leaders are pretty well incompetent. They don't seem to have a clue. So much more could have been done and should have been done and just maybe lives could have been saved. One wonders what kind of world we will have once we get to Post-COVID-19? Any thoughts on that?

[@MinimalList]

Well, if it’s up to me, we’ll have one with a lot less of the current idiots still in charge. Beyond that I don’t really want to speculate too much... the far side of this is going to look substantially different than the old normal, that’s all I’m sure of. Stay safe down there. M

[@johnbuck7538]

What is the rig on the front of the other narrow boat ?

[@MinimalList]

I don’t see anything odd on their bow, so I’m assuming you mean the sort of squarish box with a cable coming out of it on a mast? Can’t be sure, but it looks like it’s probably a high gain DTV antenna, to try and get better telly. M

[@t.vanoosterhout233]

A bit indirect, but I would welcome a mk3 vid on antivirals and vaccines. Thx for the 0000001 explanation so far!

[@MinimalList]

I may do one... I’ve been getting a lot of questions about herd immunity and vaccines... my only worry there is that a vaccine is relatively far off, though covering the basics of antiviral drugs may be helpful. Thanks for the suggestion. M

[@brianlaunchbury4491]

Given the way car parking is handled, by private companies, were you worried about the possibility of a propeller clamp? 😃

[@MinimalList]

Heh, not really ... but now I want to make one! M

[@miketipping1583]

Did you get solar envy?

[@MinimalList]

For what reason?

[@loungejay8555]

Is possible to walk or cycle along the length of this canal?

[@MinimalList]

Yep, there are tow paths along most of the canal

[@loungejay8555]

@@MinimalList Thanks, since posting that comment I went there and cycled along it from Victoria Quays all the way to Tinsley - in the rain I might add!

[@MinimalList]

Oh lovely. Sorry for the delayed reply. Hope you denoted it despite the weather.

[@philipsmith1990]

Do you know that NASA have named their next Mars rover after your boat?

[@MinimalList]

We did see yes. It’s a great name for a boat. And for a Mars rover.

[@sebxiou-lifestyle4465]

Hi, says "December, 2017" ? Typo or "Another chance to see"? Anyway, thanks. Good luck; stay safe.

[@MinimalList]

Just a typo. This was December 2019

[@sebxiou-lifestyle4465]

@@MinimalList Thank you. Appreciated. Again, good luck and stay safe to you and everyone here.

[@pbcanal1]

We had to look twice as it is dated 2017?

[@MinimalList]

Heh... Jo makes the occasional typo. M

[@pbcanal1]

@@MinimalList No issues. It popped up as a new video and then I saw it was 2017, but you were talking about your birthday celebration. We enjoy the series here from the states. Will there be a post concerning restrictions of movement along the canals?

[@craigy_baby]

I've lived in Rotherham all my life, but unfortunately Michael is right, Its not a nice place any more. ( The town centre anyway..)

[@MinimalList]

I can’t judge the town center really... my issue was with that bloody retail park where I ended up walking multiple miles to get a few hundred feet away as the crow flies! M

[@richardczubkowski5111]

the joy of winter boating.!! It does seem strange watching a blog from December knowing all that is going to happen in the coming months. After watching your last viral blog have you considered fast forwarding to a more relevant time period ?? Say end of Feb/beginning march. Regards to all 3 of you, rich n.b OTTER

[@MinimalList]

We’re not going to fast forward... in the long run we want the vlog to be a continuous record of our journey round the canals. But there were some significant gaps between cruises over winter so hopefully, now that Jo’s gotten some unexpected editing time, we may catch up soon. M

[@TheSEBfamily]

Why do you have to be “chaperoned” by lock keepers through certain locks?

[@nb.silverfern1]

because some of the locks can be quite dangerous if you don't know them. One of the Tinsley locks has a 'hidden' ridge in the middle which you can catch on if you don't know to avoid it, for example.

[@MinimalList]

There may be something tricky about the lock itself, or just several locks in a row being a lot of work... it’s also common to have someone manning locks on to and off river sections, where water levels can make it very difficult for crew to get off and on. M

[@TheSEBfamily]

Minimal List thank you!

[@glynnwright1699]

From our experience, dogs don't 'do' clean water.

[@MinimalList]

Heh... true. M

[@yeoldegrumpy-git1483]

Why was the Comments turned off on your last video (Our Most Viral Video Yet)

[@MinimalList]

Because we didn’t what to reply to comments on it. 👍🏻

[@yeoldegrumpy-git1483]

@@MinimalList No one can make you reply. But we have a right to reply to any comments or statments made

[@elund408]

I hate to break it to you but I think your out of the running for being spokes persons for the Rotherham tourist association.

[@MinimalList]

Heh... sadly, yeah, I was passed over. M