Over the Easter weekend we went for a spin across the lake in 45.M, the last remaining GCC canal boat which has not been restored. As can be seen in the photos, the boat is maintained exactly the same as it was when it worked from the 20’s to the 60’s, and even the engine is the original Bolinder 15hp semi-Diesel engine. The boat was being brought across from Church Bay to Dromineer, as the owner had recently passed away, and the family wished to have a spin on the lake in his memory. I got a few shots of the two barges moored up alongside each other before they left, and the video of the engine being started is a sight to see, as starting the engine is no mean feat. Being a semi-Diesel, it must be started by manual hand compression, achieved by rocking the flywheel back and forth, and manually firing in fuel in the hopes to get her firing. This is the only actively working engine of it’s kind in Ireland, so to see it running and to be on the deck when it is chugging along really is something else. The story of the sinking and raising of 45.M from the bottom of Lough Derg is a story for another post 🙂
Barge77m 