Communication
The one concept that never seems to sink in for even the most experienced boaters is that shouting really doesn’t work. The people in the front of the boat can hear the people in the back, but the people in the back can’t hear the people in the front (because of the engine). And so a lot of only half-understood conversations pass back and forth while the boat inexorably crashes into a helpless kayaker.
Realistically, however, there are only a few important messages that need to be passed between the spotters in the bow and the driver in the stern: Another boat is approaching, a bridge or tunnel is ahead, slow down, stop and all clear. A few simple arm and hand gestures will convey all that. You might not like the ones suggested here, so come up with your own agreed upon gestures (I still haven’t come up with any for swing bridges, tunnels and moor here) and try to repair the American reputation for being loud.
So You’ve Run Aground
You know intellectually that running aground is no big deal. You know that feral boat people are not going to strip your boat, take your women (or men) and sell them into slavery. You know your boat won’t be dashed against the rocks. And yet there are few things on the water that make you feel so helpless.
What really makes you feel like a pillock is that your first reaction when you bottomed out was to push the throttle. Now the propeller is churning water, everyone on the boat is asking what’s going on and the feral boat people are yelling at you not to leave a wake.
First, take your hand off the throttle. You ran into something. Increasing the throttle is only driving the boat farther into the mud, sand, weeds or some combination thereof.
Second, tell everyone on the boat (including you) to move to the other side of the boat. Right now, everyone is to one side of the boat, looking at the bank on which you’re caught. The other side of the boat is probably free. Moving to the other side will lift the side of the boat that’s stuck.
It’s unlikely to happen on a narrowboat, but pleasure craft occasionally roll over when everyone is on side of the boat, so this advice should be followed cautiously on a small boat (and certainly on any boat with a keel).
Third, put the throttle in reverse and don’t be afraid to churn water, even if does draw more attention. It is the front of the boat that’s caught, so it makes sense to back out.
You’re probably free now, but if not:
Fourth, get out the pole. I used to think every problem could be solved with the pole because of Archimedes’ “Give me a lever long enough and a place to stand and I can move the Earth” gag, but that lever won’t work if you’re pushing it into a patch of muddy weeds, or if the lever isn’t long enough. But if you’ve run aground against the towpath side, then the lever might be long enough and the ground firm enough.
You can also try having everyone get off the boat and thus lightening it. Obviously this is most easily done if you’ve run aground on the towpath side. See if you can push off the boat with the pole, but keep a grip on the center line.
Fifth, and let’s hope it doesn’t come to this, you may need to throw a line to the other bank and have the rest of your crew pull it free. If you’ve run aground against a weed-choked bank with grown over trees and no one can get off, you’ll need to enlist the help of other boaters, hikers or cyclists.