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Canal Boating made simple; Locks; Getting lock passage; Lock passage costs 0.63 cent per lock. Mooring along the canal costs EU 12.60 per month. Alternatively you can buy an annual permit for EU 126.00 this entitles you to unlimited lock passage and mooring for twelve months. Lock passage is available from the following lock keepers George Brierly at Ringsend, James Conroy at Lowtown, Jason Pender at Shannon Harbour and from Waterways Ireland at 17/19 Lower Hatch Street, Dublin 2, or from the canal depot Tullamore. Some lock spindles on both the Grand & Royal Canals, have been fitted with collars. This is particularly apparent in built up areas. Click to enlarge The photograph above shows one of the collared lock spindles. Many locks along the canal are now collared, this is to prevent vandals interfering with the locks and thus the water levels. However they require a special "extended lock key" to operate them. Lock keys are usually available from Waterways Ireland at the a/m address. Click to enlarge These un-collared lock spindles are becoming more and more uncommon along the canal. It is almost essential now to have an "extended lock key" on your boat. These keys can open both types of spindle. For more information on locks take a look at the Locks Page Boat dimensions ; The maximum boat dimensions permitted on the Grand canal is 61 ft X 13 ft. The max draft is 4 ft but 3.5 ft is preferable. The maximum air draft is 8.5 ft. (The milltown feeder has a low bridge requiring an air draft of less than 6 ft) The maximum boat dimensions permitted on the Royal Canal is 75 ft X 13.3 ft. The max draft is 4.7 ft but 3.5 ft is again preferable. The maximum air draft is 10.00 ft. Traffic Keep to the right and overtake to the left. Problems with weed; Weed is a constant problem on canals and a careful watch should be kept on your engine temperature. Don't attempt to travel the canal without a weed trap on the water intake, & remember to check it regularly. A weed hatch is normally a capped 8' diameter pipe over the propeller which allows access to the prop for weed clearing from within the boat. They are almost essential for canal boating. There are a variety of weed cutters on the market. They are normally attached to the propeller shaft between the propeller and the stern tube. How successful they are is often the subject of debate, but no one would disagree that you are better off with one that without. The amount of weed in the canal depends on the season and whether or not the weed cutting machine has passed by recently. The summer months while being the most popular months for boating, are also the months of fastest weed growth. The best times are often the early spring or the autumn months. Speed !! The speed limit on both the Grand and Royal canals is 4mph; 6Km/h. Speeding contributes to bank erosion, endangers wild life, and it's the best was to insure you get fowled in whatever weed is available. Less speed is greater haste !