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   The Steam Boat Association of Great Britain

Events

This calendar shows all events known to the SBA
- however the SBA accepts no responsibility for the veracity of information about events organised by other organisations.

Note some events are "Members Only",
and you will only be able to see these if you are Logged-In to the site (and are a member!)


Future events

    • 11 Jul 2025
    • 13 Jul 2025
    • Sankey Marina, Evesham
    Register

    Evesham River Festival

    If you would like to be part of the ever popular

    Evesham River Festival

    please contact 

    Felicity Palmer by email or phone

    07780687169



    • 11 Jul 2025
    • 09:00
    • 13 Jul 2025
    • 17:00
    • Dapdune Wharf, Guildford
    Register

    Puffing a-Wey – 11-13 July 2025

    Dapdune Wharf, River Wey Navigation, Guildford

     Puffing-a-Wey, named thus by the National Trust, our gracious hosts, has been running since 2011 and still not everyone gets the name right!

    It gets called ‘Puffin away’, which is obviously an event under the auspices of the RSPB for sea birds with funny beaks. Others call it ‘Puffing away’, evoking a weekend of serious coughing and wheezing sponsored by the tobacco industry.

    A gift event: only charge is for the Saturday barbecue

    But ’Puffing-a-Wey’ is the actual name because it’s held on the lovely, intimate, River Wey Navigation and it’s a gift event for those of us in the SBA who care to take our boats along to enjoy it. The only charge made to boat owners is the cost of the Saturday night barbecue for which boaters are charged £15 per head

    We’re very grateful to the National Trust team at Dapdune Wharf for the waiving of licence and camping charges and free use of slips and other resources. It’s a real gift event for steamboat owners. Our presence brings in many more visitors than usual to their well-hidden but rather lovely town-centre site

    It’s an undemanding weekend. Boats arrive for launching on the Friday and the quay at Dapdune is ours for the weekend. There’s a very usable slip and trailers can be parked in a nearby locked enclosure.  Larger boats can use a very gentle slip a mile or so downstream at Stoke Lock in North Guildford. Dapdune itself is the former barge-building and admin centre for the Wey and Godalming Navigations when they were in private ownership and it is tucked away behind the town’s cricket ground, so although Guildford surrounds the site there is a sense of being in the countryside.

    Saturday is the day we’re on display to the public  

    On the Friday night there is a shared pub meal at a venue close to Dapdune and the main event is the Saturday. SBA boats are asked to stick around not too far from the site so that they can be seen by visitors and owners can talk to those who are obviously interested, maybe even taking them for a short run on the water. There are waterside pubs in both directions from Dapdune and those are the ones to use on the Saturday so that the quayside at Dapdune always has some boats milling around providing atmosphere and colour to enhance other activities also there – a model railway exhibition and exhibits by local model engineers for example.

    Saturday evening sees a barbecue, but the National Trust asks steamboat owners (of suitably sized boats) to be prepared to take some of their River Wey maintenance team volunteers aboard for a short early evening cruise while the barbecue is in preparation, along with the Trust’s own electric boats. On their return the open air barbecue,  a joint SBA/NT effort is shared with the Wey volunteers and is always accompanied by music from local entertainers.

    Sunday is a free day. Some choose to pull out and head for home while others enjoy the river and set off for a distant pub, but there’s no hurry to go if you have the time.

    Ian Buckland / Mark Rudall

    Boat owners please complete and return the attached Boat Declaration Form to Ian Bucknall as soon as possible but definitely before the event

     declaration_form sba.pdf

    This is a Type 2 Rally

    Key to event types

    1 - SBA Organised Event (owner's declaration required)

    2 - SBA organised participation in 3rd party's event (owner's declaration required)

    In event types 1 and 2 the SBA organisers and SBA members are covered by the SBA Liability Insurance; 

    3 - private meeting of members with or without boats

    4 - private, individual participation of members in 3rd party's event

    5 - for information only



    • 18 Jul 2025
    • 20 Jul 2025
    • Bristol Floating Harbour
    Register

     

    Steamboats @ Bristol Harbour Festival 2025


    Welcome to the Steamboat element of the Bristol Harbour Festival – we look forward to seeing old hands and new faces. The format will be much the same as previous years – if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it!

    After a very successful handover of the organisation of the Harbour Festival in 2024 we look forward to an equally successful event in 2025.

    The 2025 format will be much the same as previous years (I hope!) with a couple of variations; however, for those with short memories (like me), and those that didn’t attend last year, this is what to expect:

    Friday: Launch (Cottage Pub, Baltic Wharf, Cumberland Road, Bristol BS1 6XG) anytime from about 12h00 onwards. 

    We will get together for a communal evening meal event of some kind on Friday evening - details later

    Saturday: You are at liberty to steam around the festival site (except as commanded by the Harbour Authorities whilst other ‘spectacles’ take place) plus we will have 1, maybe 2, coordinated ‘Steam Processions’, with live PA commentary, through the day – a great chance to show off, especially our whistles and sirens. These processions are where we earn our keep, so to speak, and, whilst participation is not obligatory, they are both good fun and our way of saying ‘Thank You’ to the Festival for their generous hospitality. The Processions will be ‘topped and tailed’ by Harbour Launches so it is a really easy case of ‘follow the leader’. Would those of you that want to promote your boat let me have some ‘blurb’ for the commentator to use – interesting snippets about the boat over and above the basic length, engine and boiler specs are good. We are, again, promised to be featured in the Harbour Festival Programme and I don’t know how much they will print but I will let them have all that you let me have – info sooner rather than later please.

    Saturday evening – Meal - venue yet to be determined. This MUST be pre-booked with us. 

    Sunday: Lazy steam-up (10h00ish) and one procession through the Festival but, instead of turning around, we will just keep on going up the harbour/canal/river until we reach the pub (actually two pubs side by side through a lock). This will give you a chance to see where the ‘Floating Harbour’ joins the River Avon, observe some of Bristol’s industrial past (and present) as well as having a nice chug through some pleasant countryside. Lunch can be taken at either pub or onboard before returning via the reciprocal route either straight to pull-out or to another over-night on your berth.

    I will be assisting those going home on Sunday to pull out and suggest that you steam straight to the Cottage Pub slipway and moor up on the dinghy pontoons whilst preparing to pull out. This is when a degree of tact and cooperation is required as there will be a large number of other users all wanting to access the slip at this time. I will try to referee and coordinate with the other ‘team leaders’, but please be patient and cooperative in order to ensure that all goes as smoothly as possible.

    I will also be in attendance on Monday morning to assist those of you that are pulling out. In some years we have had more of a ‘traffic jam’ at the slip on Monday than we had on Sunday afternoon, so please note the comments above and I am sure it will all go ‘swimmingly’.

    Any queries, please contact me on 01275 331074 or Mobile: 0790 528 6711 or via email Kevin@ManorFarmEngineering.co.UK
    or snail mail: Manor Farm, Scot Lane, Chew Stoke, BS40 8UW.

    We look forward to seeing you all.

    Kevin & Gillie Slater

     

     

    The Member of the SBA coordinating with the Event Organiser is Kevin Slater.

     

    Event type 2 

    Key to event types

    1 - SBA Organised Event (owner's declaration required)

    2 - SBA organised participation in 3rd party's event (owner's declaration required)

    In event types 1 and 2 the SBA organisers and SBA members are covered by the SBA Liability Insurance.

    3 - private meeting of members with or without boats

    4 - private, individual participation of members in 3rd party's event

    5 - for information only


    • 27 Aug 2025
    • 09:00
    • 31 Aug 2025
    • 17:00
    • Dartmouth Yacht Club , Devon
    Register

    STEAMBOATS AT THE DARTMOUTH  REGATTA

    DARTMOUTH YACHT CLUB

    27TH -31ST AUGUST 2025


    Outline of Programme

    Wednesday am - launch at Totnes and steam to Dartmouth.

    Thursday evening - steam to Tuckenhay or Stoke Gabriel and return Friday (tbc)

    Saturday pm - Classic Boat Parade

    Sunday - steam to Totnes and haul out.

    For further details please contact Dave Biss on dave_biss@hotmail.com

    Boat owners please complete the attached Boat Declaration Form and return to Dave Biss as soon as possible but before the event.

    declaration_form sba.pdf

    This is a Type 2 Rally

    Key to event types

    1 - SBA Organised Event (owner's declaration required)

    2 - SBA organised participation in 3rd party's event (owner's declaration required)

    In event types 1 and 2 the SBA organisers and SBA members are covered by the SBA Liability Insurance; 

    3 - private meeting of members with or without boats

    4 - private, individual participation of members in 3rd party's event

    5 - for information only









    • 12 Sep 2025
    • 10:00 - 16:30
    • Fell Foot, Windermere
    Register

    Following three successful Keeping your Feet Dry events, we are now embarking on our fourth event.

    The venue again will be the Fell Foot, the National Trust's place at the southern end of Windermere on Friday 12th September 2025.

    It designed to be inexpensive, will be for a maximum of 16 people and will be highly informative and hands-on, with time on the water and the opportunity enjoy operating small marine steam plants of different kinds.

    It's the ideal starting point if you are thinking of getting a steam boat, or just want to know more and is open to all.

    Registration for trainees is now open.

    Further information here. A risk assessment is available here.

    The handout which will be provided at the event may be downloaded here.

    Owners of boats participating (Instructors) please register for the event and complete the event declaration form which can be found here

    • 10 Oct 2025
    • 12 Oct 2025
    • Royal Windermere Yacht Club
    Register

    The Lay-up Rally is booked for Friday 10th October to Sunday 12 October. We thought, after about 15 years of much the same programme, we might change it a bit:

    Friday - launch and steam in the North Lake or Bowness Bay. As in previous years, bar snacks will be available at the RWYC in the evening.

    Saturday - steam in the South Lake, with lunch at Fell Foot: picnic or pay-as-you-go at the café. Return for the Lay-up Supper at the RWYC in the evening - a menu choice form  will be available in due course

    Sunday - Steam in the North Lake. Visit Windermere Jetty Museum at lunchtime; picnic or pay-as-you-go at the café. Return to the Yacht Club to haul out.

    Please indicate on the registration form if you expect to go to the cafés - no commitment.

    Launching facilities for small boats will be available at RWYC, others can launch at the Ferry Nab. All boats must have a Windermere registration, which can be obtained on-line from the Lake District National Park office in Kendal. It can no longer be bought at the slipway. All boats must submit a declaration, which can be downloaded here.

    Please note the Risk Assessment and a new experimental document, the Skippers' Safety Briefing.

    Location, launching and mooring information

    Some suggestions for accomodation:

    Accomodation2021.pdf

    For further details, or to express an interest, contact Roger Calvert.

    Event type 1

    Key to event types

    1 - SBA Organised Event (owner's declaration required)

    2 - SBA organised participation in 3rd party's event (owner's declaration required)

    In event types 1 and 2 the SBA organisers and SBA members are covered by the SBA Liability Insurance; 

    3 - private meeting of members with or without boats

    4 - private, individual participation of members in 3rd party's event

    5 - for information only



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