BOATING on Talkin Tarn is under threat – with franchise owner Peter Scott looking for a lifeline.
High costs, lack of customers and bad weather could sink the business which is such a feature of the Brampton beauty spot.
Mr Scott took over the franchise eight years ago with the aim of creating a full time job for his 27-year-old son Ryan, a leisure and tourism graduate.
But increasing costs and poor trade have forced Mr Scott to appeal to the city council and local firms to help secure a future for the business.
Mr Scott pays £1,350 a year to the city council for the franchise of the boats.
On top of this he must pay up to £500 public liability insurance.
The cost of hiring a boat for 30 minutes is £4.
He said: “We are really struggling to make a decent wage out of this. Nobody wants to see the boats go but it costs a lot to put them there.
“When people think of the Tarn they think of the boats.”
Mr Scott, who runs an agricultural merchants, said that trade began to fall when the nearby caravan park was closed.
He added: “We used to get people from Northumberland and Hexham using the boats and fishing.
“But this trade has dwindled now and local people do not use the boats which is a shame.”
Mr Scott, who lives in Stanwix in Carlisle, said: “The plan was to have Ryan running the business and then the rest of the family would help out at weekends and holidays when it was busy, but it hasn’t panned out like that.
“It is not easy but I think some people think we are making a fortune.
“During the Easter holidays Ryan manned the boats every day but made very little money.
“But when it is good it is really good – it is a great job and beautiful place to work.”
Mr Scott said that he had appealed to the city council for help but was told that, if the council took over the running of the service, it would only be staffed occasionally, rather than every day.
“The boats would slip back into disrepair and the dirty condition in which we found them, ” said Mr Scott.
“It is a tourist attraction. The boats are very traditional but there appears to be a death knell clanging away.
“If we could attract some help, that would be great – like ask local companies to help sponsor boats for say £500 each. But part of me thinks we shouldn’t have to go cap in hand asking for money.
“The city council seem prepared to just let the business rot.”
Mr Scott has now appealed to Brampton parish council for help and they have invited him to their next meeting to discuss how they could help.
At a meeting last week Councillor Connie Ridley voiced her support for the boats.
She said: “Mr Scott is trying his hardest but finding it very hard.
“We don’t want to lose amenities – we want to keep them.”
County councillor Geoff Prest, said it would be a “great pity” of the boats were not there.
A spokesman for Carlisle City Council said that it supported the boat hire and added that all fees levied were reinvested.
He said: “We have invested significantly in the business in recent years and continue to do so, having provided new jetties, a safety boat and all of its fuel, the replacement of all life jackets, the annual operators licence, advertising in council publications and we meet frequently with the operators to support their venture as much as possible.
“Additionally the city council last year hosted a ‘Have a go Water Sports Day’ to encourage the use of the water sports facilities at the Tarn, which will be repeated this year on Sunday June 8.”
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