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A Blog of my trip starting 15th May

Entries in this blog

Friday 18th June - The Grand Tour is Over :(

And before I realise it's happened, I'm down the Napton flight (a few boats about) and back to Napton Junction to complete the Thames Ring (perhaps I should have brought champagne?) Weather is cloudy, but warmish, then I arrive at a deserted Calcutt Top Lock, only to find it very busy for the other 2, in fact I don't really have to get off the boat as the other boat has plenty of crew. And back into Ventnor Farm to start cleaning up and packing, in fact I'd just cleaned one side of the boat and
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Thursday 17th June

Started the day off with a bang! Bashed my head on the underside of the hatch - ouch! don't remember ever doing that before! 07.30 and away I go, not meeting another boat until the middle Claydon lock, and the second at the top! Canal as shallow as ever, only met 2 oncoming boats in the long narrow bit, but it got a bit more exciting just beyond Fenny Compton wharf, NB Carrow (deep draught) pulled away in front of me at the other side of the bridge and made very slow progress by all the moored b
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Wednesday 16th June

Ok, I'm officially insane! Set off at 0630, couldn't help myself, latest book was finished and there wasn't a cloud in site! Aynho weir lock is another weirdly shaped one making the boat difficult to handle, but very shallow, so not too bad! Went through Nell bridge and King's Sutton locks before I saw another boat on the move! They were all cooking breakfast and the like! Really good that all the lift bridges along this part of the canal are left up! So, tied up in Banbury at 10.30, would have
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Tuesday 15th June

Hmmm - 0730 again! Still, It'll stand me in good stead for the much dreaded return to work on Monday. A very pleasant looking morning, becoming more cloudy as it wore on. Had the canal to myself (surprise surprise!) Found a boat untied, but couldn't do anything and a naked bloke on the side of his boat - he disappeared when he saw me approaching! then at Lower Heyford, lucky me meets an oncoming boat at the lift bridge, no balancing act with the boathook! Then at Allens, Heyford Common and Somer
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Monday 14th June

And it rained - most of the evening and some of the night! I set off at 7.30 (I do mad things when I'm single handing!) with it looking like it had more rain to offer, but it held off! Cruised the last remaining couple of miles of Thames to Kings Lock, where I turned left at the top into Dukes Cut, passing the lines of queuing cars off to real life. I saw the remains of the fallen tree that had closed the cut a few days ago and went into the stop lock - my first narrow lock of the trip, shortly
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Sunday 13th June

A lie in listening to the rain! Which soon stops. Penny packs her bags, a bit of a sort out in the boat and we move the couple of hundred yards to tie up outside the Rose Revived. Kim duly arrives, I take another beer and we have lunch in the sunshine. Kim and Penny return to the real world and I'm all alone! So, an afternoon cruise to about 1/2 a mile below Eynsham Lock on something that might be a mooring! It shows one in Nicholsons and there's no 'no mooring' sign and the arrival of the farme
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Saturday 12th June

Hmmm late posting today as I got back to the boat last night after beer and nearly 2 bottles of wine! So now I'm struggling to remember yesterday! Weather was cool and windy to start, but the day got better as it went on. Wildlife count was 2 curlews and 2 kingfishers today, we also got to see the red arrows who appeared to be in the vicinity of Fairford. A couple of cows tried to get onto the boat during the night, a noisy process in which they didn't succeed, they did manage some more lick mar
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Friday 11th June

Dull and overcast this morning, but soon cheered up with a very nice bacon roll! A steady plod along the 6 miles and up the 3 locks to Lechlade, as good as on our own again, at St Johns lock just before lechlade we were the first boat through this morning and it was now 11.00! We were amused by the tame ducks at Buscot lock, apparantly the keeper was feeding them in march when the weather was bad and they kept coming back. The wildlife this morning extended to another kingfisher and a curlew. We
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Thursday 10th June

And away we go again, very overcast, chilly, windy and looking distinctly like it's going to pour down at any minute! But, undaunted (me anyway!) we head off towards Lechlade. Uneventful cruising, it's like we're the only boat on the river! At Eynsham lock we discover that Dukes Cut is closed due to a fallen tree, hopefully it'll be cleared before I need to muse it on Monday, otherwise it's a 6 mile detour! The river is now very Wey like, trees, fields and twisty turny, in fact it's a bit samey
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Wednesday 9th June

And the day probably dawned, if we could have seen it that is! It's raining, can't complain, been out for nearly 4 weeks and had the umbrella up for less than 30 minutes in total, not bad methinks! So, through Clifton Lock, the first one we've done fully ourselves (before 9.00 so self service) Then by the proposed site for the Wilts and Berks canal junction, on on into Abingdon by the original junction site. Abingdon looked quite nice from the river's perspective, don't know why, but I was under
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Tuesday 8th June

It seemed to rain all night, but I think being moored under a tree may have contributed to this thinking, but it did rain a lot, indeed, it started again as I was about to get going, so we delayed this to about 10.00 when it seemed to have stopped. The final bit of all our yesterdays (I think!) I remember doing a walk a couple of times from Pangbourne to Goring, this is what we cruised first today. Goring very pretty, but the lock keeper definitely gets the most miserable to date award! All the
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Monday 7th June

Little bits of yesterday in today! Marlow to Pangbourne, through Henley, Wargrave & Reading, bits of the river frequented by me in many places in years gone by. Off around 8.30 or so and through Hurley, memories of Venture Scout canoeing here, then on through Hambledon, canoeing again and the many camps had in the area. Then stopped in Henley for lunch and a walk about, saw NB Hobo (the boat who accompanied us along the tideway the second time) and I forgot to say yesterday we also got waved
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Sunday 6th June

My fourth Sunday of the trip, but alas the penultimate one! A bit strange today, passing through all those places where I've previously spent many hours on the bank, so to speak. Windsor to Maidenhead, where I walked on my scout standard 6 mile hike, the sounding arch at Maidenhead where I spent many hours with my Father fishing for barbel, passing within a mile or so of where I was born in Taplow, Maidenhead to Cookham where I remember walking with a girl from school, Formosa Island where we sp
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Saturday 5th June

Last day on the Wey! Just as hot as yesterday so the first couple of hours before the sun really gets up are very pleasant. Tom and Tasha very keen to get on with the few remaining Wey locks, Penny just sat and watched! Through Thames Lock with no delays this time and back out onto the Thames and the left turn to Shepperton Lock. No problems handling the boat in the enormous Thames Locks and plain sailing to Staines where we tied up for a rest and lunch and ice cream. Onwards through Bell Weir L
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Friday 4th June

Up early and the news from home regarding the overflow is not good! So off to find a taxi to go and sort it out. £90 later and the ball valve tied up (it's the central heating header tank!) I'm helping Penny with the Sainsburys shopping trolley and having a chat with Isander who tied up on the service dock next to us. So, rubbished, watered and Sainsburyed we set off just after 10 to find the Farncombe day boat training session taking place at Catteshall lock. We watch and wait very patiently an
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Thursday 3rd June

Up we get and not a cloud in sight - again! A pretty river, twisting and turning, the trees and fields hiding the everpresent suberbia of Woking and Guildford. Newark Priory was a very interesting looking ruin. Through Guildford and a welcome ice cream at Millmead lock and on towards Godalming. Removed plants and cans from the roof for the very low Broadford Bridge, a chat with the Harley Davidson girls taking a lunch break at Unstead lock, at least I know where to go and get an MOT now. And at
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Wednesday 2nd June

So the day dawns bright and clear! And off we go at 07.30 or so up the big wide river! Molesey and Sunbury locks, all narrowboats, you could get 9 to a lock!! Then Shepperton and the left turn for the Wey. Oddly, 6 boats arrive at Thames lock within 10 minutes of each other and it takes us nearly 2 hours from arriving to exit the lock, armed with expensive license and loaned windlass and instructions on how to handle your boat in a lock, I've only done several thousand so found this a bit strang
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Tuesday 1st June

A really good night's sleep, not getting up till after nine. Then off for a restock at Tesco, just as it's starting to rain! A walk round the whole basin, then back to the boat as it's raining a bit harder now. Time for me to catch up with the blog, and Penny knocks up a very tasty bacon and egg roll - yum! Lots of coffee, then the wait for our 14.00 departure. A Lee Valley hire boat ties up alongside - I didn't think hire boats were allowed on the tideway! What with VHF requirements and the lik
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Monday 31st May

Feeling a lot better than the previous morning, we have coffee and thanks to the wind being in our favour, wriggle out of the mooring, turn round and head back to Little Venice. It's very quiet, but it is only 08.00 or so. then along the Regents canal we go again! Lots of incredibly expensive looking houses and the towpath becoming increasingly busy as the day goes on. As we approach Actons Lock, there's a boat waiting for us, in the ensuing chat, they find out I'm heading back up the Thames and
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Sunday 30th May

Happy Birthday Tim! Wake up with head ache, I'm not surprised! Unblock toilet, make tea / coffee, and up the Hanwell flight we go. A boat is going up a couple of locks ahead of us, so Stephen does a grand job walking ahead and setting them all for us, we need water, so the law of sod dictates that all the active boats need it too! Never mind, there's always the next one. Chris produces a most welcome set of bacon / sausage rolls for brunch, then law of sod applies for the second time as we start
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Saturday 29th May

05.30 - Alarm clock goes off - ouch! A quick coffee and off the the station for the return trip to Limehouse, Wake new crew (Chris, Dave and Stephen) for tea, coffee etc and find out what happened at the SPCC safety briefing last night. Off to Frank's cafe for a good old fry up, a stock up of essential supplies at Tesco's then to hang around chatting to the SPCC guys for recommended moorings between Brentford and Bull's Bridge. Owned up to not having enough life jackets for the whole crew and th
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Friday 28th May

Off with clear skies, down the lock at Tottenham and onto the Springfield service dock for pump-out and diesel. Then onwards. Gentle cruising by the Olympic site as far as Old Ford Lock which had a boat in it and shut gates! So, onto the landing and off to investigate. They've been there all night, the gates wont open and are waiting for BW. So being a bit impatient, I leant through the window of the control room and pressed the reset button, the gates duly opened, but one of the top paddles sta
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Thursday 27th May

Hmmm... it's raining!! And I really must try not to moor under trees, the boat is a right mess this morning! Anyway, we continue our return along the Lee in that horrible drizzly stuff that gets you soaked without realising! But after the 3rd lock (Waltham Common) it stopped and we seemed to travel in a blue, sunny hole in the cloud! The blanket weed was really bad between Waltham Common and Enfield locks, but no visits to the hatch! Waited in Pickett's lock while I hosed down the boat to try to
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Wednesday 26th May

Another lazy start, cruised about 200 yards and pulled onto the water point for a fill up and rubbish disposal, this done, cruised the next 200 yards to Hertford lock and away we went! Through Ware lock and passed a widebeam coming the other way - the first moving boat we've seen for a couple of days! Only to find the second turning in front of us! It proceeded at tickover (we weren't in a hurry so no matter!) to Hardmead lock which we shared - the first since somewhere before Marsworth on the G
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Tuesday 25th May

A nice long lay in this morning, it's been hard going in the wonderful weather of the past few days! Set off around 10ish after trying to explain to the guy next door as to why he couldn't get his widebeam onto the Nene without setting to sea or using a lorry, I'm still not sure he got it! Much better boating weather now, cloudy with occaisional sunny outbreaks and a few notches down on the temperature scale. A gentle plod along the remaining 4 miles and 4 locks of the Lee to Hertford, passing t
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