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On the Thames


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Hi TC,

 

Did you make it up to Lechlade? - it's lovely between Oxford and there.....

 

Great drone shot.

 

M

 

 

Have they cut the miles of 8ft high reeds down then?

 

And straightened out the interminable bends?

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We didn't quite make it all the way up to Lechlade but turned at Kelmscott, sadly the manor wasnt open and it was too windy for aerial photography plus the RAF were flying over quite low. Got a very nice mooring there right by the sign that said welcome to moor for 48hrs.

I had to put the bend in the boat to get it round some of the corners :) Actually I didn't have any problems getting round the bends I just took it slow and didn't cut the corners.

 

Top Cat

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We have just cruised slowly down the Thames from Lechlade to Dukes Cut, where we have (reluctantly, as we SO loved the Thames) turned back on to the Oxford Canal. The upper Thames was so quiet, all the boaters we met so friendly, especially the cruiser-owners, we had lots of good chats while sharing locks. The lock-keepers were so friendly and helpful. Plenty of moorings available all along the river, much quieter than when we last cruised up there. It was a joy!!

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  • 2 weeks later...

I lived on a 60 foot narrowboat for 6 years. I now have a GRP cruiser on the Thames.

There is a 'pecking order' ...I have a 27 foot single tier cruiser.....others look down on me...I look up to them.

I give others a wave....some wave back...some not.

Some narrowboats wave...some not....I always wave..

Its a bit like the 'tickover versus full speed' argument.

 

My cruiser is vulnerable.

It is easy to scratch the gelcoat..and once that is done..water ingress may follow over the years.

Maybe..people do not realise that GRP is not waterproof...?...that only the gelcoat holds the water back...?

Hence....I have large fenders...to avoid this ever happening.

Over the years..scratched gelcoat will lead to water ingress and bubbling or osmosis.

Its very difficult to correct that...grinding back large areas..and drying out...

I viewed several boats..where there were large areas needing repair due to a simple scratch.

 

Narrowboats are way heavier than me...but a cruiser with 500HP dual engines...and inexperienced skipper..can do just as much damage. All boats can cause damage.

 

It's not fair to tar us all with the same brush...

 

I thought better than that...from my narrowboat friends...

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