Up the GU down the Oxford and Round the Thames?

[nmptwentyone]

I want to do the circuit. leaving from blisworth (or as far north as i can get and still manage to go to work). Two weeks holiday. could i get to Hemel Hempsted (GU)? Whats the thames like on a nb? what do you need to be able to do it?

[KenK]

Don't know much about the GU and how far you could get depends on how hard you want to work. I did Great Hayward to Banbury in five days on my own but I would not call it a holiday. The North Oxford is straightforward, the south meanders a bit and has lots of swing / lift bridges not so many locks.

 

The non tidal Thames is easy, all the locks are manned during the day, it's wide compared to a canal and when we did it at Easter it was very quiet. Finding moorings can be a pain, they are not clearly signed in many cases and you often have to pay. We found boatyards full of cabin cruisers, not much space for Narrowboats, so getting rid of rubbish etc. was sometimes a problem.

You should have an anchor and life-jackets are recommended especially for kids. Tidal section you need a VHF radio, mooring and navigation lights and I would suggest some experience. EA have a useful booklet on their Thames website which you can download.

 

Enjoy the trip, hope you get good weather.

 

 

Ken

[WJM]

quick interjection to KenK's info - if your plans are for the Thames only upstream of Brentford (GU mainline junction) then you will not need a VHF radio and license - although Brentford to Teddington is Port of London, they allow narrowboats through this part without VHF. You would be a fool to go out on the tideway without an anchor, and lifejackets are not a bad idea either, the Thames is a wide river. Also, you wont need Nav lights unless you intend to run at night, which is unlikely because the locks are not manned at night (apart from Teddington)

 

I think you can do this circuit in two weeks - Canalplan puts it at 11 days - 98 hours, 247 miles with 174 locks

Edited May 31, 2007 by WJM

[Keeping Up]

It's certainly possible to complete the entire circuit in 2 weeks. In fact with a crew it is perfectly possible in only 10 days (although that doesn't allow a lot of time for sight-seeing).

 

You don't need a radio on the river between Tedington and Brentford, but an anchor and life-jackets are definitely recommended. It's all quite easy and relatively straightforward on the Thames. The hardest part of the journey is the southern GU with its heavy locks.

 

Allan

[Adam]

How deep is the thames?

[Sam]

How deep is the thames?

 

one would have though that it varies, depending on how far down the course you are.

[tony collins]

How deep is the thames?

 

Depends where you are. In the book "Ups and Downs of a Lockkeeper" One lockie tells the tale of a a kerfuffle below the tail of a lock (Can't remember which one) Where a steerer missed the jetty and went the wrong side of it. In the confusion a crew member fell overboard. He was thrashing about shouting for help "I can't swim!" etc. The lockie shouted out the the skipper to go round again and have another go. To unfortunate in the water went the instruction. "You in the Water! - Stand up!" which he did and ithe water came just above his knees. I know parts of the canal which six or eight feet deep, so the depth of the Thames is almost irrelevant. Wear a lifejacket and you'll float anyway.

 

Tony

[Adam]

one would have though that it varies, depending on how far down the course you are.

 

I ment at the tower bridge

[Sam]

I ment at the tower bridge

 

 

Fair enough

 

Pretty deep i would guess.

[KenK]

quick interjection to KenK's info - if your plans are for the Thames only upstream of Brentford (GU mainline junction) then you will not need a VHF radio and license - although Brentford to Teddington is Port of London, they allow narrowboats through this part without VHF.

 

However if you don't have VHF they do require that you contact the PLA Duty Officer at Woolwich 020 8855 0315 both at the start and end of the transit.

 

Ken

[WJM]

"However if you don't have VHF they do require that you contact the PLA Duty Officer at Woolwich 020 8855 0315 both at the start and end of the transit"

 

 

 

I think that is the theory only - in practice you dont need to - the lockies usually ring each other to let each other know you are on the way.

[NB Willawaw]

As its tidal, it depends on whether you are measuring at high tide, low tide, chart datum etc.

From recollection, its in the magnitude of 10m in the Pool of London. I've got a chart somewhere in the drawer

if you want a more precise answer.

 

I ment at the tower bridge