"By 'eck" - it was a windy one

Saturday, 02 April 2011 13:01

Pronounce "windy" two ways and you have our cruise in a nutshell! It was blowing very hard at Lechlade when we left and didn't let up all day!

Going upstream under Halfpenny Bridge

After negotiating our turn around at Inglesham, we made for St John's Lock around the meadows. The lock was a little sheltered and the Lock Keeper was on duty. "Thames Time" is very different to "Canal Time" - we wait for the Keepers to help and for other boaters, no matter how small .....

Above Halfpenny Bridge at Lechlade are private moorings and Lechlade Marina - it has two entrances and looks as it it might have diesel and other boater facilities. It was all very quiet and "off season" as we passed!

Lechlade Marina

Yesterday's blog told you all about the junction at Inglesham and our tight turn around! Now we are on our way downstream and will be for some considerable time to come! Once we were in St John's Lock, a couple of canoes arrived. After a chat to the Lock Keeper, they realised that they needed a licence and that they could come down in the lock with us, and so they eventually joined us!

In St John's Lock, the smallest lock on the Thames, but big enough to take a million cans of coke.

The canoeists had no idea what to expect - nor did they know how a lock works. Now they do! A couple of narrowboats arrived below the lock - that made 3 narrowboats we had seen on the move. The Lock Keeper said he had not seen so many in one day for a long time - nor had we!

Narrowboats below St John's Lock

John has done his back in, so I was on the tiller for a fair bit of the time and had fun coping with the wind and the other "windy" word. There are a few really tight bends on the way to Buscot Lock and then more again further downstream.

Grafton Lock has a handsome Lock House, built in 1896. The area is an SSSI and it was here we saw our first ducklings of the year.

Grafton Lock House

Like Grafton, Radcot Lock was self service but the wind was blowing so hard it was difficult to get off the lock landing! A good shove at the bows from John and plenty of welly and I got Epiphany in! At Radcot Lock there is competition for "Froggy" at Rushey Lock. Back in 1906 the Keeper here took the prize for the prettiest show between Lechlade and Oxford.

Face topiary

It was about time to moor - we had had a battle with the wind behind us and fast downstream current so we had to find somewhere fairly easy to get into. Inattention, wind and a slight miscalculation has sent us into the trees at one point! I will not tell tales as to who was on the tiller! As we came in to moor, John's back went into spasm so I had to knock the pins in, haul the bow in and tie up. Phew!

River Thames, Lechlade to Inglesham. 0.18 minutes, 0.6 miles, 0 locks
River Thames, Inglesham to Tenfoot Bridge. 5 hours 4 minutes, 12.75 miles, 5 locks