Update - Life's too Short will be on sale at Tingdene Thames and Kennet Marina, early in June 2022

We're Changing Our Boat!

After almost 6 years with Life's too Short we have decided we want to try the canal network, this means buying a narrowboat! We've spent quite a lot of time researching the options (something I hope to document online sometime) and we've booked a build slot with Finesse Boats. Delivery won't be until early 2024 so we have plenty of time to decide exactly what we want, but current plans are for:

• 62' Cruiser Stern
• Reverse layout (bedroom at the bow, bathroom, lounge, pullman diner and galley at the stern)
• Serial hybrid (electric motor, large lithium battery pack, 9kW diesel generator)
• 10kW inverter, full mains power on board, no need for gas

Lots more detail to work through of course, I hope to blog it as we go!

What does this mean for our Viking 295? Well obviously we need to sell Life's too Short to raise funds towards the new boat (name is TBD) but there's no rush, we'll carry on using and caring for her. However, if someone was seriously interested in a V295 and didn't want to wait for a new one to be built then we would consider selling early so she could be available spring 2022 - feel free to contact me to discuss if you want to.

Grubby's tips for a Lechlade Trip!

OK, where do I start? I hope this bit helps and doesn't put anyone off - it really is so beautiful up past Oxford, it's worth making the trip (if you like the feeling of being in the middle of nowhere!), but life is made even better with a bit of forward planning.

Planning - at least have an idea of where you plan to be at the end of each day. We chose to allow 3 long days to get from Bray to Lechlade and for reasons explained in the blog we still didn't get there. It's OK doing the long days but you need to think about how tiring it can be, where to pick up water and petrol and don't forget you need to empty the pot as well! Use my guide to help plan, I made this 5 years ago and it's in the 'roughly right' level of accuracy - Time and Distance Table

Water - Our Viking tank should hold 120l but it never feels like it is as much as that so we try to top up frequently and we only drink bottled water. We always fill the toilet cistern at the same time (using the shower!). As mentioned, the EA taps are now much slower, you need your own 7m maximum hose and you might encounter queues - so be prepared. I'll add a list of facilities available at each lock at the end of this section. The most important one though has to be Abingdon above the lock - no more EA water points until you get to Eynsham lock which is some way to go (and the most useless tap we tried to use).

Petrol - we started with 70l on board (2 x 25l tanks and a 20l jerry can) which is more than the regulations suggest. We used 115l on the round trip so clearly we had to top up a couple of times. Abingdon is quite good (we picked up 45l here on the way up). The petrol station is just past Waitrose, quite easy to find. Petrol is also available in Lechlade (it's the other side of town though, a bit of a walk). On the way back we picked up 20l from the station in Wallingford which is a short walk. Further downstream from Bray we used to stop at the Bells of Ouzley and Chertsey Bridge to get fuel, handy if you are coming from that far.

Chemical disposal. Abingdon again (Abingdon sounds a bit like Base Camp for this trip!), but also a number of  other locks have disposal points (see the list below). We also carry a spare cassette so we can swap over if we don't manage to empty it straight away.

Refuse disposal. Details of refuse points on the list below, it's worth getting rid of a small bag every time you can rather than carrying a huge smelly rubbish bag with you all week!

Sunken boats! Sadly there are still many sunken boats on the river (some have been like it for years) - one to note in particular is in the middle of the stream, on a bend just up from Abingdon! No marker bouys or warnings. Pass on the left going up stream and stay well clear.

Bridges. Obviously many bridges could be hit - but once past Oxford they get much lower and narrower. Osney is low but fairly wide (it also has water spraying from a leaking pipe on the upstream side just to the right of the centre of the arch so something/someone might get wet). But as long as everything is folded down and the river isn't in flood (follow Osney Lock on Twitter to get an idea of river level) you go through no problem. Godstow is probably the worst to get through because it's hard to line up for. Newbridge and Radcot are also a problem in a side breeze or strong current. Make sure things are folded flat, the bow-thruster is armed and that you line up well. If it looks bad, reverse and have another go.

Trees, floating debris and twisty bits. Once past Kings lock the river starts to get quite twisty so forward vision is often limited, this means your pace will be a bit slower. In some places the trees are really over grown and some have fallen. There is plenty of space, but just be aware and keep a good look out - including for floating logs!

Provisions. There's not many easy places to pick up bread and milk once upstream of Oxford. If you moor before Osney Bridge (East Street moorings) there is a Sainsbury's Local not far away, if you are running low on anything this is really your last chance before Lechlade.

Moorings. We know the river quite well and have many spots we particularly like, but when the river is busy places can fill early in the day. On our first day we had hoped for Pangbourne Meadow (which was full) but we knew plan B was Beale Park where I think you'd be very unlucky to not get a spot. Henley has loads of moorings (either on the park town side below Marsh Lock) or on the meadow on the opposite side after the bridge (depending on Henley Regatta of course!). Abingdon has a good number of moorings, Wallingford not bad but not always available. Once past Oxford there are plenty of bank-side moorings available - some a bit more accessible than others, but lots of places to bank the stakes in and enjoy the peace. Also there are moorings at many locks, Kings Lock in particular is a lovely mooring just the other side of Oxford (good for the last night before Godstow and Osney on the return).

Lastly enjoy it, take your time, take lots of photos and make happy memories. I know that sometimes I get stressed about some of the hire boaters who seem incapable of managing the boat, or the people speeding and creating a wash, the inconsiderate moorers who leave half a boat length gap and of course those who haven't mastered lock etiquette (move up on the laybys, move up in the locks to allow more people in!) - yes these things could easily drive you mad but try not to let them, be patient, take your time and relax. A decent bottle of red sometimes helps!

The following information is pinched from the EA (I have it printed out and left on the boat, it comes in handy). I can't vouch that it is correct and up to date! You can also look at Thames Vistor Moorings for more information.

Short stay mooring

Unless signs state otherwise, you are allowed to moor for up to 24 hours at Environment Agency short stay moorings.

You may have to pay a fee at some sites, either for mooring at any time, or after an initial free period.

Signs will usually show any applicable conditions and charges payable. By mooring, you are agreeing to them.

Call 03708 506 506 if you have any queries, including if you want to pre-book a short stay mooring. Please note, pre-booking is only available at selected locks.

Where you can find Environment Agency short stay moorings:

• Lechlade - Riverside Pub

• St John’s Lock - downstream

• Buscot Lock - upstream

• Shifford Lock - upstream

• Northmoor Lock - upstream

• Eynsham Lock - upstream

• Eynsham Lock - downstream

• Kings Lock - upstream

• Kings Lock - downstream

• Oxford - East Street

• Iffley Lock - upstream

• Iffley Lock - downstream

• Sandford Lock - upstream

• Sandford Lock - downstream

• Abingdon Lock - upstream

• Culham Lock - upstream

• Clifton Lock - upstream

• Days Lock - upstream

• Benson Lock - upstream

• Cleeve Lock - downstream

• Goring Lock - upstream

• Goring Lock - downstream

• Goring - downstream of Goring Bridge

• Reading - Scours Lane (moor with care - water depth variable)

• Sonning - for 950 metres upstream of Sonning Lock (moor with care - water depth variable)

• Shiplake Lock - upstream

• Wargrave - opposite Lashbrook

• Hurley Lock - downstream

• Temple Lock - upstream

• Marlow - downstream of Marlow Lock

• Cookham Lock - downstream

• Boveney - opposite Maidenhead Road

• Boveney - downstream of Eton boathouse

• Boveney Lock - downstream

• Egham - towpath 620 metres upstream of Bell Weir Lock

• Bell Weir Lock - downstream

• Laleham - towpath between Blacksmiths Lane and Vicarage Lane

• Weybridge - opposite Shepperton Lock Island (Weybridge Point)

• Desborough - downstream end of Desborough Island on old river

• Walton - towpath opposite Shepperton Marina

• Walton - opposite Beasley’s Ait (Gridley Miskin)

• Sunbury - Weir Hotel

• Molesey - Hurst Park

• Molesey Lock - upstream

• Kingston - Railway Wharf

• Teddington Lock - upstream

Lock locations and other facilities

We have extended the cleaning contract of our public toilets until the end of May, so that they can remain open. For any sites that are not included in this contract, the public toilets will remain closed.

All showers at River Thames lock sites remain closed.

Many River Thames lock sites have additional facilities such as toilets, drinking water or waste disposal points. This list gives a guide of what is usually available. Some facilities may not be available at all times.

St John’s

• toilet

• drinking water tap (for portable containers only)

• electric charging point

• chemical toilet disposal

• sewage pump-out

• recycling facilities

• refuse disposal

Buscot

• toilet

• shower

Grafton

• toilet

• shower

• water hose (for bulk supplies)

Radcot

• toilet

• drinking water tap (for portable containers only)

• water hose (for bulk supplies)

Rushey

• toilet (accessible)

• shower

• drinking water tap (for portable containers only)

• chemical toilet disposal

• sewage pump-out (currently unavailable)

• recycling facilities

• refuse disposal

Shifford

• toilet

• shower

• water hose (for bulk supplies)

• electric charging point

Northmoor

• toilet

• shower

• drinking water tap (for portable containers only)

Pinkhill

• toilet

• shower

• drinking water tap (for portable containers only)

Eynsham

• toilet (accessible)

• shower

• drinking water tap (for portable containers only)

• water hose (for bulk supplies)

• chemical toilet disposal

• sewage pump-out

• recycling facilities

• refuse disposal

Kings

• drinking water tap (for portable containers only)

Godstow

No facilities.

Osney

• drinking water tap (for portable containers only)

Iffley

No facilities.

Sandford

• electric charging point

Abingdon

• drinking water tap (for portable containers only)

• water hose (for bulk supplies)

• chemical toilet disposal

• sewage pump-out

• refuse disposal

Culham

• toilet

• drinking water tap (for portable containers only)

Clifton

• drinking water tap (for portable containers only)

Days

• chemical toilet disposal

• refuse disposal

Benson

• drinking water tap (for portable containers only)

• electric charging point

Cleeve

• toilet

• drinking water tap (for portable containers only)

• water hose (for bulk supplies)

Goring

• drinking water tap (for portable containers only)

• electric charging point

• recycling facilities

• refuse disposal

Whitchurch

No facilities.

Mapledurham

• toilet (accessible)

• drinking water tap (for portable containers only)

• chemical toilet disposal

• sewage pump-out (currently unavailable)

• recycling facilities

• refuse disposal

Caversham

No facilities.

Sonning

• toilet

Shiplake

• toilet

• drinking water tap (for portable containers only)

• water hose (for bulk supplies)

• electric charging point

• chemical toilet disposal

• sewage pump-out

• refuse disposal

Marsh

No facilities.

Hambleden

• recycling facilities (glass only)

• refuse disposal

Hurley

• toilet (accessible)

• shower (available for overnight moorers and campers only)

• drinking water tap (for portable containers only)

• water hose (for bulk supplies)

• chemical toilet disposal

• refuse disposal

Temple

• toilet

• drinking water tap (for portable containers only)

Marlow

• toilet

• drinking water tap (for portable containers only)

Cookham

• toilet (accessible)

• shower

• water hose (for bulk supplies)

• electric charging point (currently unavailable)

• chemical toilet disposal

• refuse disposal

Boulters

• toilet (accessible)

• drinking water tap (for portable containers only)

Bray

• toilet (accessible)

Boveney

• toilet

• shower

• drinking water tap (for portable containers only)

• water hose (for bulk supplies)

• chemical toilet disposal

• sewage pump-out

• refuse disposal

Romney

• drinking water tap (for portable containers only)

Old Windsor

• toilet

• drinking water tap (for portable containers only)

• electric charging point

Bell Weir

• toilet

Penton Hook

• toilet

• drinking water tap (for portable containers only)

• refuse disposal

Chertsey

• drinking water tap (for portable containers only)

• water hose (for bulk supplies)

Shepperton

• toilet (accessible)

• drinking water tap (for portable containers only)

• chemical toilet disposal

Sunbury

• toilet (accessible)

• drinking water tap (for portable containers only)

• chemical toilet disposal

Molesey

• toilet

• drinking water tap (for portable containers only)

• water hose (for bulk supplies)

• electric charging point

• chemical toilet disposal

• sewage pump-out

• refuse disposal

Teddington

• toilet

• drinking water tap (for portable containers only)

Day 6 - Time to Relax

Today we enjoyed breakfast with fellow Viking owners Vicky and Terry, with whom we'd previously only spoken to through FaceBook! It was lovely to catch up with them and exchange our boating stories, breakfast at Java made it even nicer!

It's an easy walk into town from the moorings on the park, through a part of Abingdon I'd not walked through before. Also handy if you need to fill fuel cans (the petrol station is just a bit further on past Waitrose).

We set off at 11:20 and decided to make for Wallingford as it is another of the Thames side places we like.

At Culham Lock we caught a group of 5 smaller boats who were travelling together from Lechlade to somewhere, we couldn't all share Culham Lock (slightly too narrow) but we did all squeeze into Clifton Lock (on self-service) soon after. It's amazing what you can achieve with a little cooperation!

Clifton Lock

Once through Days Lock we moored on the services pontoon to empty the pot and then managed to hit the overhanging tree branches as we left (reversed back out and made it round on the second go!).

As we approached Benson Lock we saw a couple leaving Le Boat heading towards the lock, it was quite clear they'd never done this before and once in the lock cut they simply didn't know what to do! I spoke to them and asked "what did Le Boat tell you to do?"

"They just said to drive down here and the lock keeper would open the gates for us"

I really felt for them. They were in a large boat for 2 people and Le Boat had not given them any instruction so how were they supposed to know what to do? They weren't even aware at what the lock was for! We, together with the ever-patient lock-keeper got them through OK, but we did worry about whether they'd enjoy their relaxing break on the river or not as they made their way on full throttle!

It wasn't long before we arrived at Wallingford where we turned around and pulled into a space on the town side. We did the right thing by pulling up close to the boat in front to maximise the space behind for someone else to moor. I don't know if we should have been so generous though as a narrowboat 'The Count' which was clearly too long for the space approached at some speed to try to moor and failed miserably, leaving some of his blacking on the rear of our boat. If I hadn't been on the bank trying to slow him down (along with one of his crew on a rope) it would have been much worse. We were able to relax once Bernadette arrived and moored behind us (the same boat that had been behind us at Abingdon as it happened!). A lovely 1950's wooden boat hired from these people https://www.bygoneboating.co.uk/our-boats.

We went for a walk around Wallingford (about half the town was suffering from a power cut!) and picked up 20l of petrol.

Back at the mooring we got chatting with our neighbours, one of the other couples moored along this stretch recommended the fish and chips at the Coach and Horses. Off we went, what a fab recommendation that was, we were pleased to have taken their advice! It was a lovely place to sit outside for the evening as well before the rain set in later.

14 miles, 4 locks today.  Mooring fees were £12 (the first night we've had to pay so far!)

Timings -

11:20 - Left Abingdon
11:50 - Arrive Culham Lock
12:05 - Leave Culham Lock

12:35 - Arrive Clifton Lock (6 boats in, self-service)

12:45 - Leave Clifton Lock
13:15 - Arrive Days Lock
13:30 - Leave Days Lock (emptied the pot)

14:10 - Shillingford Bridge

14:25 - Arrive Benson Lock

14:40 - Leave Benson Lock

15:00 - Moored at Wallingford Town moorings (£12)

Day 5 - Back East of Oxford

Luckily we had plenty of bottled water to drink and brush teeth with, but we knew that today we had to get to Abingdon to fill the water tank again.

We had another lazy start to the day, we folded down the windscreen and made our way through Kings Lock by 10:00. The next 10 minutes were eerie, seemed to take longer than 10 minutes. We knew Godstow bridge was waiting for us, it's arches ready to pounce!

The downstream approach to the skewed Godstow Bridge.
The right hand arch with the overhanging tree is the route you need to take!

Soon we were through Godstow lock and sweeping around a very peaceful Port Meadow. As we entered the outskirts of Oxford Osney Bridge came into view. We double-checked everything was down and made our way through once more.

Plenty of room!

We moored on East Street and popped into Oxford to do some shopping. I found a lovely independent wine store so topped up the reserves a little!

The journey back to Abingdon was fine, the bridges all looked plenty big enough and apart from Sandford all the locks were manned, so our passage through was eased.

As we approached Abingdon we carefully passed the submerged boat in the centre of the channel and then had to queue for water. To call it mayhem is a bit strong, but there is simply not enough space on the services moorings for people who need to queue for water. A couple of hire boats (on from Le Boat and the other from Kris Cruisers) were giving a fine demonstration of how not to control a boat in the weir stream while trying to get somewhere close to the moorings - but there were a couple of us on the bank able to take ropes and shout instructions to those who were less experienced. All in good spirits and no harm done.

Eventually it was our turn. Someone had managed to tape over the vent holes on the stupid tap here which meant the flow was a bit better than others we'd used. Once we were topped-up with water we made our way through the lock and moored on the town side by the park (as we wanted to walk into town and this is the easiest way to do so).

Sandford Lock on self-service, seems to take ages but actually just an 8 minute fill

Moored at Abingdon

Today we treated ourselves to a pretty reasonably Indian takeaway from Abingdon Spice, then put the canopy back up for the first time in several days.

12 miles, 6 locks today.  About 10l of fuel?

Timings -

09:50 - Left the mooring at Kings Lock
10:00 - Leave Kings Lock
10:10 - Godstow Bridge
10:15 - Arrive Godstow Lock (self-service)
10:30 - Leave Godstow Lock

10:40 - The Perch Inn
10:45 - Rainbow Bridge
10:55 - Osney Bridge
11:00 - Moored on East Street (shopping time!)
12:50 - Left the mooring
12:55 - Arrive Osney Lock
13:00 - Leave Osney Lock
13:10 - Folly Bridge

13:20 - Donnington Road Bridge
13:25 - Arrive Iffley Lock
13:40 - Leave Iffley Lock
14:00 - Arrive Sandford Lock (busy, and on self-service)
14:30 - Leave Sandford Lock
15:35 - Arrive Abingdon Services
15:50 - Arrive Abingdon Lock
15:55 - Leave Abingdon Lock
16:10 - Moored on Abingdon Park (town side)

Day 4 - A Bridge too Far?

Today we were heading to Lechlade, the highest point we can visit in our boat (the river is navigable further but gets quite shallow). We didn't put the canopy up last night, one of those very rare times that we left it off - partly because there was little to no chance of rain but also because I wanted to really make sure the Araldite I used had plenty of time to fully harden.

We set off at a leisurely 09:45 and headed up through Radcot lock soon after. The next landmark was Radcot Bridge - not particularly tight but comes with a 'local knowledge' warning of awkward currents. As I approached the centre of the arch I could see the narrowboat ahead get dragged into the side of the arch and scrape its way through! Just before I was 'bows in' committed the current suddenly pushed us to starboard quite hard and with no real room to correct that I just went full astern and reversed out of it.

This is a photo from our 2016 blog when we went under Radcot Bridge OK!

At this point Caroline and I looked at one another and we agreed that it wasn't necessary to get to Lechlade, certainly not worth damaging the boat for anymore! So we turned around and quite solemnly started heading back downstream. It was a bit of a shame, only a couple of hours from Lechlade but we saw the current swirling through Radcot Bridge and that was enough for us to bail out.

Rushey Lock

On the way back we stopped to use the services at Rushey Lock (emptied the pot), Oxford Cruisers was packed with their hire boats so we couldn't top up with water there this time.

We desperately needed to top up our water so we joined the queue for the tap above Eynsham Lock. What a waste of time that was, the tap barely dribbled, it's to do with the 'anti-back-syphon' taps that the EA have fitted. They are simply dreadful. You can only use a maximum of 7m hose (otherwise the back-pressure is enough to stop the flow) so people have to moor very close to the taps, which just makes the moorings around the tap stupidly busy. Coupled with the very slow flow it makes for a very poor experience, they need to resolve this soon.

Topping up at Eynsham Lock

We gave up after half an hour of dribble and were soon at Kings Lock where we decided to moor on the lock island for the night. It is a lovely spot, we've stayed here before. You can just hear the rumble of traffic on the nearby A34 and A40, but not enough to detract from it being a great place to moor.

Our overnight spot at Kings Lock

It was a lovely evening so I carried on repairing the damage from the previous day. We were happy enough with the canopy frame now, the Araldite did the job (post-trip note - I have now bought replacement fittings and a few spares!). This meant taking a couple of sections of windscreen off so I could get to the damaged gelcoat (where the screen had pushed the hinge backwards) to repair this. I also needed to straighten the hinge pin and dress the scrapes on the top edge of the windscreen where it caught the bridge. It wasn't actually that bad at all and I quite enjoyed fixing it all. I took care to align the screens correctly when I refitted them (they can be troublesome to lock together when assembled at the best of times but now they are as good as they've ever been!

Bent hinge pin and screw

Slight damage where the hinge moved back

With everything fixed and almost as good as new we celebrated with a bite to eat and a bottle of wine. Then we both showered (we used the genny so Caroline could dry and straighten her hair) and of course we ran out of water!

23 miles, 7 locks today.  About 12l of fuel

Timings -

09:45 - Left the mooring
10:00 - Arrive Radcot Lock
10:15 - Leave Radcot Lock
10:30 - Radcot Bridge - this is as far as we went, turned around downstream of the bridge
10:45 - Arrive Radcot Lock
11:00 - Leave Radcot Lock
11:30 - Arrive Rushey Lock (emptied the pot)
11:50 - Leave Rushey Lock
12:00 - Tadpole Bridge
12:25 - Tenfoot Bridge (which is 12' 2"!)
12:40 - Arrive Shifford Lock
12:55 - Leave Shifford Lock
13:30 - Newbridge
13:55 - Arrive Northmoor Lock
14:10 - Leave Northmoor Lock
14:30 - The Ferryman and Caravan Park
14:55 - Arrive Pinkhill Lock (busy, we had to wait one cycle)
15:20 - Leave Pinkhill Lock
15:35 - Swinford Bridge
15:40 - Arrive Eynsham Lock (managed to get some water but gave up!)
16:25 - Leave Eynsham Lock
16:55 - Moored on Kings Lock Island

Day 3 - Crunch Time

Osney Bridge to Radcot

We awoke to a slightly grey and cold morning, but we'd both slept well and were ready for todays 'challenge of the bridges'. The river was still running a little fast but the level under Osney Bridge was fine and we had inches of clearance (with the canopy and screen down of course!).

Osney Bridge (pronounced owsney not ozney)

After a quiet cruise through the sweeping waters around Port Meadow we have Godstow Lock in our sights. One of the niggles we have with our boat is that when the canopy is down and the mid and rear canopy frames are laid back (think a bit like opening a pram hood) it means we can't use the rear transom door as they are in the way. So our solution for this is to pop the 2 frames upright and lean them together to form an A shape, then put a tie or a clip around to hold them together. We can then both walk under them and access the rear door easily, we do this all the time.

Godstow Lock

Here we are at Godstow lock, you can just about see the canopy frame if you look closely.

The lock was on self-service but we were soon through and on our way to the next challenging bridge (can you guess what's coming??)

Godstow Bridge is more of a challenge than Osney Bridge. Osney is a bit binary - there's either enough room or there isn't and you can tell as you arrive (reverse out of it if yo have to). Osney has enough height, but the arches are narrow, the sides start closing in quite low down and the bridge is not perpendicular to the river, so you have to line up at an awkward angle! As we approached we could see nothing was coming the other way so I selected the left arch as it looked a bit easier to line up for. Got it in dead centre, part way through you need to make a slight adjustment to the right and then . . .  KLANGGGGG, BANGG! Oh my god, what just happened? I felt sure I'd lined it all up OK and then, in an instant we realised that we hadn't laid the canopy frame back down after the lock. How stupid and annoyed did I feel! After over 30 years of boating without hitting anything and here I was with a mis-shapen frame and a broken fitting, the silliest of mistakes. Anyway, more of that later, I couldn't stop to do much about it right now. I was so annoyed I hardly noticed that we'd passed under the A34 road bridge (Oxford Bypass) and Kings Lock was around the corner.

At Kings Lock we chatter to the Lock Keeper and a chap on a hire boat - we both needed water, the next top up point was at Eynsham lock (the next lock up) so we agreed to let them through so they could fill first (Note that hire boats seem to be exempt from speed limits and it's better to have them in front of you in a lock rather than behind!).

We took a few moments to assess the damage and to take off the broken frame as it was now only connected at one side. The starboard upright was now a bit banana shaped and the plastic bracket that attaches it to the slide rail was broken, so not too bad (but obviously I needed to find a way to fix it before we could put the canopy up again). We put the windscreen back up as there were no more low bridges today.

This is the 'good' slide rail on the other side and the other picture is the broken piece from the other side.

We motored on, decided not to queue for water at Eynsham after all (new 'anti-syphon' taps make water filling a very slow process) and I decided to pop into Oxford Cruisers to see if they happened to have any canopy brackets. As it happened they were closed, it was like a ghost town, so no joy with the bracket but there was a fresh water tap that we took advantage of to fill up!

Pretty Pinkhill lock came and went, soon we were at the lovely looking caravan park opposite Bablock Hythe (looks like some nice moorings just by the Ferryman pub on the right after the caravan park).

Pinkhill Lock

Caravan Park before The Ferryman

Northmoor lock was next, no drama here and a little further up Newbridge - at least this time we wouldn't be able to forget to take the canopy frame down!

It was busy at Newbridge, a gorgeous sunny day now and plenty of people enjoying the river. As well as the usual motor craft (like ours and narrowboats) there were people out in canoes, pedalos, paddle-boards and dinghies! Caroline was at the helm this time and as she approached the centre of the arch she was spooked by the narrowboat ahead suddenly slowing and an errant pedalo - unfortunately this meant she lost the steering momentarily and we bumped the bridge arch with the port side of the windscreen. It was a bit of a hit but thankfully none of the glass panels broke so we just motored on, something else to look at later on. We now had a little souvenir of Newbridge to sweep away later!

Not our best day then. We both felt gutted that we'd dinged our lovely little boat, but we agreed that it could have been worse and that everything is fixable.

Shifford lock was next, the layby was slightly under water so thankfully we didn't need to get off the boat while we waited. It was the same again at Rushey Lock and again we didn't have long to wait so we stayed on the boat rather than go paddling!

There are some nice moorings on the field soon after Rushey Lock, so we decided to try to find an isolated spot as we wanted to run the generator for a while to top up batteries (without spoiling anyone else's peace and quiet). We ended up a mile or so downstream of Radcot Lock. I fired up the generator, we ate and I started to see what I could do in the way of temporary repairs. This amounted to sweeping up the mess and part dismantling the windscreen to see what damage there was. I did my best to straighten the canopy pole and I Araldited the broken plastic fitting which I then swapped with one of the forward ones as it will be under less stress there.

We actually got off quite lightly, this is not as bad as it first looked

First time use of the new generator (LPG is safer to store than petrol)

Just beautiful, this is what it should all be about

A beautiful sunset on an otherwise frustrating day!

21 miles, 7 locks today. 18l of fuel

Timings -

09:20 - Leave East Street and pass under Osney Bridge

09:35 - Rainbow Bridge

09:55 - Arrive Godstow Lock (self-service)

10:15 - Leave Godstow Lock

10:20 - Godstow Bridge (make sure canopy poles are down!!)

10:30 - Arrive Kings Lock

10:45 - Leave Kings Lock

11:15 - Arrive Eynsham Lock

11:30 - Leave Eynsham Lock (water available at the end of the upstream layby)

11:45 - Arrive Oxford Cruisers (it was closed but we got water)

12:05 - Leave Oxford Cruisers

12:10 - Arrive Pinkhill Lock

12:20 - Leave Pinkhill Lock

12:50 - The Ferryman (nice moorings available here)

13:10 - Arrive Northmoor Lock

13:20 - Leave Northmoor Lock

13:50 - Newbridge - take care!!

14:30 - Arrive Shifford Lock (layby under water)

14:45 - Leave Shifford Lock

15:30 - Tadpole Bridge

15:40 - Arrive Rushey Lock (layby under water)

15:55 - Leave Rushey Lock

16:20 - Moored somewhere between Rushey and Radcot Locks.

Day 2 - Beale Park to East Street (Osney Bridge)

We left Beale Park quite early as we knew we had another big day ahead of us - but we hit another snag at Goring Lock on self service! The head sluices wouldn't open but the lock keeper was soon on duty and over-rode the sensor to get us on our way again.

Goring Lock Layby

Goring Lock

Goring Wier

We stopped at Sheridan Marine to pick up some gas (they don't open until 10 so we had a bacon buttie while we waited). Not sure the early start really paid off.

Next stop was by Abingdon Bridge so we could get 45l of petrol from the fuel station up from Waitrose, then we stopped above the lock to fill with water and to empty the 'pot'. Worth noting that the new taps fitted by the EA are woefully slow and that the next lock with water (for hose filling) is Eynsham - a long way up!

A photo of us taken by Vicky and Terry at Abingdon!

We mentioned to a couple of lock keepers that we were aiming to moor at East Street and they both suggested that we might be unlucky as it gets busy, so we were working out our plan B in case we needed it! 

The run from Iffley Lock was slow - quite a few 'party day boaters' weaving around and lots of rowers from the university clubs, but we made it to East Street to find plenty of mooring space left, nothing to worry about after all.

Moored on East Street, Oxford

Looking back, Osney Lock just out of sight in the distance

View from the bridge

Osney Bridge, 7' 6" on a good day

31 miles, 10 locks today.

Timings -

08:05 - Leave Beale Park
08:25 - Gatehampton Bridge
08:40 - Arrive Goring Lock

09:05 - Leave Goring Lock (minor issue on self-service)

09:15 - Arrive Cleeve Lock

09:20 - Leave Cleeve Lock

09:40 - Arrive Sheridan Marine (they open at 10:00)

10:15 - Leave Sheridan Marine

10:20 - Moulsford Bridge

10:55 - Winterbrook Bridge (lots of rowers around here)

11:05 - Wallingford

11:20 - Arrive Benson Lock

11:30 - Leave Benson Lock

11:50 - Shillingford Bridge

12:20 - Arrive Days Lock (elsan disposal point here if needed)

12:25 - Leave Days Lock

13:10 - Arrive Clifton Lock (self-service)

13:20 - Leave Clifton Lock

13:45 - Appleford Rail Bridge

14:00 - Arrive Culham Lock

14:20 - Leave Culham Lock

14:45 - Abingdon Bridge (stopped below bridge to walk into town to get petrol)

15:40 - Arrive Abingdon Lock

15:50 - Leave Abingdon Lock

16:10 - Leave Abingdon services after filling with water and emptying the pot

16:25 - Nuneham Rail Bridge

17:05 - Arrive Sandford Lock

17:15 - Leave Sandford Lock

17:25 - Kennington Rail Bridge

17:30 - Arrive Iffley Lock

17:40 - Leave Iffley Lock

18:00 - Folly Bridge

18:10 - Arrive Osney Lock (self-service)

18:25 - Leave Osney Lock

18:35 - Moored on East Street

Day 1 - Bray to Beale Park

I'll list all the timings of locks and bridges at the end of the blog section for anyone interested.

We set off from our marina berth at Bray at 09:25 with a vague plan to reach Pangbourne Meadow if things went well or maybe Sonning if that's as far as we could get. The river has been running quite fast recently with many red warning boards but luckily things have improved and there were some yellows remaining but no reds. Even so, the river was still running quite fast as our 'comfortable cruise' speed was just 6.5 km/h. Maybe even Sonning was looking ambitious!

At Bray lock we caught a small Broom boat, he was a bit slow leaving the lock layby and getting into the lock, bu hey-ho, not everyone is on a mission like we tend to be! We ended up following him on to Boulters, he was slower than we wanted to be and hogged the middle of the river so we didn't bother passing. On the approach to Maidenhead we caught a REALLY slow widebeam barge. Interminably slow. Like 2.5 Km/h slow! The approach into Boulters was dire, Mr Widebeam seemed to be asleep, he certainly wasn't in any rush to move off the layby to get in the lock! Meanwhile Mr Broom decided to hold off about 200 yards distant for some inexplicable reason and before long we had a large Broom behind us joining the unnecessary queue! Eventually we reached the lock to find Mr Widebeam had tied up on the right, 20' back from the gates, Mr Broom had left a similar distance between himself and the widebeam but tied up on the left (he could have move up much further or even gone alongside (Boulters is over 21' wide! So we went on the right, had to overlap, couldn't get in far enough to reach the steps (which we would normally use in a deep lock) and the big Broom squeezed in behind us and was rubbing his starboard  box against out port side. No need for any of this! I spoke to the two 'pilots' in front and neither would move. So it all just took longer than necessary and left us with a bit of ill-feeling towards others so early in the day. Why can't people just be a bit more thoughtful and considerate? For the record Boulters is huge- 199' long and over 21' wide. It was embarrassing to be 1 of just 4 boats 'struggling' to share the lock.

We found Nemo! A beautiful Piper barge

Rant over. We were past them both before Cookham lock :)

Cookham, Marlow, Temple, Hurley and Hambledon Locks all passed without incident. Then we reached Henley.

Cookham Lock

Marlow Lock

Marsh Lock (at Henley) was the first that was unmanned. A couple of boats came out heading downstream as we approached, good timing we went straight in! Closed the tail gates, closed the tail sluices and opened the head sluices to fill the lock. Apart from a light sprinkling of rain it was going well - until the lock was full. The green light for the sluices stopped flashing so I pressed the button to open the head gates. Nothing. Not even a clicking sound, the gates were not going to open! I left it a few minutes and tried again but no, still no joy. So I decided to close the head sluices and see if I could drain the lock to go through the cycle again. No. Once the head sluices were closed again no button at either end would do anything, we were stuck! Long story short - I called the EA and nearly 2 hours later the lock keeper from Hambledon Lock arrived and was able to override the issue caused by a dirty sensor. We were on our way again and the queues at either side of the lock were able to continue their journeys as well.

Marsh Lock, our 'home' for 2 hours

Next to Marsh Lock

Now we were 2 hours behind whatever schedule we were following, so we just carried on.

Shiplake was fine, Sonning was unmanned but no problem for us. So do we stay here or carry on? It's 'only' half six, so we carried on of course!

Sonning Bridge

Such a shame to see the stretch around the K&A entrance and also Tesco at Reading still occupied by so many illegal long-termers, certainly not a place it would feel safe to moor any more. I don't know what the solution is to be honest, if the option is to confiscate the boats and turf these people out onto the streets I don't think that helps the social problem much at all.

Not sure that was such a great idea to carry on as Caversham was on hand-wind only! It's been a while since hand winding a lock and I'm not getting any younger. Surprisingly it only took us 20 minutes to get through (luckily someone else had just come through the other way so the gates were already open). It's hard work, not something I'm used to these days ;)

Mapledurham Lock

We motored on to Mapledurham, very strong currents on the approach but went through on self-service with no bother and on to Pangbourne Meadow. Except we didn't, there were no easy places left to moor so we carried on through Whitchurch and made it to Beale Park a little after sunset!

Powering on past Pangbourne

Finally moored at Beale Park

A long day - over 12 hours without a proper break, 35 miles, 13 locks, about 30l of petrol. But we made it and the burgers that Caroline cooked went down without touching the sides!

So for anyone interested in our timings, most locks were very quick to pass through with no queueing.

35 miles, 13 locks today.

Timings -

09:25 - Left Bray Marina
09:35 - M4 Bridge
09:40 - Arrive at Bray Lock
09:50 - Leave Bray Lock
10:10 - Maidenhead Rail Bridge (where we caught Mr Widebeam)

10:30 - Arrive Boulters Lock (manned but still really slow to get through)

10:50 - Leave Boulters Lock

11:15 - Arrive Cookham Lock

11:25 - Leave Cookham Lock

11:45 - Bourne End Rail Bridge

12:15 - M40 Road Bridge

12:20 - Arrive Marlow Lock

12-25 - Leave Marlow Lock (straight through, really quick!)

12:35 - Bisham Abbey

12:45 - Arrive Temple Lock

12:50 - Leave Temple Lock

13:00 - Arrive Hurley Lock

13:15 - Leave Hurley Lock

14:00 - Arrive Hambledon Lock

14:25 - Leave Hambledon Lock

14:55 - Henley Bridge

15:00 - Arrive Marsh Lock (self service)

17:00 - Leave Marsh Lock (see above for the reason it took so long)

17:35 - Arrive Shiplake Lock

17:40 - Leave Shiplake Lock

18:10 - Arrive Sonning Lock (Self service)

18:30 - Leave Sonning Lock

18:50 - Thames and Kennet Marina

19:05 - Arrive Caversham Lock (Hand-wind)

19:25 - Leave Caversham Lock
20:20 - Arrive Mapledurham Lock (Self service)

20:35 - Leave Mapledurham Lock

21:05 - Arrive Whitchurch Lock (Self service)

21:15 - Leave Whitchurch Lock

21:35 - Arrive and moor at Beale Park