Wallingford to Hincksey

Sat 7^th August  Wallingford to Abingdon

Rain was forecast later, so we were anxious to go before it started. We were boxed in as we had cruisers in front and behind, and Star Castle on our outside. Several other boats had left, and we heard movement on Star Castle, so we started our engine and tapped on their boat. They were ready in a couple of minutes, so we left together.

Mary Stuart was moored at the upstream end of the moorings. She was built in 1958.

Mary Stuart

Benson Lock was self-operation, so Hazel pressed buttons, while James monitored both ropes. If we had been on our own, he would have just stayed in the middle without ropes, but we were sharing with Star Castle, so he roped up. At the boatyard at Benson, we spotted some of the classic boats for hire that we had seen on the website (Bygone Boating).

Benson Lock and Weir

Bernadette built in 1952

We travelled past Shillingford Bridge, where we once stayed for a weekend. We saw the floating summerhouse again that we had seen at Beale Park. We also passed the mouth of the River Thame, where it joins the Thames near Dorchester.

Shillingford Bridge and the Hotel

The unusual floating shed

Swimmers in the river

River Thame joins the Thames here

The sanitary station before Days Lock was an essential stop for both boats, as we needed to empty cassettes. There was a cruiser moored there, taking up half the landing stage, with a “For Sale” sign. The lock keeper said the guy had fallen ill and was in hospital.

Star Castle and the abandoned cruiser

We had planned to stop near Days Lock, but there is not much to do there on a wet day, so we decided to continue to Abingdon.  The Thames makes a large curve, going from facing North, to facing West at Clifton Hampden over the course of three miles. We used to see the cooling towers at Didcot from every point on this curve, but they have recently been demolished. We could still see Wittenham Clumps for a while, and we spotted a kingfisher today.

Wittenham Clumps

Red Kite

Star Castle under Clifton Hampden bridge

At Clifton Lock, Hazel had some trouble taking up the slack on the front ropes as the flow from the lock gate was trying to push the boat out. James started the engine and used the bow thruster to get the boat back to position before we ended up banging into Star Castle.

The approach to Clifton Lock

The stretch from Clifton to Culham we call kingfisher alley, as we have seen four or five in one day along here. Today we saw none. As we left Culham lock cut and turned right into the main channel, we noticed that at least two boats were moored in the short entrance to the Wilts and Berks Canal, which will one day go through to Swindon, and connect with the Kennet and Avon, and Cotswold Canals.

Wilts and Berks Canal junction of the future

Wilts and Berks Canal junction of the past

Abingdon

In Abingdon, we saw there was space on the wall before the bridge, but it is difficult to get off the boat there.  Through the bridge, there was also space on the field on the right, but we aimed for the leisure centre on the left, which is closer to the town centre.

Star Castle also went there, and we noticed Kings Shilling was there already.

Moored in Abingdon

4 locks, 13 miles. Dep 0800, arr 1205.

Sun 8^th August  Abingdon

Early morning in Abingdon

Dogs are not allowed in the park, because kids are running around in bare feet, playing in the water feature. When we used to have a cat, we used to moor here because there were no dogs. Now, however, the nice clean grass is spoilt by lots of geese who think it is their home. Perhaps they like it because there are no dogs!

The Abingdon geese

We watched the YouTube broadcast from Broughton Church. Later we visited the town and realised that we might have found a live service happening in one of the churches in Abingdon, although the Churches Together website stated that none of the churches were holding services yet.

Abingdon

We fancied a Sunday Roast, so we tried to book a table at the Brewery Tap for 1200. The closest they could offer was for 1715, so we booked that instead. After a wander round the town and a visit to Waitrose, we turned up at the pub for our Sunday Roast, only to find that they only serve it at lunchtimes. Disappointed, we left and went to Wetherspoons for a drink before going to a Thai restaurant when they opened at 1800. We had a delightful meal there, based on “order what you like”.

We returned to the boat, and James decided to go for a walk to Thrupp Lake. He used a cycle track that followed the route of an old railway line which ran to a station where Waitrose has now been built. He walked round the lake, and had planned to return via Thrupp Lane, but found that it was gated and marked private by some company or other. So it took longer to get back and it was almost dark when he returned. On the way out there were some lovely flowers, and on the way back, James spotted a deer in the twilight.

Yellow flower

Cornflower

Cycle path sign

Thrupp Lake

No boating today

Mon 9^th August  Abingdon to New Hinksey

Both Kings Shilling and Star Castle had left by the time we were ready to go.

Abingdon Lock was keeper operated. We had two cassettes to empty. The water point was in use, and the narrowboat had been there for an hour, so we didn’t bother. The tap was slow before, but now with the pressure release it takes forever.

Abingdon Weir and Lock

A sign at the lock

Abingdon Facilities

As we left, a boat was coming up behind us in the lock, but he never caught up. Kings Shilling was moored up near the Swift Ditch as we passed, and then we had to negotiate a sunken boat in the middle of the stream.

Sunken boat

Entrance to the Swift Ditch, the old navigable course of the Thames

The MX cycle track is a little further upstream, and it looked as though it had just been re-graded, ready for an event. Fairfax Monument was surrounded by tall trees, but Nuneham House was easily visible.  We each spotted a kingfisher later. Sadly we didn’t have time to zoom the camera. A shame as the bird was sitting in full view.

MX track

Nuneham House

Kingfisher

Sandford Lock was on self-operation, which surprised us, as this is the deepest lock on the Thames. It is difficult to throw the ropes over the bollards without assistance. Two boats were coming out as we approached, so Hazel got off to press buttons, and James took the boat in without tying up. Much safer and easier than climbing the steps and trying to manage two ropes.

Sandford Lock and Mill

Sandford Lock

Oxford College Barge

Terrapin

We had hoped to moor at Rose Isle, but there were three boats there already, so we carried on, going past the footbridge over the Hinksey Stream, where we once ventured a short way on our first boat, which was 25ft long.

Hinksey Stream

Iffley lock also said “Self Service” and two boats were just coming out, so we kept to the right to let them pass and collect their crew. We planned then to go in, and Hazel would get off to operate the lock. A man on the lock was gesticulating and pointing to the left, and crossing his arms to say we couldn’t go in, and signalling for us to back off, so we moved across while the boats came out. We wondered if there was a fault with the lock.  It turned out that he was the lockkeeper! We went in, but before we had tied up properly, he had opened the sluices and shouted to James to turn off his engine. We weren’t ready, and the boat was surging, so the last thing we wanted to do was turn off the engine until the boat was steady. It turned out from another boater that he oversaw both Iffley and Sandford Locks, and he really should have been at Sandford which is much more difficult for self-operation than Iffley. Iffley would have been better for us if he had not been there. He never spoke to us, and we were the only boat in the lock.

Above the lock, there were many more boats moored than usual, but we managed to find a space before Donnington Road Bridge. We had foliage growing against the windows

Moored at Hinksey.

Our window garden

Blue flower

Salters Steamers passenger vessel Reading was going up and down every hour, doing short trips. She was built in 1901, and is the oldest vessel still in service in the fleet.

Reading

There was a nature reserve next to the boat, so James went to explore. The path led to a weir on a Thames backwater called the Hinksey Stream, not marked as navigable in the Nicholson Guide. However, there were several boats there, below the weir, further up than our exploration many years ago.

The nature reserve

Red seed heads

The Hinksey Stream, below the weir

What was remarkable was that above the weir there were also some boats hidden away among the trees. They must have come in when the water levels were low, as there is a low bridge across the stream at the junction with the Thames.

On the map below, our mooring is marked with a star, and the weir is in the circle. The mouth of the stream is in the diamond, and the triangle marks our turning point years ago when we explored. The low bridge at the beginning of the stream is marked with a rectangle.

Map showing the Thames and the Hinksey Stream

Sun behind the tree

Sunset at Hinksey

3 locks, 6 miles. Dep 0950, arr 1220.

Next: Into Oxford, and then a diversion up the Oxford Canal from the Sheepwash Channel to Dukes Cut, so that we can fill the water tank properly from a tap that works, before heading further upstream.