Woke up early to another glorious day with the mist on the water;
Dave cycled into Wallingford for some milk and found a Waitrose, so got various other bits and pieces too, feeling rather scruffy amongst the smart ladies of the town! Off we went around 10, passing under the pretty bridge and spotting some super grassy moorings below it. Several sculls from Wallingford Rowing Club passed us – from both directions - with their coach in his speedy little boat as we went on past ever more expensive properties.
The river is busy today with lots of cruisers, mostly going upstream, and the trip boat ‘Reading’ which snuck up quietly behind us before leaving us far behind;
‘Don’t look now….’
As we approached the reputedly haunted islands above Moulsford Bridge we saw the large cruiser which had roared past us a few minutes earlier hastily reversing having taken the wrong channel lol! We took on water above Cleeve Lock and chatted to a couple also on the waterpoint who were spending their honeymoon on a hire boat from the K&A – Dave showed the guy around Chuffed as he would love to have a boat of his own.
We shared Goring lock with another narrowboat and the hotel boat we saw the other day, then were lucky enough to grab the last free mooring at Goring for our lunch stop. How can a small village with few shops support two estate agents? Must be something to do with local prices, not within our range unfortunately …. We got an ice-cream and watched the lock activity for a while (can you gongoozle on the Thames? doesn’t sound right somehow).
We found Goring a bit crowded so decided to try for a mooring out in the country. We haven’t been finding the Thames particularly interesting but the stretch below Goring is just fabulous. Loved this sunroom!
We were excited to see our first red kite, then moored at a quiet spot at Lower Basildon with just a couple of boats in sight, though two more arrived later. I had my first attempt at baking a cake on the boat – it was ok, though the oven temperature seems to be a bit higher than the one at home. Then I just sat on the bank with the papers enjoying the sun while Dave fished. It was blissful – occasional shouts from cyclists zooming through the woods on the other side, grasshoppers zizzing all around, and the occasional boat passing by – wonderful. Our favourite spot so far!
This strange houseboat thing went past …..
and later the African Queen.
Isn’t this a fantastic spot?
8 miles 2 locks
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