Awaking this morning to the occasional gentle bump of our riverbank mooring, I am excited by the thought of the next stage of our journey.
It has been an eventful week, beginning with our leaving Alperton on Monday morning in full wet weather gear. The weather was gloomy, with rain forecast all day so there was little point in delaying our departure in the hopes we could travel in the dry a few hours later. Our game plan was to stay the night at Southall, as the canal is within easy walking distance of the railway station. We had been invited to a family supper on Monday evening in South East London, which involved co ordinating three different trains. Once the Elizabeth line is operating fully, the journey will be far less complicated but at present you have to change trains at Paddington station, which is sprawling! A quick visit to the nearby Lidl (I discovered a recent email entitling me to £5 off if I spent £40!) and then on with the waterproofs, which kept us amazingly dry and warm. I reflected on the phrase that there is no such thing as bad weather when you are in the right clothing. I certainly enjoyed the trip along the canal more than anticipated. My greatest concern is being pulled sideways into the moored up boats when there’s windy conditions. A little rain comes with the territory of being British! Typically the sun did then shine in the afternoon and the weather improved considerably.
We found a mooring in Southall and made our way to the tube, slightly surprised to see some fireworks being let off in the daylight! By the time we returned to the boat later in the evening the whole area was alight with fireworks and it honestly sounded like we were in the middle of a war zone. I just hope there were not too many Ukrainian refugees in the vicinity. The noise and bright colours lighting up the sky went on until well after midnight – apparently this is one of the ways Diwali is celebrated.
A flight of locks on Tuesday saw the arrival of our lovely friend BBT who came to help us. We had to move the boat to Hanwell in order to meet him at the top of the flight but as it was a sunny day with no rain in sight, this took no time at all. Just after midday another friend joined us in her ‘lunchbreak’ so with 4 on board we completed the locks in no time and were comfortably moored up just after the Osterley lock by early afternoon. The mooring was very pretty, next to a wood and with a few other boats to keep us company. The one slight disadvantage was the close proximity of the M4 but as we were staying off the boat for the night, this was not an issue for us. One of our nephew’s lives a twenty minute bus ride from our mooring so we found a path through the wood, hopped on a bus and spent a very enjoyable and comfortable night with convivial company. A full on powershower the next morning set us up for the day and we returned to find Naomhog still intact – always a slight worry when you leave the boat in unfamiliar territory.
Returning to the boat early yesterday morning we had quite a bit to accomplish in order to prepare for our trip on the tidal part of the Thames. We had to arrive at Brentford lock in a timed window of 1410-1610 as that was when the tide was on the flood. The danger of going on the water at the wrong tide level is that you can literally get stuck in the mud! Hence why you are given a set time and sometimes, if the water level is too high or the wind too strong, you are not able to proceed at all. Thankfully the weather conditions yesterday were favourable. In preparation we had to attach our anchor to the bow of the boat. There are many discussions on the best placement of an anchor. Obviously as a single handed boater you need the anchor nearby but we had plenty of hands aboard as three friends joined us so our anchor could be at the far end of the boat. Everything loose in the cabin, especially my bits and pieces in the galley, needed to be stowed away. We checked the engine, grateful that it had been serviced last week, when we had been assured that the engine can travel at speed when needed, so taking it up to 2400 revs is not an issue for an extended period – 1400 revs max is more our norm on the canals. An inspection of the weed hatch revealed a carrier bag caught around the propellor shaft which we readily removed. The rug on the bow deck needed stowing away. Infact we found half of it already sodden, from the downpour on Sunday, so needing to be dried out we placed it on the roof. Not such a good idea – later in the day the wind caught it and deposited it on the Thames! Only the quick thinking action of a crew member saved the day as we managed to haul it onto the cruiser deck. Rather annoying as it had just about dried out by then!
All set to go, I walked through the wood to pick up our crew, B and M. Earlier than expected, they were just ordering a beer and takeaway in the nearby pub. Returning to the boat after refreshment there was still plenty of time to go along the remaining stretch of water, through a lock (with an incredibly stiff gate that took three of us to open!) and then another lock that was electrically operated with no lock keeper in sight. R managed to open the relevant CRT gates that enabled him to reach the controls and just as we went through there, our friend K, with the long orange boat, turned up on foot to join us for the ride.
Arriving at Brentford with half an hour to spare we all had cups of tea as there was a big sign reminding us alcohol and boats don’t mix! Then we were off through the lock, with Bu on the helm. An experienced sailor, who had hired narrowboats previously, we decided to let him take the helm. You are lulled into a false sense of security as you exit the Thames lock because the first quarter of a mile is very sheltered. It is as you make a definite right turn that the waves begin and so you increase the revs on the boat to combat the winds and tide. We were fortunate to have reasonable conditions and apart from the flying rug, nothing else untoward happened, so we admired the glorious autumn colours and the amazing architecture of some beautiful houses and mansions. I had to apply a firm grip to both camera and hat to take pictures of the passing scenery, to stop the wind stealing my belongings. It was a wonderful experience and both R and I were grateful to enjoy the cheerful companionship of M and B – they were a very reassuring presence for our first trip on tidal water. A pint or two in a Teddington hostelry was the reward as we waited for their wifely taxi service! One wife taxied them to us and the other taxied them away! B is already booked for when we tackle Limehouse to Teddington in the somewhat distant future as it’s a stretch of the Thames I would love to do but you really have to have your wits about you as there is a lot of wash from the many boats of varying sizes! We encountered very few boats on this stretch.
The day ended with a twenty minute walk to yet another cousin who happens to live in Teddington and she treated us to a delicious supper and even offered us a bed for the night, which we declined, but were very grateful for and may well take her up on the offer when we next come this way. Our time in London has been highlighted by so many family connections in addition to the friends who live nearby.
NarrowboatTLC 