The Thames Strikes Back

[Broads01]

I've a fair amount of experience of the Thames and always thought of it as a bit of a stroll in comparison to Broads challenges, a relaxing pootle on a non-tidal innocuous river and an absence of very much in the way of navigational hazards. I've just returned from a week aboard Caversham Marquis from Caversham Boat Services and how wrong I was in a number of ways for reasons which will become clear....

[NeilB]

Sounds like a tale of red boards / strong stream conditions!!  When in flood the Thames can become quite fearsome, shooting Maidenhead bridge is interesting as the river drops about a foot under the bridge due to the amount at water stacked up.  Once committed you cannot abort as it’s impossible to turn so it’s full ahead, grip the wheel and change your underpants afterwards!!

This is just one of many areas where the docile Thames can bite back.

Looking forward to this tale

[Vaughan]

When I came to the Thames to run a hire fleet in Staines I thought - well, what could be worse than Yarmouth Yacht Station?

How wrong I was!

[Broads01]

Saturday 18th May

My accompanying crew for this trip was my Mum (Carol), her partner Mike (for his first ever boat holiday) and Suzie, my ever-loyal four-legged boating companion. Reading is an easy destination for all of us, being 2 hours for me along the M4 from South Wales and a short train journey from Bournemouth for Mum and Mike. I left home early and on arrival had time for a riverside walk below Caversham lock with Suzie before meeting Mum and Mike off their train just after midday. I then drove a few hundred yards from the station to Aldi's so we could stock up and then the short distance to a riverside car park so we could all have a sandwich. The weather was fine so we whiled away some time by the river just downstream of Caversham Lock. It was soon time to go and see if Marquis was ready for us and happily it was. Caversham Boat Services (CBS) is located on Frys Island and so when boats are ready they're brought across to the "mainland" where there are convenient loading points at the bottom of residential cul-de-sacs. The down side of this arrangement is the boatyard owns nowhere for parking but I managed to find somewhere cheaper and nearer than their recommended parking location by using JustPark which I'd recommend. Loading completed, we were given a comprehensive trial run by Dave from the boatyard and then we were away upstream. Marquis is a Bounty 40 centre cockpit of mid 80's vintage and it was immediately noticeable it wasn't the best handling boat in the world. It wafts around hither and thither and needs concentration to maintain a straight course but nevertheless it was a relaxing cruise with roof back in the sunshine to our first lock at Mapledurham. I should explain that Mum and Mike are both in their early 80's and whilst both can get around they have some mobility issues. This meant that the locking routine was to be myself at the bow and either Mum or Mike at the stern and with my assistance sometimes to secure the stern rope around the bollard. I was to be the sole helmsman. We negotiated the lock with no issues and decided to head to Pangbourne Meadow for our first night. It was approaching 6pm by now and the sun was still warm. As we approached Pangbourne in the distance, the mooring looked full so I made the decision to turn around and seek a mooring on one of the bankside spots further down. I ended up regretting the decision because each time I approached what looked at a distance to be a good spot the bows grounded on the shallows. Fortunately on each occasion I was able to reverse off but it did become somewhat tiresome after about the 5th attempt. Eventually we found a safe location, albeit one where the stern was in the bushes. We settled down to make some dinner and it was a mainly peaceful evening, with momentary disturbances from a party boat and from what sounded like a choral group singing in unison whilst camping on the opposite side of the river.

[DAVIDH]

I'm intrigued Simon. Can't wait to read more.

[Hylander]

Yes please tell us more.....

[SwanR]

Looking forward to reading this. 👍

[dom]

4 hours ago, Broads01 said:

Caversham Boat Services (CBS) is located on Frys Island and so when boats are ready they're brought across to the "mainland" where there are convenient loading points at the bottom of residential cul-de-sacs.

My sister used to live on Regent's Riverside opposite CBS and often mentioned enjoying seeing people setting off on holiday. I never realised quite what she mean, or that people were picking boats up literally off her front doorstep!

I've not had a holiday on the Thames since I was about 10 years old, but some of my ancestors are from Bray and Holyport, so I think I need another one at some point.

[Broads01]

Sunday 19th May

Another sunny warm day and Suzie had plenty of space for a run before we continued upstream. First "obstacle" was the pleasantly situated (within an island) Whitchurch lock which, to our surprise, had the "Self Service" sign up despite it being after the hour a lock keeper would be starting shift. "Self Service" continued to be a prevalent theme through the week and in contrast to my last visit two years ago when almost everywhere was manned. It turned out the EA are short-staffed, particularly as they've chosen not to re-employ seasonal staff. We were pleased there was another boat locking with us to share the workload on this occasion. Self Service is straightforward with everything electrified and clear instructions, just more work to do and the need to have a crew member off the boat and doing stuff. It's also much slower to fill the lock up which is an adjustment made for safety. The following stretch was the aptly named "Goring Gap" so named because of the trees sloping up either side before we arrived at Goring where we made a stop and enjoyed a leisurely walk to the village. Goring has an "official" free mooring complete with posts and quay heading but overall these tend to be fewer on the Thames, with wild mooring on mooring stakes (not rhond anchors) more prevalent. Later we continued, thankful for lock keepers at both Goring and Cleeve lock (being only half a mile apart) before the long lock-free stretch of around 6 miles past Wallingford and eventually to Benson lock.

After Benson, we decided to seek an overnight mooring above Shillingford bridge but before we'd cruised that far, disaster struck. We'd had a mild "strike back" the previous evening with the shallow water but this was far worse, being a horrendous loud crunching sound under the boat which ground us to a halt. It was clear we'd hit a major underwater obstruction and we couldn't move anywhere either forward or astern. If I put the rudder hard over, I could get the boat to spin left or right but all attempts to move off failed. Some kind folk on their own boat advised us the obstruction was a sunken boat and there'd previously been an EA marker buoy but it had disappeared. Bear in mind here we in the main navigation channel just right of centre. The kind folk even tried towing us off and we even had a pair of kind paddleboarders attempt to push us sideways but to no avail. I phoned CBS who asked me to position Mum and Mike on the stern and try and rock the boat off but our boat wasn't rocking anywhere, we may as well have been on a hard-standing. CBS phoned back a short while later to say they wouldn't be able to rescue us that evening, there being no-one in the vicinity that was open. They gave us the option to phone 999 if necessary but I couldn't justify doing that as we were safe and well and with food on board. Two of their team would leave the boatyard at 6 the following morning and be with us at 10. Had we not had Suzie with us, I wouldn't have been anxious at all but as it was I had a stressful evening trying different ways to encourage her to pee out on deck but without success. I felt terrible we were causing her discomfort but she seemed completely unphased, mot being impressed by being made to go out on deck and insisting on returning inside as quickly as she could. Suzie settled down to bed in her normal way and so did we, awaiting our fate the following day.

[Roy]

I do think if you would have got stuck on a sunken boat here on the broads the yard would be out in a flash interesting how it differs down there.

 

[Broads01]

Monday 20th May

I thought Suzie might have disturbed me in the night with frustration she couldn't go out buy to my surprise she didn't and continued her slumber after I'd woken up, as she often does. She still refused all my attempts to encourage her to pee on deck and later settled on the sofa as if nothing had happened.

Boatyard chaps Gavin and Dave arrived on time on board Caversham Viscount, having left the boatyard at 5-30am (we couldn't have asked for more). They pulled alongside and the first complication was pulling up the anchor which I'd been asked to drop. Thames anchors are completely unlike Broads mudweights being traditional ship's anchor-shaped and it had got itself trapped around the sunken wreck. The only option was to cut the chain free and sacrifice the anchor and this took them around half an hour of scrabbling around below the fore deck. Anchor freed, freeing us proved straight forward. They roped Viscount's bow to our stern cleat with considerable slack on the line. With Dave at our helm and our boat in full astern gear (going nowhere initially), Gavin helmed Viscount and gently pulled forward alongside us as much as the line would allow. Gavin then full throttled Viscount into reverse and as the slack rope tightened the effect was enough to pull us free, accompanied by more loud crunching underneath. They then roped Viscount alongside us and took us up river slowly while Gavin checked under our floor for any signs of water ingress. Thankfully there were no signs of a puncture at all and so they set us free and we said goodbye and thank you. They still had a 4 hour return run to do so it would be a long day for them. After that, I moored as soon as I could after Shillingford Bridge but as luck would have it managed to choose a private mooring which was completely unsigned and was immediately advised to move on. Fortunately there was a good mooring close by and Suzie was finally free at 11am, some 19 hours after her last opportunity. We rested a while, very relieved before continuing our journey. There was a pretty section around some luxury properties towards Days lock before wilder, nettley sections to Clifton Hampden Bridge and lock and later Culham lock. Both Clifton and Culham locks were on Self Service and Culham having a drop of around 8 foot took around half an hour to fill. We arrived at Abingdon moorings soon after Culham and opted to stay there overnight, via a water stop at the dayboat place below the bridge. The hose there made the one at Ludham Bridge look like a jet wash hence filling up took forever and we were charged £5 for the privilege. We made the most of the warm evening by eating at The Nag's Head on the bridge outdoors on their terrace and the food was superb.

[Broads01]

14 minutes ago, Roy said:

I do think if you would have got stuck on a sunken boat here on the broads the yard would be out in a flash interesting how it differs down there.

 

I tend to agree Roy. I think had it been a weekday we might have been luckier and indeed we were less than a mile upstream of the Le Boat base at Benson but it was 5pm on a Sunday and there was no-one. 

[kpnut]

57 minutes ago, Broads01 said:

Fortunately there was a good mooring close by and Suzie was finally free at 11am, some 19 hours after her last opportunity.

Cor, she did well. And there’s us worrying about how the dogs will cope if we mudweight overnight!

I’m really enjoying your tale. Thanks. 

[ChrisB]

I have had to dig for these. Unfortunately back in 2007 I was using a Panasonic DMZ running on their simple viewer and have lost the video element of my photos.

25th July, yes July, 2007. I was still living in the Chilterns above Marlow and after heavy rain the river was in spate. The volume coming down was frightening to watch. Bisham was a lake and parts of The Complete Angler flooded. The weir closest to The Angler was almost flat. The river was coming up drains in Marlow Town centre.

A couple of weeks later we had to go beyond Oxford to see an elderly relation at Bampton. Near Eynsham in a field of Holstein Friesians, quietly grazing was a narrow boat and a Shetland 4+2 left as taken by the flood but now high and dry.

The Thames can be a real brute, but in recent years The Relief Channel has saved Maidenhead a lot of yearly grief.

 

[Hylander]

Gosh this is better than watching a good film.

 

[NeilB]

I heard the EA wasn’t going to hire any summer relief lock keepers but backtracked when they received several complaints!  I understand they are looking for 10% on their licence fee next year.

[marshman]

And people complain about the facilities on the Broads and the high tolls!! Puts it all in perspective a bit!!

[dom]

32 minutes ago, marshman said:

And people complain about the facilities on the Broads and the high tolls!! Puts it all in perspective a bit!!

Unfortunately, EA and BA are now starting to use each other's tolls to justify rises. If EA go 10%, BA will probably follow suit.

[Bikertov]

1 hour ago, NeilB said:

I heard the EA wasn’t going to hire any summer relief lock keepers but backtracked when they received several complaints!  I understand they are looking for 10% on their licence fee next year.

Yes, I posted on another thread about the consultation on that

[Broads01]

Tuesday 21st May

Decision time this morning - do we continue upstream to Oxford or return downstream. Oxford had been the original plan in my head having not cruised above Abingdon for some years but we opted to return downstream. We didn't want the following final 3 days to be all about a lengthy return journey and feel under pressure to do a certain distance each day. This way, we would have time to cruise below Reading as well which appealed to us. The weather was no longer summery alas, being grey and chilly. I reminded Mum and Mike about the additional hazards of locking downstream, namely don't let the deck catch on the quay as the level drops and board the boat well before a deep lock will have you marooned above. Culham lock was manned this time and the lock keeper was apologetic in tone about the absence of staffing. Clifton lock next ahead was on Self Service and for the first time we were the only boat around. Mike played the lock keeper managing the gates and sluices and taking the stern rope from Mum when we entered. Our exit required me to pilot out and then pull in to the lower lay-by while Mike closed the gates before reboarding. Everything went OK even if it did take a little longer overall. Days Lock was also on self-service and by this time rain had started and remained with us for the rest of the day. We took a break for some food back at the same spot we'd stopped the previous morning and then continued, past the disaster location of Sunday afternoon. No action had been taken to mark the location despite the fact CBS had advised the EA of the What 3 Words location. Benson lock was the 3rd successive on Self Service and we negotiated successfully donned in our rain gear. We continued most of the distance towards Cleeve and Goring to stop overnight in a wild spot on the starboard bank.

The top picture below is Benson and as you can see there's a boat marooned on the weir.

[DAVIDH]

What an adventurous time you're having Simon. Half expect to read on the next installment that the engine broke down and you had to get into the water and pull the boat African Queen style through the reeds...watch out for those damned leeches 

[Broads01]

Wednesday 22nd May

Today was a complete washout in terms of the weather but we weren't going to be put off from doing what we wanted to do. Where we'd moored overnight was awkward for Mum and Mike to step off so I made the mistake of telling them I didn't need help with mooring ropes. As I released the bow, the boat spun around 180 degrees in the strong stream and I ended up almost losing control of the stern rope. Luckily I was able to scramble aboard without Mike having to become emergency helmsman (with virtually no helming experience). The rain was hammering down as we negotiated Cleeve and Goring locks, both manned thankfully. Our initial destination today was CBS in Reading for pump out and water. Our cruise there via Whitchurch and Mapledurham locks was uneventful and when we arrived at CBS Gavin dealt with our pump out without fuss, filled us with water without me asking and attended to one of the showers which hadn't been draining. We remained at CBS for a lunch break. They had a lot of boats not on hire unfortunately and mentioned there were only 4 due out the following Saturday which is worrying for them. We'd cruised a lot this morning and so with the rain still heavy we had a short afternoon cruise to Sonning, via a stop at Tesco which is conveniently situated adjacent to some moorings. We only just squeezed in at Tesco however as the moorings there aren't unusual in having multiple liveaboard residents. On arrival at Sonning, I asked Mike to step ashore to assist me to pull the boat up but alas he misjudged the drop and landed painfully on his side. Mum and I were concerned given his physical issues but happily he got away with a bruised rib and a grazed knee. The location just above Sonning lock is peaceful and lovely and I enjoyed a walk with Suzie down to the lock and beyond.

[kpnut]

That was a day of adventure, some best not repeated. 

[Dan]

Enjoying your tale Simon, you Bounty wrecker you, though fancy having no marker/alert on that sunken boat!

Looking forward to the bit at the end where you cover the boat a bit.  I note your comments that handling wasn't great, and must admit when we hired the Bounty 40, Monte Carlo we found the same.  Can't really think why a Bounty 40 should be so poor though really.  I suppose their Aquafibre 38 might be the one to have for handling.

Caversham seem to present the exteriors very well but go for a bit of an outdated chintsy look (and great-grandmothers carpets) to the interiors which I find a bit off-putting, so look forward to hearing your experiences (and any internal/boat pictures)

My concern for them is as they never seemingly replace with newer/more modern as the odd good value examples come up the fleet will at some point be completely unappealing and too expensive to change in one go and so they will disappear, which as they maintain them well and are nice people I believe would be really sad.

Dan

 

[Dan]

Forgot to say...

Was Le Boat's fleet all out on hire at Benson?

As I read I remember one operator saying that as the others closed that's when the Thames became so hard because they used to all help each other out.  I'd have thought they'd have appeared on a Le Boat (perhaps with one of their crew joining them!?) and you'd have been away quicker and much less hassle for them.

Or has the spirit of co-operation left us as everyone is too busy posting tiktoks of us falling over the cat perhaps?

Dan