Sunday 4th July

I woke up with a headache so Richard left me in bed and went for a walk. I came to about 9.30am feeling a bit better. I realised that I hadn’t had much water yesterday so reckoned I must have been dehydrated. We set off through Marlow Lock and then went past the National Sports Centre at Bisham Abbey which was once given to Anne of Cleves by Henry VIII when he divorced her. Next was Temple Lock and once through there we pulled over for lunch. Harleyford House is near to Temple Lock which is said to have been the inspiration for Toad Hall. Hurley Lock was next which was just as well as we were desperate for loo emptying facilities. We have found that sanitary stations are few and far between on the Thames not like the canals. After Hurley Lock we passed Medmenham Abbey which was home to many debauched orgies of the infamous Hellfire Club in the mid 18th Century though it dates back to the 12th Century when it was a Cistercian Abbey. There is also a monument here which commemorates a successful legal action brought in 1899 by Viscount Devonport to confirm the local ferry’s public, as opposed to private, status. However the ferry stopped between the wars and has never started again. We moored up just after Medmenham – once again in an awkward position. We are learning that we can actually get into places that are quite shallow which are usually alongside banks that come halfway up the side of the boat! It’s certainly more difficult to moor a 60 foot narrow boat than a 36 foot motor cruiser! Today has been the last day of the Henley Regatta and its been really interesting seeing some of the lovely old launches and corporate entertainment boats going by. This photo is just one of them.