It was a lovely sunny morning so we decided to make the most of it and
get going early. Shiplake College looked
lovely in the sunshine though a bit dead as, of course, it’s the school
holidays. We used the services at
Shiplake Lock and headed on down to Henley.
There were masses of mooring places in Henley – we just can’t understand
where everyone is. Preparations have
just started for the Henley Regatta at the end of June – it was nice to have
the whole river to ourselves instead of being pushed to one side or going down
the course itself!
It was very cold going down Henley Reach – well for Richard
anyway. I made my excuses and cleaned
the bathroom!
When we came this way last year the top of the folly on Temple Island
was surrounded by scaffolding to it was nice to see it today looking
resplendent.
Hambledon Lock was uneventful but we had quite a long wait at Hurley
Lock but nothing as bad as Temple Lock which was on self-service. We waited 50 minutes to get through – it just
goes to show that a lock keeper on duty certainly pushes the traffic through.
We weren’t too sure where we going to stop tonight but there was plenty
of space at Marlow so we pulled over – right next to an ice-cream van!!
We went for a short stroll over Marlow Bridge. I’ve been under it often enough but never
over it, in fact I’ve never been to Marlow before!
There has been a bridge on the site since the reign of King Edward III
which was stated in around 1530 to have been of timber, though an original
crossing to the Knights Templar of Bisham may date from 1309. In 1642 this bridge was partly destroyed by a
Parliamentarian army. In 1789 a new timber bridge was built by public
subscription with a contribution from the Thames Navigation Commission to
increase the headroom underneath. The
current suspension bridge was designed by William Tierney Clark and was built
between 1829 and 1832, replacing a wooden bridge further downstream which
collapsed in 1828. The Széchenyi Chain Bridge, spanning the River Danube in
Budapest, was also designed by William Clark and it is a larger scale version
of Marlow bridge. On 24 September 2016
the bridge suffered 'potential structural damage' following an incident where
37-tonne Lithuanian haulage lorry exceeding the weight limit attempted to pass
over the bridge. The bridge was closed
for two months to allow Buckinghamshire County Council to undertake a series of
stress tests on the suspension bridge hangers and pins, together with
ultrasound and magnetic particle tests. No significant damage to the bridge was
found, and had given the all-clear to reopen the bridge on Friday 25
November. (From Wikipedia.) Apparently the lorry driver blamed his satnav
– he no longer works for the haulage company!
We were waiting for Steve and Diane to join us on their new boat
Clarence (well they bought her last year but we hadn’t seen her before). Some readers might know Clarence as she used
to be owned by Derek and Sheila Mills. They arrived about
5pm and we were duly given the guided tour.
She is a lovely boat and will suit Steve and Diane when they finally get
to be continuous cruisers. We will be
with them now until we get to Shepperton.
Overheard at Marlow. Small child
passing Mary H - I wish I had a caravan like that. Grandmother to Granddaughter
who wanted to stroke Muffin – don’t dear it might be a guard dog! (If you don't know Muffin he is a small Cockapoo)
Here are a few photos that I took from Marlow Bridge this afternoon.
12.96 miles
5 locks
Hi,
ReplyDeleteWe might pass you soon. We are rejoining the Thames tomorrow and heading up river, after a week on the Wey Navigations.
That would be nice. Our plans are for Cookham tonight, Windsor on Wednesday and Laleham on Thursday with Shepperton on Friday.
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