We woke up to a lovely morning on this our last day out on the cut. It was only a short hop to Braunston where
Richard stopped to get some diesel additive from Midland Chandlers then is was
a slightly longer hop and we were back in the marina. We stopped for diesel (apparently, we had
been travelling on fumes today!) and to replace a gas cylinder.
It was a lovely afternoon so I’m afraid I didn’t do very much though I
did manage to sort out the store cupboards, so we take home things that are
going to get to their sell-by date before we set off again next year.
 |
| Our last bridge of the season |
4.36 miles
0 locks
Saturday
A beautiful morning – in a way it’s sad we aren’t still on the canals
but at least it is a lovely day for the barbecue.
We spent the morning sorting and packing until all that was left were
the clothes we stood up in! We just had
time for a rest before going off to the barbecue. We are fortunate as our pontoon is very close
to the office and the party was all set up beside it. There were a couple of small marquees but as
it was such a lovely evening it seemed that everyone was sitting outside. We had been asked to take chairs and our own
drink and we joined the throng walking towards the jollifications! We sat with the people from the other boats
on our bank of pontoons – it was really nice to finally meet people, for me
anyway as I don’t seem to spend that much time on Mary H in the marina.
It was a lovely evening which was rounded off by the most amazing
sunset.
Sunday
So, here are our stats for 2019.
375.69 miles
175 locks
73 days on board
61 days cruising
9 days not cruising
One of the things that has been different this year is that we haven’t
left the boat in a marina and both us gone home, which means that Richard (and
Muffin) have been onboard for all the 73 days though I have only done 63 days.
We have had a lovely summer. We
travelled the Thames from Shepperton to Lechlade and caught up with friends and
family along the way. We have hardly had
any rain though did hunker down a couple of times for bad weather which didn’t
really materialise. The only bad thing
about the weather has been the breeze which has been quite strong at times.
I just love the Thames. It is
wide and open and so varied. I enjoy
dreaming of owning a multi-million pound waterside property and having a boat
at the end of an immaculate garden! The
livestock we pass always entertain me with lambs gambolling, cattle paddling
and the unusual ones, such as water buffalo and alpacas. We chose the Thames this year so I could go
home for my Granny fixes but that was just an excuse really – I just wanted to
be there. I have missed my grandsons but
have enjoyed my weekends with them.
I really enjoy our trip to and from the Thames via the Oxford Canal
too. When we moored at Newbury during
the winter, we really disliked the stretch of the Kennet and Avon between there
and the Thames whereas the Oxford is charming.
Next year? Why the Thames of
course! Though we will try and do the
River Wey too. Richard wants to go down
the Grand Union and I’m hoping he can persuade his friend, David, and son,
James to help him!!
So, this is the last blog post from Mary H for this year. We are going to Spain for 2½ months in the
new year and I will be blogging from there but not putting it on the Facebook
pages. If you want to keep in touch,
then why don’t you follow the blog by pressing the “follow” button on the right
hand side.
All for now – I’ve enjoyed writing for you, and I hope you have enjoyed
reading my rambles!
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