Thursday 17th May
Progress has been a bit slow today as the flow is still quite strong and we are going against it. We have travelled 7 miles and 4 locks which took over 4 hours. For some reason my back was really playing up today and I was finding it quite difficult because we had to moor up and wait at every lock approach. I was having to leap off the boat and pull it in and I had to hang on to the rope in the locks to stop the boat from moving about. At Bell Weir Lock the lock keeper was a right miserable git and didn’t help me get my rope round a bollard so I chuntered on to Barry that I was really fed up and soon after that we stopped, which was a relief.
We moored at Runnymede which is about half a mile from Bell Weir Lock and is free for 24 hours, then £5 a day for a further 48 hours and £50 per day thereafter! The Runnymede on Thames Hotel is right at the lock so, as it was quite a mild day, we walked George back there because he hasn’t been out lately and was getting stir crazy! We were a bit worried he wouldn’t be allowed on the terrace (has been known at a riverside pub in Nottingham would you believe?) but it was ok. In fact the manageress came out and asked us if we wanted a drink for our friend. We said thank you very much and she reappeared with a bowl of water on a silver tray for him!
I think a longer day is in prospect for tomorrow.
