Reading to Oxford...Part two.

The forecast for today was rain and wind and sure enough it was raining when I woke up, I didn’t want to stay at Beale Park, it was a 24 hour mooring anyway, but I wanted to move on, so I set off around 8:45, with waterproofs on, through the light rain, at least it wasn’t cold as well.

I took the camera out of the Tupperware rain protection box briefly to snap this cantilevered glass room, I bet it’s nice and warm in there in the sunshine, the panel facing the canal is cracked though, that’ll be an expensive repair!

No more pictures until I reached Goring lock when I was able to snap one of the lock filling and one of the little building, I don’t think it’s the lock keepers office but it looks quite nice.

The rain was coming in fits and starts, heavy at times, but no wind to speak of up to now.

Cleve lock, came and went, at 2’ 3” it does not take too long.

I managed to get the camera out again at Wallingford, there were a couple of spaces on the moorings here but I chose to continue wanting to be further along.

Wallingford Bridge

The Boat House pub was 'No Mooring' on the way down but now it seems they are doing small day boat hire from there.

Here’s a different looking boat house with a spiral staircase as well, shame about the roof covering, some sort of felt, thatch or tiles would improve it.

By the time I reached Benson Lock the rain was hammering down, but the two lockies were very pleasant, one taking my bow line to restrain the bow and the other positioning my stern line around a bollard for me before passing it back so he could operate the gates and paddles, his actual job :-)

It was blowing a bit of a gale as I left the lock and it made the idea of calling it a day appealing.

Just after Shillingford bridge was a possibility for moorings and with the weather deteriorating I kept a keen eye open, but no gaps that looked suitable, so it was back to my original plan.

Shillingford Bridge

Arriving at Days lock just as a boat was coming out, good timing.

 The rain had stopped, the wind was still quite strong though. The lockie must have been very confident of my capabilities as he opened the paddles fully and Quinquireme surged back and forth with me holding the centre line as tight as I could, unusual, so far the Thames locks have all been quite placid and filled slowly and a lot of the keepers insist you use two ropes, anyway it was ok.

I was pleased to see a very suitable mooring just ahead of the lock, close to where I moored on the trip down, with the wind blowing mooring was fairly easy, thankfully it was pushing the boat against the bank, had it been the other way I might have been in trouble!

Tonights mooring:

Totals today: 15 miles : 4 locks

It was a pleasant cruise despite the weather, everyone I spoke to was in good spirits and waterproofs!

I may hunker down here for the weekend as the weather is forecast wet and very windy, the pleasant Dorchester village is a nice cross fields walk and has a Co-Op, I may even be tempted by one of the pubs, I seem to remember they looked ok.