You folks on the "Canals" and "CIBC" lists have been spared the daily
catalogue of UM's progress to the excellent Radcot GIG which was
exclusively delivered to subscribers to the "GIG" list. On these 2
channels you'll get away with a few lines of summary of the trip so
far.
We left Parkend Bridge on the G&S in the afternoon of July 13th and the
route selected took us on a short diversion across the tidal Severn to
Lydney and then back up to Tewkesbury via the G&S and conventional
river Severn. Then up the lower and upper Avon to Stratford. Then
Lapworth and the GU to central Birmingham followed by a couple of days
messing about on the BCN to Hawne Basin, Tipton, Oldbury, Smethwick and
other places substantially unspoilt by progress.
Thereafter to Lapworth again but via the Worcs & Brm and the North
Stratford canals. A stopover at Saltisford then to Wigrams, and the
full length of the Oxford to the Thames via Dukes Cut and then upstream
to Inglesham and back to Radcot.
The GIG at Radcot was hugely enjoyable though we had to leave late
Sunday morning and missed some of the events.
A few figures - we were aboard UM for 26 days of which 3 were non
moving days. We covered 270 miles and passed through 214 locks which
means that on the 23 cruising days we averaged 21 lock-miles per day.
At our normal 3.5 lock-miles per hour we averaged 6 hours on the move
each day which is exactly what I planned. Cue: smug feeling. Memo:
write letter of thanks to Canalplanner.
Fairly scintillating stuff all this . . . . . but now we are bound for
the IWA National at Beale Park and have but in a good half day's effort
(6 hours) to get us so far as Binsey, 20 miles and 8 locks. I got very
wet. I spent an hour or two at the helm, before the rain set in, multi
tasking and learning new Vodatrix. I can now send voice recordings AND
images to suitably enabled recipients. Mr Dyke of this parish is indeed
suitably enabled so I devised the new game of "Spot the Bridge" live
from the river. It failed to interest him, he had just one preposterous
attempt to identify "Tadpole Bridge" and declined help in the form of
"the cryptic clue" or "fone a fiend". He suggested I was on the
"wacky" again, but it's a damned lie. And it was before.
We came under minor bombardment from some hoolies at Hart's Footbridge
upstream of Northmoor Lock. Half a dozen angel faced oiks beamed at us
from the bridge and bade us good passage as we passed beneath them. A
few seconds later a barrage of apples issued forth from the hedgerow.
They all missed but not by much. The Northmoor locky suggested it
wasn't that unusual and offered to report it to the police. Since he
could do this only by 999 call we decided that the Oxonrozzers were
unlikely to traipse along a mile of footpath to question the little
chaps and it was hardly worth all the effort. So feeling a little bit
victimised we chugged damply forward. We are easy prey to the law
upholders when we venture on the roads and to the yobbos when we
venture on to the water. I suppose that's an equilibrium of sorts.
I couldn't get on "The Perch" moorings here at Binsey so we are tied up
not only "at" but the stern is tied "to" Medley Footbridge. I've got a
forward line around a willow tree and a centre line to a pin which,
rather like the extremities of the Metropolitan line, doesn't want to
go very far underground. So it's a real hireboater's abortion of a
mooring we have taken tonight. But it's still piddling down and we are
snug.
We have seen not a single boat today heading downstream, and only about
half a dozen heading upstream. The lockies report all kinds of
lockrageous carnage yesterday from Kings and downstream but we seem to
have arrived at a quiet, if subtsantially damp, period.
Tomorrow (Thursday) we will aim +/- Wallingford and expect to complete
the trip to the National on Friday morning. On Saturday I'm retrieving
the car from Radcot by way of the train from Pangbourne to Oxford or
perhaps onward to Hanborough or Combe, if trains really do still stop
at such locations.
That's it for today
Beeky
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