A bit of local knowledge needed please

[DWT]

I am just planning our trip next week downstream from Reading. Myself, my wife, 12 year old daughter and her friend. We have done this before and it is not particularly complicated. A hop to Medmenham the first afternoon, on to Racecourse Marina (as we get free mooring there) and then down to Penton Hook. Two nights there then up to Cookham, then Henley and home.

The issue is we are starting on the bank holiday weekend which we have not done before so I wonder about how busy some of the stretches will be compared with previous trips.

Specifically:

We will leave Reading mid pm on Saturday so will probably not get to Medmenham until 6pm - 7pm. There are usually plenty of spaces there, but with the ATYC rally at Henley and Bank Holiday traffic how busy is it likely to be there?

The stretch to Racecourse on Sunday should be ok, although I would expect Bray to be busy. We will aim to stop for lunch around Marlow or Cookham. If the river is busy we could stop overnight at Cookham, but what is that like for spaces at the weekend?

We will be heading down to PH on bank holiday Monday. Where are the pinch points on that stretch? Also we usually stop at Windsor for supplies, but if we cannot get in there where is the next stopping point with nearby shops. Staines perhaps?

On the way back up we may consider another marina stop around Windsor as an alternative to Cookham. Racecourse is ok but the pontoons are very small for a 35ft boat and a bit decrepit, but what is Windsor like (do they have visitor berths as it looks quite small) against Bray?

Thanks in advance

 

[Chris_d]

You should be alright there's always somewhere, If Medmenham is full there are EA mornings at Hurley lock, visitors pontoon at Harleyford, we've always got in. At Windsor I wouldn't bother with the marinas, nothing there and you'll be given a berth in the back corner(Windosr) or next to the refueling pump(racecourse), much better to go to the town and moor on the Island next the leisure centre, you can use the pool and showers. Normaly no problem if you arrive mid afternoon.
Again why use Penton Hook, unless you want go to Thorpe Park, moorings back at Staines or Runnymede, or free EA mooring virtualy opposite Penton at Laleham.

 

[spinreach]

I am just planning our trip next week downstream from Reading........

Went from Marlow to London during the weekend of 15/16 August. Good weather so lots of boats out. Seemed to get caught at most locks whereby we had to wait and then just missed out on a locking. Saturday afternoon from Harleyford to Bray - longest wait at Boulters. On Sunday most locks packed like a sardine can - longest waiting time at Old Windsor, which certainly felt like a bottle neck. Fastest lock of the day was definitely Romney even with a lot of boats packed in.

Returned the following Thursday / Friday. From Sunbury to Harleyford on the Friday - relatively quiet but really lucky with the locks. Only had to wait for 2 or 3 with the rest either straight in or a slight pause as the sluices opened just as we arrived. Longest wait of the day - Boulters - it just seems to take a long time to fill, there were only 2 of us in the lock with a few minutes wait.

So, if I have my distances correct on a Sunday we managed 29 miles with 9 locks in 8.5 hours and on a Friday, 31 miles with 11 locks, in 8 hours.

 

[Steve Clayton]

So, if I have my distances correct on a Sunday we managed 29 miles with 9 locks in 8.5 hours and on a Friday, 31 miles with 11 locks, in 8 hours.

So at 3 lock miles an hour (which is a benchmark)

9 locks = 9 * 3 = 27 miles (so not far removed from 29 miles/9 locks/ 8.5 hours)

and

11 locks = 11 * 3 = 33 miles (so not far removed from 31 miles/11 locks/ 8 hours)

means the benchmark holds true!

 

[DWT]

You should be alright there's always somewhere, If Medmenham is full there are EA mornings at Hurley lock, visitors pontoon at Harleyford, we've always got in. At Windsor I wouldn't bother with the marinas, nothing there and you'll be given a berth in the back corner(Windosr) or next to the refueling pump(racecourse), much better to go to the town and moor on the Island next the leisure centre, you can use the pool and showers. Normaly no problem if you arrive mid afternoon.
Again why use Penton Hook, unless you want go to Thorpe Park, moorings back at Staines or Runnymede, or free EA mooring virtualy opposite Penton at Laleham.

Thanks Chris

The purpose of Penton Hook is to have a day at Thorpe Park to keep daughter and friend happy so that works for us. We also quite like to have the security of a marina berth with electricity, decent toilets and showers.

On our previous trips the stop at Racecourse coincided with a Monday race meet. We are not really race goers but good fun nevertheless. They tried to put us on the visitor pontoon by the pumps on our first visit there, but it would only have been possible if we had sawn the boat down the middle to squeeze beside another boat there. The second option was against the end of a pontoon which was far too short to hold us against the strong wind blowing. We ended up by the crane moored against a large vessel which I think was being refurbished. Very tight indeed.

We like the spots at Windsor for our lunch stops, but are always a bit concerned about staying overnight near a town.

Never quite sure where the EA moorings are at Hurley lock. It would be an ideal spot so I will have another look at that.

Steve

Thanks for your thoughts. It often does seem to be pot luck with the locks. A bit like on the roads, it only needs two or three larger boats arriving at the same time or a trip boat to get in front to slow everthing up and cause a backlog. Your calculation seems sensible.