Bray to Abingdon

[Old Crusty]

Cruised from Bray to Abingdon over 3 days, Thursday to Saturday. Lovely weather apart from one heavy shower. All locks manned by reliefs and volunteers except Mapledurham where Andy off the African Queen was acting as lock keeper, thanks Andy. Barry Russell, waterways manager was being trained as a lock keeper at Goring, couldn't resist the temptation to wind him up!

No trouble with moorings at Sonning or Shillingford. Wallingford was busy with Bray Cruiser Club but still space available. Frantic waving from Freeman owners at the rally. I'd forgotten how beautiful the river is above Reading, wide reaches, very little boat traffic.

The state of the nation, licence fee increases and management of the river just fades to the background once you get afloat. Must do this more often!

 

[Phill]

We’ve just arrived at Abingdon after leaving Harleyford late Friday evening. Saturday morning, we left Henley and squeezed into a mooring at Wallingford later that day. Sunday morning, we walked the Castle Meadows and gardens and had The best ever cooked breakfast at The Dolphin all on the recommendation of Angela who collected the mooring fee. She’s lovely and really knows her stuff. Sunday’s poor weather kept us there but with a Grand Prix on tv and plenty of refreshments in the fridge, that was no bad thing. (Slightly concerned at how many people leave the mooring early before the fees are collected though. Especially the couple who’s fee I paid whilst they slept at The George! I expect he needs £7 more than I do as he didn’t reimburse me?.) This morning we headed up to Abingdon and have just returned from a walk around town. In the past when we’ve been here. We’ve had the kids with us and they weren’t really interested in walking around and discovering the history. The river here is so different to what we normally experience on our weekends. A lot more natural and so much quieter. For those considering it, I highly recommend doing so.

 

[Actionmat]

We got back today. Saturday night moored on an island at Cliveden with friends and an unexpected fireworks display over the house reflected in the water. It was magical and more than made up for a very soggy sunday.
We spent a couple of days in Abingdon. I went in for their annual chilli eating contest and won't be doing it again!

 

[Ramage]

We left Wallingford at 08:30. Not exactly the crack of dawn. If that is too early then maybe they need to collect in the evening, or go on duty earlier. Or work out another payment method. Henley, Marlow, and Uri’s mooring have no problem taking our money!

 

[kmatt]

Uri's gardener is burning up some crap tonight. What a stink, and all for a tenner. Keeping my spoons locked up.

 

[Phill]

We left Wallingford at 08:30. Not exactly the crack of dawn. If that is too early then maybe they need to collect in the evening, or go on duty earlier. Or work out another payment method. Henley, Marlow, and Uri’s mooring have no problem taking our money!

I’m specifically talking about people that leave when they see the collector arrive on the towpath. One of them even waved at her as he left! She says it happens a lot, so as you say, a different payment method may be required. We used TVM elsewhere during our days away and that worked well, but it was really nice to get advice from a local about the new to us areas we moored in.

 

[Actionmat]

Or even better, Wallingford Council could stop asking boaters for a hand out and just appreciate the tourist pounds they bring with them. Abingdon aren't greedy. I didn't mind when a fee gave access to the showers.
Be careful what you wish for. TVM is(IMHO)the beginning of the end of free, unbooked mooring.

 

[oldgit]

Be careful what you wish for. TVM is(IMHO)the beginning of the end of free, unbooked mooring.

Perhaps another reminder of what is happening elsewhere .... Governments reducing central funding, as per the voters wishes, with the suprising and totally unexpected result that local authorities/organisations of whatever flavour try to replace the absent money by any method available to them ?

 

[boatone]

Or even better, Wallingford Council could stop asking boaters for a hand out and just appreciate the tourist pounds they bring with them. Abingdon aren't greedy. I didn't mind when a fee gave access to the showers.
Be careful what you wish for. TVM is(IMHO)the beginning of the end of free, unbooked mooring.

Oh dear, were you having a bad day Matt? Accusing Wallingford of wanting a free hand out seems a tad ungracious? They are only doing what most mooring owners do and charging a small (£7)overnight mooring fee - a lot less than many others. Why shouldn’t boaters contribute a little to the maintenance of moorings ? Parked your car anywhere for free recently?
As for sugggesting that TVM will hasten the end of free moorings I would venture to suggest their service could actually protect the EA 24 hour availability by reducing abuse and ensuring chargeable nights are paid for.

 

[Actionmat]

I hope I'm proved wrong, Tony.

When HCP managed their own mooring, it was free for 24hrs, then £5. TVM take over, it's free for 24hrs(for the moment), then £8 and it's only going to go in one direction.
And yes, there are plenty of free places to park. I don't have a meter outside my house and wouldn't expect to find one opposite my mooring either, but TVM have appeared there too. How they intend to patrol a mooring that's a eyot is anyone's guess! They've also taken control of the 24hr moorings by Kingston railway bridge, but that's still full of the same squatters.
I was behind the river inspector and saw an officer taking pictures of those squatters. One of them was furious, waving his arms about and asking what the problem was. If I see those moorings(and Stevens Eyot)cleared of those who think it's their permanent residence, I'll feel more positive towards TVM.

 

[TrueBlue]

I hope I'm proved wrong, Tony.

When HCP managed their own mooring, it was free for 24hrs, then £5. TVM take over, it's free for 24hrs(for the moment), then £8 and it's only going to go in one direction.
And yes, there are plenty of free places to park. I don't have a meter outside my house and wouldn't expect to find one opposite my mooring either, but TVM have appeared there too. How they intend to patrol a mooring that's a eyot is anyone's guess! They've also taken control of the 24hr moorings by Kingston railway bridge, but that's still full of the same squatters.
I was behind the river inspector and saw an officer taking pictures of those squatters. One of them was furious, waving his arms about and asking what the problem was. If I see those moorings(and Stevens Eyot)cleared of those who think it's their permanent residence, I'll feel more positive towards TVM.

You really have got yourself in a muddle haven't you?
HCP moorings are managed by DE and not TVM.
Perhaps it's because DE have mebe 'acquired' a copy of TVM's hard work that caused your confusion.

You also conveniently ignore the reason why TVM and DE managed moorings are needed in the first place. Just look at the Youtube videos of the slumboats opposite HCP and Trotman's antics and you might understand the position....

 

[Actionmat]

My mistake. But same sledgehammer to crack a nut, just a different name.
Trotman was never on those moorings, he occupied Cigarette Island opposite. It was only when all three Slumboats were tied together that the EA took action and that was only to move one on as it was a navigation hazard. The worst offenders down this end of the Thames have spent the past 10 years moving between two locks, land owned by Thames Water, the EA, a power company and two councils. They will remain unnafected by the new arrangement.

 

[mersey]

HCP is not TVM, it is https://www.where2moor.co.uk/ , who then seem to contract with Parkonomy for the website booking (which doesn't let you extend your stay, even though it has an extend button, and you're willing to pay the £8).

There also seems to be http://www.district-enforcement.co.uk/ in the mix, who I believe do the walking around.

So three different companies involved in HCP mooring, all presumably wanting a cut, but TVM isn't one of them.

 

[TrueBlue]

HCP is not TVM, it is https://www.where2moor.co.uk/ , who then seem to contract with Parkonomy for the website booking (which doesn't let you extend your stay, even though it has an extend button, and you're willing to pay the £8).

There also seems to be http://www.district-enforcement.co.uk/ in the mix, who I believe do the walking around.

So three different companies involved in HCP mooring, all presumably wanting a cut, but TVM isn't one of them.

Where2Moor is a website owned by DE (District enforcement) and Parkonomy is/ are essentially all the same company. All very confusing - perhaps that's what 'they' intend...

 

[Phill]

Or even better, Wallingford Council could stop asking boaters for a hand out and just appreciate the tourist pounds they bring with them. Abingdon aren't greedy. I didn't mind when a fee gave access to the showers.
Be careful what you wish for. TVM is(IMHO)the beginning of the end of free, unbooked mooring.

In defence of Wallingford, when Angie collects the fees, she hands out leaflets about Wallingford and what’s on and where. She also recommended attractions and gives good advice on where to eat.
The moorings are well kept, proper piling, have mooring rings and cleats and have a large bin to deposit your rubbish. So to stay as long as you like at £7.00 per day, I don’t mind paying that. Lots of places we moor, we get charged more than that for an unkept piece or river bank with no facilities whatsoever.
Wallingford aren’t asking for a handout, they’re delivering what I want for a fair price and for that reason, I don’t see why anyone would try to avoid payment.

 

[mersey]

Where2Moor is a website owned by DE (District enforcement) and Parkonomy is/ are essentially all the same company. All very confusing - perhaps that's what 'they' intend...

Quite probably.

Looking into this where2moor.co.uk is a "trading style" of district enforcement. It says that at the very bottom of this page: https://www.where2moor.co.uk/

Parkonomy which provide the website that can't extend bookings, is however a different company, some details of the relationship here :

http://news.parkonomy.com/2016/06/15/parkonomy-com-is-teaming-up-with-district-enforcement-to-provide-cashless-parking/

 

[boatone]

In defence of Wallingford, when Angie collects the fees, she hands out leaflets about Wallingford and what’s on and where. She also recommended attractions and gives good advice on where to eat.
The moorings are well kept, proper piling, have mooring rings and cleats and have a large bin to deposit your rubbish. So to stay as long as you like at £7.00 per day, I don’t mind paying that. Lots of places we moor, we get charged more than that for an unkept piece or river bank with no facilities whatsoever.
Wallingford aren’t asking for a handout, they’re delivering what I want for a fair price and for that reason, I don’t see why anyone would try to avoid payment.

A very big +1 from me ! Thank you.

 

[No Regrets]

Delightful lady, always asks if one has enjoyed ones stay, and well worth the £7.

The local Chinese takeaway is the best I have ever tasted! :encouragement:

 

[Parabordi]

Delightful lady, always asks if one has enjoyed ones stay, and well worth the £7. :

Big +1

 

[Actionmat]

Yes, she is a very nice lady, I'm not disputing that. And I've yet to avoid a fee on purpose(okay, maybe Henley, but that's a matter of principal!).
I can understand private land owners charging, it gives them an element of control, but councils are another matter. Some do, some don't, some welcome boats, others fail to see the connection between visitor moorings and tourist pounds spent in shops and restaurants. Abingdon is a good example of a council that gets it right. And they don't come knocking in the morning.