USA Visitor Boating your Thames (Again)

To bring us back on topic, had excellent overnights in Goring, Sonning , and Marlow. All wanted a fee which was quite acceptable. Loved Goring pub Miller at Mansfield, Sonning Bull, and last night at Cookham The Ferry.

Apart from the one-hundred year floods we would love to live on your River. Unlike our last cruise we have slowed the pace to hike and visit more wonderful sites. Walked the Marlow 10k Circular Path yesterday stopping at Royal Oak Pub for coffee. Another little treasure off the beaten path. Viewed WW One trench system used for training along forested path here. Once again we understand the meaning of peaceful co-existence.

On to Windsor today. Any advice on mooring spots would be helpful. Also back to the mundane task of finding a laundrette. We continue to meet most gracious and friendly natives on land and on your River. Crew hasn’t yet mutinied and seems content. Thank you.
 
Heading Downstream

As a annual visitor my primary mooring choice is the little mooring down by Eaton High Street, on port had side just below Bridge.
Immediately outside a small apartment block. Its FREE for 24 hours.You will have to go right through the town but def worth the time and trouble and you can always turn round and come back up stream if occupied.
Problem is visitors do not know its there and locals/ long term livaboards constantly monopolise it.. :)
Good luck with finding it empty. :).
Next mooring is any where on Starboard (Windsor Castle side ) or Port (Eaton side)an open field known as the Brocas.
Both hove into view after passing railway bridge when heading downstream.
Locals can give more details.No real mooring price difference.
 
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djones18 said:
To bring us back on topic, had excellent overnights in Goring, Sonning , and Marlow. All wanted a fee which was quite acceptable. Loved Goring pub Miller at Mansfield, Sonning Bull, and last night at Cookham The Ferry.

Apart from the one-hundred year floods we would love to live on your River. Unlike our last cruise we have slowed the pace to hike and visit more wonderful sites. Walked the Marlow 10k Circular Path yesterday stopping at Royal Oak Pub for coffee. Another little treasure off the beaten path. Viewed WW One trench system used for training along forested path here. Once again we understand the meaning of peaceful co-existence.

On to Windsor today. Any advice on mooring spots would be helpful. Also back to the mundane task of finding a laundrette. We continue to meet most gracious and friendly natives on land and on your River. Crew hasn’t yet mutinied and seems content. Thank you.
Click to expand...


Hi Dave

Pleased to hear you are enjoying your trip and the Thames.
You have stayed at some lovely mooring places and had some glorious weather.
I endorse comments regarding the Eton Environment Agency 24 hour mooring. For many of my years on the Thames I was unaware it was a public mooring. A great spot if you can get on it. If you are planning on eating out it is also worth a look along Eton High Street which is very convenient for the Brocas moorings on the left before the Eton Bridge and the EA Eton mooring. It has various restaurant nationalities and pubs.
I am assuming you are returning to Penton Hook tomorrow or the reach between Penton Hook and Chertsey locks. Their is another Environment Agency 24 hour free mooring at Laleham just below Penton Hook Lock and the Three Horseshoes Pub at Laleham is a short walk and nice for a afternoon beer or meal. If you are planning on eating there I would book as it gets busy.

I moor at Penton Hook and although I have never used them they do have laundry facilities. I am sure Le Boat or the Marina Office could advise.

I am at Penton Hook tomorrow afternoon and will keep an eye out for you. It would be nice to renew our brief meet up at Romney lock on your last trip.

Enjoy Kind regards Joe
 
Re: Heading Downstream

Thanks again for your excellent mooring and dining suggestions. I’m sorry to say your Eton versus Eaton discussion goes over my head. I suspect it is similar to my bantering on with friends from Massachusetts whether they went to Harvard as I call it or Havad University as Bostonians call it.

We finally moored in Windsor on Windsor bank down a small tributary near a large Hurricane aircraft on a stick. Seems quite fitting for this leg of our adventure and brought back memories of flying here during the Cold War. I feel we may now be stuck having to back “Le Barge” about 150 feet out of here around some large moored personal craft. I originally believed we could motor forward out but on my recce walk last night I discovered a very low foot bridge ahead blocking us. May be room to do a 180 degree turn-around but it will be tight with 13.5 meters long boat. Le Boat might be not be pleased to find their boat on permanent display wedged below the Hurricane. Oh well. No Guts - No Glory. We will see what is to be done.

Last night took advice and ate at The George pub in Eaton/Eton. Great ale and good pub food for a touristy area. We will motor down to Laleham and go to Three Horseshoes Pub before turning in boat at Penton Hook Marina tomorrow morning. Apart from yesterday, weather here has been remarkable.

Crew wants to spend three days in London doing The Eye, West End Show, and other visits. I may try to smuggle away on return trip of “Le Barge” to Benson on Saturday. Once again thank you for your hospitality, advice and friendship. We in your Ex-Colony invite you to contact us if you ever find yourselves in Washington D.C. area.
 
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joejo said:
Hi Dave

Pleased to hear you are enjoying your trip and the Thames.
You have stayed at some lovely mooring places and had some glorious weather.
I endorse comments regarding the Eton Environment Agency 24 hour mooring. For many of my years on the Thames I was unaware it was a public mooring. A great spot if you can get on it. If you are planning on eating out it is also worth a look along Eton High Street which is very convenient for the Brocas moorings on the left before the Eton Bridge and the EA Eton mooring. It has various restaurant nationalities and pubs.
I am assuming you are returning to Penton Hook tomorrow or the reach between Penton Hook and Chertsey locks. Their is another Environment Agency 24 hour free mooring at Laleham just below Penton Hook Lock and the Three Horseshoes Pub at Laleham is a short walk and nice for a afternoon beer or meal. If you are planning on eating there I would book as it gets busy.

I moor at Penton Hook and although I have never used them they do have laundry facilities. I am sure Le Boat or the Marina Office could advise.

I am at Penton Hook tomorrow afternoon and will keep an eye out for you. It would be nice to renew our brief meet up at Romney lock on your last trip.

Enjoy Kind regards Joe
Click to expand...


Thank you. We are taking your advice. Hope to see you at Penton Hook though we have to turn boat in by 9:00AM. They want boats back early to turnaround and fix problems. Still figuring best way to get from Penton Hook to Gloucester Rd Underground Station near hotel. Taxi to Heathrow, then train into London? Suggestions?
 
Eaten Moorings Pix.

Just note to some boaters, we did our best to ensure that we made best use of the available space on that mooring by leaving a bit of space at the end for perhaps a small vessel to squeeze in.
To be fair you frequently see craft. including narrow boats, moored with the bow well forward of the end of any pontoon or landing stage , with only the cockpit of the boat alongside for access.
It is not good practice to dump your pride and joy slap bang in the middle of limited space moorings and prevent anybody else getting along side.
If you are incapable of handling your boat or just plain idle ,would respectfully request you go and annoy somebody else and take up a different hobby. :)
 
djones18 said:
Thank you. We are taking your advice. Hope to see you at Penton Hook though we have to turn boat in by 9:00AM. They want boats back early to turnaround and fix problems. Still figuring best way to get from Penton Hook to Gloucester Rd Underground Station near hotel. Taxi to Heathrow, then train into London? Suggestions?
Click to expand...

I'm not a regular train traveller - so this may not be a good suggestion, but how's about -
Taxi to Staines station
Train to Waterloo
Taxi / bus/ underground to Gloucester Road tube.
Taxi to LHR may be a rip off, but the underground to Gloucerter Road is direct...
 
djones18 said:
Thank you. We are taking your advice. Hope to see you at Penton Hook though we have to turn boat in by 9:00AM. They want boats back early to turnaround and fix problems. Still figuring best way to get from Penton Hook to Gloucester Rd Underground Station near hotel. Taxi to Heathrow, then train into London? Suggestions?
Click to expand...

Taxi to Staines (10 mins max), fast train to London Waterloo (25 mins) job done.
 
We are back in Washington D.C. and though we've only been home a day, the entire crew misses your River and England. To close our trip we moored our last night at Laleham based on Joejo's good advice. The Three Horseshoes Pub also proved to be a winner. I can't tell you how surprised and pleased we were when Joejo motored over from Penton Hook to say hello and share good cheer and his long history on your River. We made a lasting valuable friend who will remain in our memory and thoughts.

We motored into Penton Hook Saturday 27 April, on what can only be described as a very crappy weather morning. High winds and light rain on an unprotected upper deck made for a very soggy return. Le Boat doesn't mark their moorings in Penton Hook until your boat is driving up their back side. Tight lanes and narrow maneuvering space reminded me of landing, taxing, and parking on an aircraft carrier deck for the first time. To say the crew got very excited and vastly more interested in my driving skills than at anytime during the trip would be an understatement. I apologize to the owner whose mooring spot I ended up in. I hope Le Boat has removed "Le Barge" from your spot by now.

Once again we remain in awe of your River, its history, and your community. Special thanks to each of you who responded and especially to you who refrained from using the "B" and "T" words.

I leave you with one of my favorite paragraphs from a favorite book which so aptly describes our joy and pleasure at having shared time on your River.

“The river - with the sunlight flashing from its dancing wavelets, gilding gold the grey-green beech-trunks, glinting through the dark, cool wood paths, chasing shadows o'er the shallows, flinging diamonds from the mill-wheels, throwing kisses to the lilies, wantoning with the weirs' white waters, silvering moss-grown walls and bridges, brightening every tiny townlet, making sweet each lane and meadow, lying tangled in the rushes, peeping, laughing, from each inlet, gleaming gay on many a far sail, making soft the air with glory - is a golden fairy stream.”

― Jerome K. Jerome, Three Men in a Boat
 
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So glad you enjoyed your trip.Simply something about being on the water. :)
Will be following in your footsteps in July.....also hope it has stopped raining by then. :)
 
Time Out said:
Taxi to Staines (10 mins max), fast train to London Waterloo (25 mins) job done.
Click to expand...

Thank you. Le Boat arranged taxi to Staines train station. Used your routing, then underground to Glouster Road Station where our hotel was a couple of minutes walk. Worked perfectly. Fast and inexpensive. Requires shlumping bags up stairs in a couple stations but well worth it if you you are up to it physically.

Amazingly, nice men (not the hooligan types) kept offering to help carry suitcases up flights of stairs at each Underground Station. Would never happen in D.C. Even offered to give up seats on Underground. Is it our age? Or is it more likely you remain more civilized than the rest of us? The latter I believe from our recent experience.
 
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