Day 121 and we leave the Wey (eventually). The first mile and lock took an hour as a broadbeam boat came past us just before we left the mooring so we were following them and then had to wait for them to go through the first lock. Mel and D went up to lock and said the broadbeam seemed to be very fussy about his paintwork; they took ages to get through the lock. They let us go past them after the next lock and we made better progress to the last Wey lock we worked for ourselves and on out through the Thames locks onto the Thames, handing back the long and heavy Wey windlass we borrowed for our trip.

We turned left and up the Thames passing Chertsey and Staines before mooring at Runnymede just before Magna Carta island. No escaping the planes out of Heathrow here, warm enough for ice creams to be declared necessary.

Day 122 and an early start as we didn’t get to a lock for a couple of miles J on the tiller whilst D and Mel finished their breakfast. The Thames locks are all bedecked in flowers like Windsor lock

Through Windsor and past the castle

Mel and D doing critiques of the various houses / buildings as we go. Did really well and went well past Cliveden where we had thought we would moor. Just as well as moorings were very overgrown and only a few were long enough for us. Also considered using the home mooring of Pedlar which we had been offered by our friends whilst they were away; not sure we really identified which was their mooring. Followed one cruiser out of a lock into the lock cut all was going well until he suddenly came to a stop because of another large cruiser coming the other way. J did the narrowboat equivalent of a skid trying to stop behind him. Eventually stopped at Marlow just below the lock. Decided we might go out to eat – J suggested we could try the Compleat Angler, what she didn’t realise was that Atul Kochhar is there with Sindhu restaurant. He is one of the chefs J has wanted to go to for a long time. Couldn’t believe it when we managed to get a table – fantastic meal. Some great slipper boats today

Day 123 and a slightly later start, nothing to do with the night before of course. Our last full day on the Thames. Immediately through the lock at Marlow. It has the most enormous weir. Again we did well, river quieter than yesterday, maybe because it was raining until about 1000. Past Henley – surprisingly few rowers. Caught by an odd little wooden boat whilst we waited for one lock. Who then proceeded to leave the lock ahead of us, it soon became evident that he wasn’t going as fast as us, difficult to overtake as it was a small difference overall but he kept slowing down and speeding up, managed to pass when he went one side of an island and we went the other, but he caught up again at the next lock and did the same thing; even after J had given him the lock side he preferred, they were even more rubbish with lines in the lock than us. J got more cross with him after the second lock as couldn’t get past but he slowed down after the bends which meant we came round the corner to find him in front of us going half the speed he had before going round the corner, as previously mentioned 20 tonne boats don’t stop quickly. Decided we could live with the building on temple island near Henley.

Moored near Sonning bridge as decided going all the way through Reading and onto a mooring on the K&A would be too much of a stretch and didn’t want to end up in the middle of Reading. Looked at getting some tickets for the local theatre but decided that at more than £55 each it was too steep.