A backward flip!

We slipped our mooring ropes at Froud’s Lane around 9.00am and headed downstream to Aldermaston Wharf to fill the water tank and empty the toilet tank.  We’ve been in the area so long it’s almost like home!  However it was the day to make a move.

We’re going that way……..!

After saying good-bye and thank you to many of our local friends we headed into new cruising waters. The first two locks went quite quickly… or so it seemed.  After Ufton Lane swing bridge the river and canal join for a short section.

Ufton Lane swing bridge

This combined river and canal stretch runs until just before Tyle Mill Lock and during winter there were very few boats moored on it.  Spring has arrived and the towpath is rapidly being filled with boats.

Down by Theale the trees have been felled along the banks of the adjacent fishing ponds opening up the area.

We had some luck at “Ghastly” Garston Lock (a turf sided lock) when we met a boat coming towards us who kindly assisted us with our passage down.  It was a little tricky getting Jan back on board on the lower landing as it was quite short and also occupied by the other boat.  Then it was a case of going under the M4 (how many times have we previously driven over the bridge without realising there was a canal below?) and cruising on a rather twisted length of canal with Hosehill Lake to the right.

Their stretch of water wasn’t a ‘twisty’ as ours.  We were back on the river and the current had us listing (leaning over) quite badly on some of the tight bends.

The cruising day ended with us mooring at the Cunning Man pub, Burghfield.  The current caused me all sorts of grief trying to get against the bank.  A kind fellow boater assisted Jan with the mooring lines and then I realised there was a large tree beside the towpath that would probably obscure the ‘dot in the sky’ so I decided to pull Waiouru back upstream about 20 metres.  Everything was going well until I stepped backwards into a hole in the bank and did a spectacular backward flip into the canal.  Jan had previously informed me she couldn’t wash my grubby jeans….. That excuse is now no longer valid!  At least the water wasn’t cold!

Tomorrow we plan to have lunch at the Cunning Man before heading to Reading in the afternoon.  One of us will be in clean clothes………..