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The Tuesday Night Club on Tour
Tours 2000, BCN, Severn Estuary, K&A and River Wey
37 - Saturday 5th August - Guildford to Godalming. River Wey.
Weather - sun, sun, sun!
Neil woken up at 4.00am by sound of boat engine! He dons minimum clothes and pops out of side hatch to investigate. Bunch of Scandinavians aboard boat in
front are not there! Their boat has been cast adrift and they are retrieving it from near footbridge. God knows how it did not bang into ours. The yobs
must be very selective round here and have pushed it out! Our ropes and centre chain to hole in pilings are all OK, so Neil left them to it. The
boat behind us has also been untouched. This had feebly inserted pins, with ropes just tied to pins with one knot and ends just dangling on towpath!
We eventually shove off at 10.25, the only boats left on moorings. St
Catherine's Lock is in a lovely location, with virtually no fences visible.
The only intrusion is the railway on a fairly high embankment. The Broadford Bridge seems as low as ever and twangs aerial. There is not a lot of
warning, in true NT style! (depends whether you like the BW over signposted approach) At Unstead Lock there is soon a boat waiting to come down, it
turns out to be fellow newsgroup poster Keith Williamson in nb Edith Sheriff, who finally homed in on us. We chat for a while, then go our
separate ways (or should that be Weys?) The entrance to Godalming is very pleasant. Farncombe Boat House is just before the last lock, Catteshall. At
Catteshall Lock we shared with Little Boat a red and green 40ftish narrowboat. The owner was waiting for some friends, but could not wait any
longer! We had a brief chat, he had been planning to do the Severn Estuary / K&A this year, but had "chickened out!" This was after an
exploratory visit. Neil told him to go for it. The guy had done the Thames tideway and Neil
told him this was the best way of proving his boat, as the water was often rougher!
We carried on past Beatty's limit of navigation, where a backwater comes in just beyond the lock. From here on it was new territory. The pleasant little
wharf (packed!), with new sanitary station was passed. This is the last winding point, but we continued on until the official head of navigation,
Town Bridge. After kissing the bridge parapet we went astern in a very controlled fashion, getting the stern in the "V" of the wharf, to let
the current take us round. During this operation the over zealous mooring warden
popped out of Wonderful World a 50ft trad and said we could not moor beyond Iona the horse drawn butty.
(This boat we last saw in
1971, when it was a trip boat at Norbury Junction). Neil muttered something about how would this
guy wind! Also during this operation a Guildford Boat House 65ft hire nb decided to pull off and head for us! Neil obviously ignored them. They went
up the bank on the tight corner opposite and we came round with the current and went off down river to leave them to their own devices.
We moored on a
nice spot a bit down steam at Lammas Lands. Some kind people moved up so we could share some of the cleared bank. That afternoon Alan, Peter and Wendy
went down to the Boat House and hired a rowing boat, then Canadian canoes. Neil and Linda went up to the town and checked out the river beyond the Town
Bridge. The river is still un-officially navigable up to the next bridge, Boarden Bridge and it certainly looked that. Earnest would have gone through
the Town Bridge centre arch (Just, with the Dudley Tunnel handrail protectors on) but we did not want to start a major NT incident! After this
we went in the Waitrose super market. This is really a super affair (Julian E take note!) and stocked a mega amount of trendy items. Neil came out with
another bottle of Lagavulin whiskey (29.50 GBP!), some Ameretti liqueur and a bottle of Amerone, this is one serious Valpolicella.
Edith Sheriff has just gone by and is not on the wharf. Neil presumes they moor up there.
 We are the last to leave our moorings in Millbrook, Guildford. River Wey and Godalming Navigations. |
 Further up there are some nice moorings on the water meadows side. River Wey and Godalming Navigations. |
 Old Ferry Footbridge. Sandy Corner. River Wey and Godalming Navigations. |
 The very Sandy Corner, Large out crop of Lower Greensand. River Wey and Godalming Navigations. |
 Sandy Corner still has a tow line roller for the horse drawn trip boat. River Wey and Godalming Navigations. |
 Approaching St Catherine's Lock. river goes round weir to left. River Wey and Godalming Navigations. |
 St Catherine's Lock. River Wey and Godalming Navigations. |
 St Catherine's Lock. River Wey and Godalming Navigations. |
 Waiting below St Catherine's Lock. River Wey and Godalming Navigations. |
 St Catherine's Lock. River Wey and Godalming Navigations. |
 Riff Raff Weir goes off to the left. River Wey and Godalming Navigations. |
 The somewhat over engineered Shalford Railway Bridge. River Wey and Godalming Navigations. |
 The dodgy Broadford Bridge. River Wey and Godalming Navigations. |
 The main road span is somewhat lower than the footbridge addition. River Wey and Godalming Navigations. |
 Broadford Bridge. River Wey and Godalming Navigations. |
 Broadford Bridge air guage. River Wey and Godalming Navigations. |
 Stonebridge Wharf. River Wey and Godalming Navigations. |
 The sign at the end of Stonebridge Wharf. Maybe one day we will turn left. River Wey and Godalming Navigations. |
 Looking up the stub of the Wey and Arun Canal. River Wey and Godalming Navigations. |
 Peasmarsh. River Wey and Godalming Navigations. |
 Peasmarsh. River Wey and Godalming Navigations. |
 Unstead Lock. River Wey and Godalming Navigations. |
 Unstead Lock. River Wey and Godalming Navigations. |
 Unstead Lock. River Wey and Godalming Navigations. |
 We finally meet fellow newsgroup poster Keith Williamson, out in his nb Edith Sheriff. Unstead Lock. River Wey and Godalming Navigations. |
 Keith has a somewhat well behaved dog! Unstead Lock. River Wey and Godalming Navigations. |
 Unstead Bridge. River Wey and Godalming Navigations. |
 Unstead Bridge. We have picked up a fast moving rowing boat! River Wey and Godalming Navigations. |
 Unstead Weir. River Wey and Godalming Navigations. |
 The Manor Inn Beefeater pub / restaurant at Broadwater. It was closed for refurbishment at the time. River Wey and Godalming Navigations. |
 Trowers Footbridge. River Wey and Godalming Navigations. |
 Moorings below Farncombe Boat House. River Wey and Godalming Navigations. |
 Farncombe Boat House. Catteshall Lock, the final on the navigation is just beyond. River Wey and Godalming Navigations. |
 Catteshall Lock. River Wey and Godalming Navigations. |
 Farncombe Boat House. River Wey and Godalming Navigations. |
 Catteshall Lock. River Wey and Godalming Navigations. |
 Godalming Wharf. River Wey and Godalming Navigations. |
 Godalming Wharf. River Wey and Godalming Navigations. |
 Going up the final bit. Godalming. River Wey and Godalming Navigations. |
 The official end of navigation, at Godalming Bridge. River Wey and Godalming Navigations. |
 Godalming Wharf. River Wey and Godalming Navigations. |
 The new Sanitary Station at Godalming Wharf. River Wey and Godalming Navigations. |
 Our peacefull moorings at Lammas Land. River Wey and Godalming Navigations. |
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