Back to Carrier Bags and Weed

After a very short night's sleep, we were all up at 04:30 this morning. After washing, dressing, walking the dogs and a cup of tea, it was time to don life jackets, power up the VHF radio and head for Teddington lock.

Sunrise over Kingston

Swans waking up

We headed through Kingston Bridge and along the deserted river, covering the 2 miles to Teddington without seeing anything else on the move apart from 1 cruiser which pulled out of the moorings behind us and followed us to the lock.

I wonder how many chairs they have inside?

Still waters

As we approached the lock in Teddington at 07:00, the keeper opened the gates and we and the cruiser pulled in, in plenty of time to catch the ebb tide, which would push us down to Brentford.

We don't like this bit

Angela and the lock keeper, as we are about to depart - I'd better get back on!

D&H looking surprisingly fresh for this time of day

The gates opened and we pulled out into a flat calm Thames. The tide had just about reached its highest point and was about to turn. It was a beautiful morning though pretty cold and we all wished we had a few more layers on. We passed some lovely houses again, passing Eel Pie Island and on in to Richmond.

Dan looking cold but cool

An impressive school

Mum on school run

The sun coming up slowly

We passed through the Richmond weir gates which were still open and pressed on to Brentford Creek, arriving there with plenty of water still under us. As we approached the lock, the gates started to open and all worries about confusion between the lock keepers yesterday evaporated.

Thames Lock at Brentford

A heron on the end of Brentford Gauging lock

We obtained an appropriate licence for the trip through London and set off again, passing slowly up the River Brent, under the high street and through the guaging lock, and pulled into the facilities moorings to have a hot cup of tea. Suitably refreshed, we headed north east following the River Brent to the bottom of the Hanwell flight of locks, where the river becomes the Grand Union Canal. Rubbish had started to increase and we were worlds away from the sights of Maidenhead and Windsor! The Hanwell flight consists of 6 closely packed locks and a couple spread out a bit. The locks are deep and the pounds between them shallow and strewn with carrier bags and weed. All in all, quite a challenge.

Foam in a Hanwell lock

Back to windlasses and hard work

Angela and Dan moving between locks on foot

Is it a stick - no, it's a moth rescued from the water by Angela 

A cormorant drying its wings

We made our way up the flight, with A&D developing a system to minimise the time to get through each lock. Before long, we were at the top and onto the start of a long, lock-free section. We had to stop several times to free thr propeller, including two trips down the weed hatch removing bits of bags, tons of weed and some fishing line. We passed several little families of ducks/coots with chicks before arriving at Bulls Bridge, where the canal forks, heading north towards the Chilterns or east into Central London. We stopped at Tesco to get more Pimms and a few other provisions, and then turned under the bridge into the Paddington arm of the canal.

Cute coot and cute coot chicks

After a few miles we arrived at Hillingdon where there is some open land with good moorings. We tied up and settled down for a quiet afternoon, walking the dogs and then enjoying watching the world go by in the hot sunshine.

Tonight's mooring

We re-fuelled from this passing merchant boat

Angela taking a well earned rest after operating 11 locks in record time

We hope to meet up with Tamlyn and Leigh tomorrow, possibly here and then travelling to Little Venice and back - watch this space. Whatever we do, it looks like being a seriously hot day.