Literary waterways

These are the stretches of the Thames made famous in Wind in the Willows and Three Men in a Boat. But I would contend that Kenneth Grahame would have used a lot more effing and blinding in his dialogue had Ratty and Mole been trying to tie up a 58' flat-bottomed narrow boat against the semi-accessible banks hereabouts instead of a little skiff thingy. Jerome K would have used a bit more ripe language too, I'm sure. I know I did.

So, it took us a while, but we found a spot to stop for lunch up against the grounds of Cliveden – thank you, National Trust. The landscape here is, once again, extraordinarily beautiful in the way that only people with astonishing amounts of money can effect. The real estate around here makes your eyes water.

We spotted this crazy thing going by as we ate lunch, then caught it up in the next lock, by which time I had my camera to hand:

Although it was first in the queue for the lock, the keeper waved on the great big steamer from six places back to go in first so that all of the rest of the waiting boats could be packed in around it safely. "There, you see, size does matter" said the chap in the passenger seat of the car. "That's just boats, Dad," said the driver.


We turfed up at Windsor for teatime and moored up against the riverside park for the night.

Lots of tiny wee cruisers come belting past this evening at high speed with no idea, I am sure, of the wake they cause – several tens of feet behind them, by the time the bow-waves come slapping up against moored boats (particularly, I think, flat-bottomed hogs like ours) . It's all magnified hugely by the width of the river because you get the first set of waves thwacking your boat around, then the reflected waves from the opposite bank, then the decreasing reflected waves for a couple of repeats. We're securely moored on bank-side rings here but the boats fixed with pins on the earth bank opposite seem a lot more vulnerable. They've got a much better view of Windsor Castle, though – ours is obscured by droopy willows for the moment. It's an engaging contrast to spend some time in a little town, bustling with trippers. And lots of shops.