Richmond. This was the intermediate step between Hampton Court Palace, and the tidal Thames. All good. Had some shopping, and then a chance to ring the 12 in All Saints, Richmond. Nice bells, they had a full band, so rang in the 12, and they chose tittums (on 12) for call changes. That was a bit of a challenge for someone who hasn’t rang in a 12 for more than a year!
Hampton Court Palace
one of the many formal gardens surrounding the palace
the Georgian part of Hampton Court Palace
Henry VIII’s clock court, with the chapel royal on the right
one of the royal presence rooms of one of the three monarchs that made this palace their court
TheThames. Success and finish!
Well, after a significant amount of planning and preparation, and inviting my friend Chris Seager along, I made the trip on the tidal stretch of the Thames from Teddington Lock through London, to Limehouse basin. It was epic!
The day, unfortunately, was very misty and damp, with a significant wind. Not cold (thank goodness!), but not as sublime and pleasant as the past 10 days. Oh well. We started at 0730h this morning, moving from Kingston Bridge to Teddington lock, and went through at the top of the tide. That meant the ebbing tide would move us along smartly. We went along, under many of the famous bridges that have been so important in British history. We also went along the famous boat race course, where Oxford and Cambridge battle it out every year in rowing supremacy.
Then London.
Lots of fast catamarans, whose wakes make my very little, 17 tonne, narrowboat, bob like a cork. The bow rose and fell almost 2m, sometimes lifting the bottom right out of the water, and then the stern (and prop) would life out, making a ‘rooster-tail’ of water spraying out the stern.
St. Paul’s Cathedral watching over some of the very busy city
the Tower of London, with Traitor’s Gate leading from the river
palace of Westminster
the approach to Tower Bridge
on the approach to Tower Bridge, avoiding collision with this other little ship (HMS Belfast)
listening for the strike of Big Ben, and 1100h
We toured past the famous landmarks of the London Eye, Westminster (and listened to Big Ben strike 1100h). HMS Belfast, the Tower of London, St. Paul’s Cathedral, and finally Tower Bridge. Wow!
We then crossed over the river from south side to north, weaving between two of the fast ferries, and into Limehouse cut, where we had to await the return of the tide to provide enough water to get through the lock, and off the Thames. We bumped beside the pier for 3h, with the wakes of the ferries, and then, back to peaceful canal waters.
