Evesham Saturday 10 August 2019

Day   :Saturday 
Date :10 August 2019
Start :1000
Finish :1630 Evesham

I have uploaded our proposed route to CanalPlanAC at https://canalplan.eu/journey/12117_-9OILoW8H5 if anyone wants to see where we are likely to be. It gets updated with actual position each night.

Well last night 8 of us turned up at a Thai restaurant with no booking and had great service and good meals, so if you want a good Thai meal in Stratford upon Avon then I recommend The Giggling Squid.

Overnight the water levels stopped rising so this morning so it was off to The River Avon Trust office to part with money for a 5 day licence. Another boater was already in there buying a licence so we shard some of the locks with him. As I approached the first river lock we met a boat coming out, unfortunately the lock had already been turned by a trip boat right behind him, needles to say it also started to hammer down with rain. Some canoeists were enjoying the extra flow down the weir.

We did the next lock together but unfortunately the other boat was travelling a bit slow, I was on tick over and keeping up with him which gave me very little steerage in the strong winds so I had to pass and watch him drift into the reeds. There was nothing I could do to help, the river was too narrow to turn and no way could I back up in that current and high wind. I did however ring the Navigation emergency line to tell them of his plight. (update we are in Evesham and he is now moored up here)

As I approached Bidford bridge I could see a hire boat coming upstream so I had to do a bit of back peddling until he had cleared the bridge against the flow. We had planned to stop here but boats were already breasted along the visitor moorings.

The river was up a bit with some of the landing stages just under water but still in the green. As we passed George Billing Lock the emergency services were on the adjacent field.

Yesterday we passed fields of Christmas Trees, today it has been fields of willows.

All locks these days have a marking to indicate where the edge of the top gate cill is so that boats can avoid getting hung up, today we have seen a choice of spellings.

I must say I find these notices a real pleasure to see, I just wish it was the same on the canals.

One of the locks we passed through is known as The Robert Aickman Lock and they have incorporated the Inland Waterways Association sword into the design.

Evesham lock proved interesting with the cross flow in front of the lock, as you approach you have a long weir on your left with a guard/walkway which now incorporates the lock landing with bollards and just to the right the inflow to an electricity generating turbine. At least then now have large signs warning you of the current. Once trough the lock we just dropped down into the town to moor on the town moorings overnight.

Today's Journey

20 Miles 11 Locks in 6 hours