Repair job.

We had another short journey today, starting at about midday after we had a walk into Thatcham and back.

We were soon at Woolhampton and ready to tackle the awkward lock / river / road bridge combination.  Today, as the river was behaving itself pretty well, it wasn’t such a problem.  However, this section always needs some concentration and a bit of confidence.  Lucky for us, a boat was coming up through this section so we combined resources – we left the lock gates open for them and they opened the road bridge for us. 

We were soon out of the lock, tackling the river as it flowed in from the right hand side, and heading for the road bridge.  There are some strange angles which the boat has to go through before reaching the bridge.

This angle is probably the most scary!

We will get through this bridge!

Done it!  The expression on James’ face is only the aftermath of concentration as we apply more power to get safely through the bridge hole (about 20 mph we think!)  Exciting stuff.

Our stop for today was Froud’s Bridge Marina (where we over wintered).  We’ve got a minor fuel leak on the engine and Beta Marine have arranged for it to be done under warranty by Marcus of Marcus Marine.  The work is scheduled for Friday, when the parts have been delivered, so we’re staying for a couple of nights.  We know Marcus well and his work is excellent so we would always suggest to anyone to contact him if help is needed at the eastern end of the K and A.

This is our temporary mooring this afternoon (on the fuel and pump-out bay) – we shall move up this evening when the boat in front is moved.

With time to spare now,  James got stuck in this afternoon and started to black the rubbing strakes while Doug waded through paperwork from the mountain of post he collected from home.