After a day of 'rest' I had a long cruise against strong winds and under grey skies to a rather exposed mooring at Radcot. The high winds overnight increased the exposure and at one stage I thought I was at sea! The instinctive order to 'dive' was not obeyed thank goodness.
Leaving Newbridge and 'The Rose Revived'; an excellent establishment.
Since Oxford I have passed through 10 locks and have been the only boat in each. I believe only 3 boats have passed me going upstream over the 3 days on the move, which must say something about the impact of recent floods and poor weather on the use of our waterways.
The new hazard in this section has been the weed. As the river meanders and the banks are left to silt up, then the weed extends into the main river and gets a grip on less powerful propellors. Although inconvenient, this proved the wisdom in having outboards that can be easily raised and cleared. I am not sure how I would have handled the original inboard engine with a deeper prop in these circumstances. Being forced into the centre of the river meant a stronger stream and slower progress.
Have decided to let some promised sun today (Saturday) revive the batteries, ready for the finale on Sunday. Anyone coming out on Sunday should pick me up at about 1130 passing through St John's Lock half a mile downriver from Lechlade - see previous post for map.
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