29 June 2016 - Chertsey Club Site, Surrey

We woke to learn there was a weather window of opportunity before midday and so on that positive note, after discounting any full day’s excursion, decided to walk upriver along the tow path to Staines. Setting off across the historic Chertsey Bridge, we soon discovered that the camp is directly across from the Lock. We had noted the weir but not really thought too much about how craft would navigate that obstacle. This lock and the next upstream at Penton Hook are manned by a lock keeper, and the gardens around the little kiosks neatly manicured and a mass of colour. 

The lock at Chertsey

We watched a small launch work its way through the lock, the “hard” work being done by the keeper rather than the captain’s side kick. Navigating through England’s canal system in a narrowboat appeals enormously to us both, however time is forever against us. But then look at Prunella Scales and her husband, Tim West, no longer in their prime, who manage brilliantly despite poor Prunella’s fragile memory. There is hope for us all yet!

For now we enjoyed our walk, sometimes on a very narrow path between high stands of nettles and brambles, beneath willows and sycamore trees, and sometimes along narrow lanes, access to the many lovely homes that line the bank of the River Thames.

Lock & keeper's kiosk at Chertsey

It was about here, a little more than halfway to our destination, that the weather gods threw us a curved ball and unscheduled rain arrived. Fortunately we did have raincoats with us, but we still got uncomfortably wet. But by the time we reached Staines, just under four miles from the start, my jeans had dried and we were fit to be seen in the busy little town, the crowded market and McDonald’s where we enjoyed a coffee, which for Chris always includes an add-on of a small burger of some kind. 

We caught the bus back to Chertsey from Staines, an experience all by itself. Everyone got on at the same time, and everyone looked out for each other as we all shuffled about for those requiring special assistance. This meant several delays along the way, the bus driver told to hold-on-a-minute until we were all resettled. Unfortunately the #446 is not that which crosses the Chertsey Bridge and stops just outside the camp; it is the one that comes down the other side of the river and stops outside Chertsey’s Sainsbury, still almost a mile from camp. However we made the most of the opportunity and loaded up the backback with shopping and then set off on foot again for home, only just beating the scheduled rain. 

View down the River Thames

Fortunately Wimbledon does have three covered courts, so there is still plenty of tennis to watch on the televison. We have the day’s newspaper, full of the fascinating politics of the week and I am still struggling through the book I started when we left New Zealand just over two months ago. The rain has provided us with a silver lining.