Teddington to Marlow

From Teddington the Thames took us passed grand abodes at Hampton Wick, Kingston Upon Thames and Thames Ditton and the grandest of all, Hampton Court Palace.  We were surprised to see visitor moorings near the palace gardens and pulled over for the day. A decorative gold fence gleamed in the sunshine but I had to manoeuvre my camera through the outer railings to take a photo.  

The decorative fence at Hampton Court

Hampton Court Palace has an amazing array of chimneys

The chimneys

and an impressive entrance.

The entrance to Hampton Court Palace

The next day we went through our first boater operated lock on the Thames and I was pleased to find it had electric controls.   Over the next couple of days we sailed west passing several islands which were crammed with an assortment of buildings, from prefab style chalets to the latest designs in steel and glass.  

One of the islands with assorted houses

There were also rows of houseboats.

Some of the Thames houseboats

After overnight stops at Walton on Thames and Laleham we arrived at Runnymede where King John placed his seal on the Magna Carta.  Today the National Trust owns the site and, in common with most places on the Thames, charges a mooring fee.  As it was a beautiful spot we stopped for 2 days and spent some time watching the bright kingfishers flying low over the river.  Unfortunately we didn't take any photos good enough for the blog.  We also saw more of the green parakeets which have been a familiar sight on the Thames. 

One of the green parakeets

Runnymede has various memorials and an interesting artwork, The Jurors by Hew Locke.  It was commissioned for the sealing of the Magna Carta and consists of 12 bronze chairs decorated front and back with images and symbols representing freedom and equal rights.  

A Chinese xiezhi, a legendary symbol of justice and law 

On Sunday we decided to move on and set off later than usual giving the weekend boaters time to set off for home but that didn't work out as planned.  The river was relatively quiet as we sailed around Windsor's Home Park with it's 'Crown Estate' and 'no mooring' signs.  After sailing under Windsor Bridge we were confronted with mayhem.  Little hire motor boats swarmed across the river, competing with canoes and rowing boats, large trip boats somehow managed to cut a path through the chaos and the main moorings were all taken.  Round the bend we spotted a space and tied up to some trees.  Almost immediately the mooring attendant arrived for the fee.  

We were moored on the Eton side of the river so I walked up to the famous school to have a look at it's fabulous buildings. 

One of the interesting old buildings at Eton

Then I walked across the bridge into Windsor which was extremely busy in the glorious sunshine.

Looking across the busy park and river to Windsor Castle

On Monday morning the river was quiet as we set off.  We passed Windsor Castle Marina advertising it's fuel prices and were glad we didn't need to fill up.

Extortionate fuel prices

We stopped at Maidenhead for shopping and then moved on; we don't mind paying for moorings in good locations but not at the side of a busy road.  We didn't have to go far before finding a free mooring next to woods on the Cliveden Estate.  Heavy rain stopped us enjoying any walks in the woods and the next day we kept our wheelhouse up as we sailed on to Marlow in more rain.  


Our journey from Teddington to Marlow