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Mort's Riverwatch

An occasional look at the ebb and flow of the Thames

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Month: November 2009

Recent developments

Why a floating house is good for the head (and toasty warm)

23/11/200926/02/2013Mort SmithComment(0)

“Doesn’t it get terribly cold in the winter?” That was my first question to Pamela and Edward Burrell aboard their beautiful old Dutch barge, Angelus, when I went to their mooring at Sunbury to talk to them about living on the river.

History

The life of a crossing and a terrible slur on left-handed men

15/11/200926/02/2013Mort SmithComment(0)

Earlier this year, I took my old Seamaster cruiser Terra Nova up the Thames from her mooring at Shepperton towards Staines – and as I passed Dumsey Meadow, I was struck by how beautiful Chertsey Bridge looked in the morning sunshine.

Nature

We should have been asked!

08/11/200926/02/2013Mort SmithComment(0)

“What’s going on down by the river at Weybridge,” asked my regular contact Doug the Ancient Angler, “and just why have they chopped all the beautiful trees down?”

Charities

Barge on board the Venturer to capture scenes of river life

01/11/200926/02/2013Mort SmithComment(0)

Charities find very diverse ways of raising money for their causes but one of the most original – and effective – has recently been demonstrated by the good people associated with the Thames Boat Project, which was set up to help make the Thames more accessible to a wide range of people.

Archives

Get in touch

To contact Mort, email him at mortsmith32@gmail.com or call him on 01787 226974. He’s always pleased to hear from old friends who provided such a wealth of information and great stories for Riverwatch.

These columns appeared in the Surrey Herald.

Tags

Association of Dunkirk Little Ships Beaulieu boat jumble birds boats book review Canal and River Trust crab Desborough Island Desborough Sailing Club Doug Myers Dunkirk D’Oyly Carte Island Environment Agency fish fishing Floods historic boats Jenny Beagle lock keepers London International Boat Show paintings Project Kraken Queen Mary Sailing Club Richmond Venturer River Thames Boat Project river users groups rowing Royal Yachting Association safety sailing Second World War Shepperton Shepperton Marina Sunbury and Shepperton Local History Society Surrey Police swimming Terra Nova Thames21 Thames islands Walton Bridge Walton Yacht Company Weather Weybridge Ladies Rowing Club Weybridge Sailing Club wildlife
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