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Sunday, December 21, 2025

Mort's Riverwatch

An occasional look at the ebb and flow of the Thames

  • About Mort Smith

Terra Nova

Terra Nova

She’s back on an even keel

10/04/201429/05/2015Mort SmithComment(0)

Some loving TLC as we restore a little wheel power to beloved Terra Nova

Terra Nova

Casting off off for pastures new – Mort’s on the move

20/03/201429/05/2015Mort SmithComment(0)

What a beautiful weekend we’ve just enjoyed. Temperatures up into the high teens, wall-to-wall sunshine and memories of that abysmal winter rapidly vanishing into a distant haze.

Mort Smith and his brother, Alan, stand beside Terra Nova - are they all too old for another adventure?
Recent developments Terra Nova

Don’t bank on pontoons

12/12/201329/05/2015Mort SmithComment(0)

Sometimes people come up with brilliant ideas out of the blue – an innovative way of attacking a problem that suddenly reveals the obvious solution from a fog of uncertainty.

The paddle steamer Medway Queen is towed out of Bristol Docks on her way back to the Medway
History Terra Nova

Headway for the Medway

14/11/201329/05/2015Mort SmithComment(0)

I was absolutely delighted to receive an email from Alan and Jean Barrett of Walton following on from my piece about the restoration of the old paddle steamer, the Medway Queen, in last week’s Herald and News.

Double trouble: Alan, left, and Mort Smith.
Terra Nova

Brother, this was great

22/08/201329/05/2015Mort SmithComment(0)

It was well worth the wait. My brother Alan and I finally took Terra Nova out for a run two weekends ago and it was wonderful to be back out on the water.

Terra Nova

The captain of clean-up

20/06/201328/12/2013Mort SmithComment(0)

My brother Alan, and I have been working on our old Seamaster Admiral cabin cruiser, Terra Nova, to get her ready to go back into the water.

Terra Nova looking a little the worse for wear at the back of the boatyard – but work on refurbishment will get under way soon, says Mort
Terra Nova

I’ve neglected the old girl for too long

21/02/201329/12/2013Mort SmithComment(0)

I took a wander down to the Bridge Marine boatyard on Sunday – just to check that Terra Nova, the old Seamaster Admiral cabin cruiser that Julie and I own along with my brother, was still where I left her when she came out of the water back in October.

Teddington Lock
Events Terra Nova

A reminder of the unsung heroes of our waterways

18/11/201217/03/2013Mort SmithComment(0)

£60,000 refit to keep lock gates in pride of place for years to come

Mort Smith stands beside the bow of Terra Nova
Terra Nova

‘Wonder’ product that is just that

21/04/201203/12/2012Mort SmithComment(0)

I usually ignore all television advertising – I haven’t believed a single claim manufacturers make about their ‘wonder’ products – commercials are simply an annoying interruption to whichever programme I happen to be watching as far as I’m concerned.

Rooks
Nature Terra Nova

The signs of autumn

20/11/201103/12/2012Mort SmithComment(0)

There are some sights that really bring home to me that autumn has arrived and winter can’t be far behind it – and one of those is seeing the huge flocks of rooks that wheel in acrobatic formations over the Thames mornings and evenings.

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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.

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