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.
A Big Society we can be proud of
Uncle Dave Cameron, our esteemed PM, has been talking about the ‘Big Society’ ever since he moved into the seat of power and about how we need to get together to help each other by volunteering in various capacities.
Beware the hairy horde
It was three years ago when I first wrote about the invasion of the Thames by Chinese mitten crabs – so called because of the dense hair on the back of their large claws – and I wondered whether readers of this column had spotted more examples in our stretch of the river.
Steve keeps win for second year
Let’s face it – there are some people on the river who regard locks as an interruption to their day – an annoying waste of time when they could be charging along the river in their gin palaces, breaking the speed limit and causing a good deal of nuisance.
Set sail on a new pastime
Ashford’s Queen Mary Sailing Club pushes the boat out with dinghy for aspiring disabled sailors
Got lock and lane woes? Take a different tack…
Following on from last week’s Riverwatch in which I outlined an idea for closing off Walton Lane at the Walton Bridge end that was put forward by Doug Myers from Weybridge, I’ve had a note from Nick Pollard, the chairman of the Sunbury and Shepperton Local History Society.
Let’s go back to the future
Block off river crossing at Walton Lane to traffic — there was no link in the ’50s, says resident Doug Myers
Locks: The key moment
I went along to the River Users’ Group Eight meeting on Tuesday at the Thames Motor Yacht Club in Molesey and was delighted to hear chairman Mike Shefras announce that after a lot of haggling with the Environment Agency the group had secured an undertaking that no more lock houses would be let for the next year.
Jumble sail – and don’t we just love it
Most boat owners would agree that having a vessel of any kind – sailing dinghy, rowing boat, canoe, sailing yacht, cabin cruiser, you name it – means that over time you acquire ‘stuff’.
Fair weather sailors? Not at Desborough.
We’re a hardy lot, us sailors, you know – especially when we’ve been denied access to our favourite sport for any length of time.