The end of our adventure on the Thames - Sonning to Oxford

Leaving Sonning, we continued cruising upstream towards Reading, calling at the large Tesco's on the way and filling up with fuel at Caversham Boat services, a friendly boatyard and reasonably priced diesel 👍

Caversham Boat Services

Luckily that evening, we managed to get the last mooring spot at Pangbourne.  😀

The following day we cruised onwards through Goring Lock, Cleeve Lock and through to Wallingford.  It was another scorching day and once again, we were lucky and found a mooring in the shade.  Wallingford is a delightful historic market town with plenty of shops/restaurants and a Waitrose.

We enjoyed lunch at a lovely homely cafe, 'Bean and Brew'.  In the evening after school, the local children had a fantastic time cooling off in the Thames as it was such a balmy evening.

The following day found us mooring on the river bank in a secluded spot just after Abingdon. Nice and shady on yet another extra warm day!

We had a lovely cruise on our final day on the Thames, witnessing a boat race, saw some wonderful wildlife and taking in the colourful artwork on the bridges whilst passing through.

 

To sum up we have had a fantastic time on the River Thames, just a little disappointed that we didn't make it through to Brentford, as initially planned.  At times, despite the Thames being quiet, there is both a lack of moorings and a lack of clear signage for services/moorings etc  (bring your binoculars - the writing is tiny), however, on the whole, the lock keepers have been great and the volunteers fantastic as always, it has been a wonderful experience. 

After ascending Isis lock, Coventina once again joined the South Oxford Canal. Initially, the canal seems so narrow and so slow - but ahhh - bliss!