Meanderings

I’ve been the prvileged owner of a bus pass for a couple of years now and hope to make significant use of it - certainly a lot more use than I am likely to be able to enjoy from my Thames licence which was over £500 this year.

True, we do not have to have a boat on the Thames, or at all - it is our choice.

But, given the state of the river, particularly in relation to dredging, mooring spaces etc, I am seriously beginning to doubt that I can expect any significant change (for ‘change’ read ‘improvement!) during the rest of my boating lifetime.

Frankly, I am now of an age where ‘jam tomorrow’ is of no interest to me whatsoever.

How can we get some action on these issues NOW while there is still time for us wrinklies to get some benefit? Frankly, I am in no mood to be altrusistic. Unless I see some light at the end of this tunnel, boating will soon cease to be on my agenda.

When I was a kid (I’m talking early 1950’s here) my Dad used to take me fishing down by the river at Laleham and its still much as I remember it today. I don’t think I had any appreciation then of just how great a river it was - in fact, I’m not even sure I have any memory at all of boats at that time.

My first memory of a boat was a retired naval vessel of some type in Bristol docks where an uncle was in the wavy navy or somesuch. Soon after that I went to school in Hammersmith and the school eights were up and down the Putney/Hammersmith stretch. I remember selling Boat Race programmes down on Chiswick meadows and I seem to recall a couple of our lads drowned in a rowing accident in the mid 50’s.

Round about then, the CCF Naval Section attracted me and great fun was had down Chatham way as an adventurous guest of the RN establishments not to mention submarines down at Pompey and flying in a Domini(?) with no doors, hedgehopping near RNAS Lee-on-Solent. (Don’t for Gawds sake mention Elf ‘n Safety !!!)

Anyways, I suppose I’m saying that the Thames has been a bit of my life from earliest memories and in later years, as a young Merchant Navy navigator I visited such fascinating places as the Isle of Grain, Thameshaven and Coryton in the lower reaches.

Some years later, living on the Hamble, I learnt to sail small cruisers and had great fun around the Solent for several years before a new job found me back in west London marketing radionavigation systems for boats great and small, including the fishing fleets around the UK - seriously hairy seagoing stuff !

Finally, around 15 years ago, I discovered the joys of boating on the inland waterways - initially the Wey Navigations in Surrey and then venturing out, somewhat trepidatiously, onto the ‘big river’ Thames at Shepperton.

I particularly  remember our first trip downriver to Hampton Court and our astonishment that, not only were we allowed to moor up right below the Palace railings but, it was free !  Soon after that, a first trip upriver to Lechlade really opened our eyes to the glorious waterway we were privileged to have on our doorstep.

So, back to the question - national asset or local liabilty? I would like to think the Thames is, and should be regarded as a truly national  environmental  and recreational asset.  Unfortunately, the diverse mix of local authority and private ownership coupled with an unclear dependency on, dare one say, grudging central government fumding means that the reality in many stretches of the river is one of local liability.

Enough for now…..more later methinks…..

My apologies for the pun on a well known song title but it seems to me that this might be a suitable description of what the powers that be are actually doing with the Thames these days. Huge increases in licence fees have certainly not encouraged more boats onto the river although the imminent rise in diesel costs may encourage a few coastal boaters to return. Lack of dredging means touching bottom or running aground is becoming commonplace. The increasing number of visitors from British Waterways is playing havoc with the availability of overnight moorings. Proposals to dispose of some of the lock-side houses, particularly some occupied by lock keepers, have loved up a storm of protests and created an ‘atmosphere’ that does not bode well, although it seems to have woken up - at least temporarily - a few of our representatives at Westminster which is where decisions need to be made if the river is to receive more funding from central government.

With the river running through some 50 plus local authorities and around 20 parliamentary constituencies it is little wonder that cohesive planning and management of the river is a nightmare.