Guildford to Newbury
Dates: 2 October till 10 October (8 nights)
This final cruise of the year takes in three strikingly different navigations, all fascinating in their own way. Firstly, the River Wey is rural and winding, and unusually in the care of the National Trust. From Guildford, we head out into open country. There is no hint that we are in the stockbroker belt as we wind our way through meadows with the occasional isolated lock.
Passing the imposing Coxes Mill, we soon enter the outskirts of Weybridge, where we leave the Wey via the unusual double lock. We then join the River Thames, which at this point is wide and grand, especially after our spell on the River Wey. We make our way upstream via Runnymede (of Magna Carta fame) past the great Home Park to Windsor, where we will moor in sight of the royal castle.
Boulter's lock at Maidenhead is famed from Victorian prints of boating days gone by, and is followed by Cliveden reach, an exceptionally pretty wooded valley. We pass Cookham and Marlow to arrive in Henley-on-Thames, home of British rowing. Heading towards Reading, we turn off the majestic River Thames onto the contrasting Kennet navigation. This section of the Kennet and Avon canal is tight and winding, sharing the course of the River Kennet for long periods, even passing through the centre of a shopping plaza in the middle of Reading.
However, we quickly leave Reading behind and head back out to the open countryside. We pass under the handsome Burghfield bridge and cruise amongst attractive water meadows, and are soon in orchard country. At Thatcham, we rise through the unique turf-sided lock at Monkey Marsh, now a listed structure. We continue on the canalised River Kennet to Newbury, a fine old market town.
Already booked on this cruise? Buy your DVDs, Maps and Guides specific to this from Waterway Routes.
Back to Cruises
