MESSING ABOUT IN BOATS
Paul Miles suggests great ways to explore the Thames
Kenneth Grahame, author of The Wind in the Willows, took inspiration from the stretch of the River Thames near his childhood home in Cookham Dean. With much of the upper reaches of the river still as leafy and peaceful as they would have been in his day, here are some novel ways to explore the Thames.
ON THE UP AND UP
Lechlade in Gloucestershire is the upper limit of navigation for boats on the Thames but you can hire a canoe or kayak beside this Cotswold town’s pretty single-span Ha’penny Bridge and explore some 10km further upriver. Paddle the twisty, treeshaded waters past meadows where cattle graze and beyond Inglesham Roundhouse. Haul your canoe ashore and take a peep inside the quaint little Church of St John the Baptist with its medieval wall paintings.
● cotswoldcanoehire.co.uk
JOLLY GOOD BOATING
LeBoat has a smart and comfortable fleet of cruisers with sun decks, taking from two to 10 passengers, and they’ll show you the ropes. The company has two bases along the river at Chertsey and Benson and oneway hire is possible. From £324 (about R5 900) for the boat for three nights.
● leboat.co.uk
CHAMPAGNE AND PARASOLS
Jerome K Jerome called Cliveden Reach “the sweetest stretch of the river” with its lush wooded banks and the eponymous country house (now hotel) peeping from on high. In the Edwardian era fleets of small craft carrying women with parasols and men in blazers bobbed about here on fine summer days. You can experience some of that style still, thanks to beautifully restored skippered launches — with gleaming mahogany and polished brass — from Cliveden House hotel. If you want to push the boat out you can order a picnic featuring smoked salmon and dill macaroons. From £50 per person including a glass of champagne.
● clivedenhouse.co.uk
GOING DUTCH . . . IN LUXURY
To cruise down the Thames in luxury, with meals prepared by an on-board chef, bag one of the four spacious cabins on the 1936 converted Dutch barge Magna Carta. Underfloor heating and a spa bath will cushion you from chill winds, and there’s an unlimited bar. You might dine on roast guinea fowl, good wine and English cheeses. Week-long summer cruises take you from Hampton Court to Henley-on-Thames or as far as Oxford and vice versa. Each cruise has a theme such as walking, golf, flower shows or a classic cruise, with visits to Hampton Court, Windsor Castle, Runnymede and the small but exquisite gallery of Stanley Spencer’s art in Cookham. From £2 850 per person for six nights.
● gobarging.com/magna-carta-barge
THE NARROW WAY
Hire a narrowboat from College Cruisers on the Oxford Canal, make your way through locks down onto the Thames at Isis Lock, cruise upriver through the grasslands of Port Meadow, pass through Godstow River Lock, enjoy a pub lunch at 17th-century Trout Inn at Wolvercote, cruise onwards to moor in the countryside and then head back onto the canal via Duke’s Cut.
You’ll have to pay for a river licence from the Environment Agency (about £50). From £395 for a two-berth boat for a three-night weekend break.
● collegecruisers.com
A FLOATING (MINI) HOTEL
The only hotel narrowboat licensed to cruise through the heart of London on the tidal Thames below Brentford is Kailani, a comfortable wide-beam boat, sleeping four passengers in two comfortable en suite cabins. On a circular route through London by canal and river, with skipper Gordon at the tiller, you leave Limehouse Lock and cruise under Tower Bridge, passing HMS Belfast, the Tate Modern with its new extension and the Houses of Parliament. The city drifts by to the sound of water lapping at the hull while cakes and tea are served by first mate and cook Dorenda.
Three hours later, the river is quieter and tree-lined with herons peering through the willows. From Brentford you pass through locks onto the Grand Union canal and back into London. From £730 per person for a four-night cruise.
● hotelboatkailani.com
TAKING A PUNT
It may be a tourist cliché, but the best way to escape the sightseeing crowds in Oxford is to take to the river in a punt or rowing boat, in summer at least — slipping under bridges and weeping willows, past college boathouses and Christ Church Meadow, with the eponymous college as a backdrop.
For 160 years family-run Salters Steamers has been running cruises and hiring out vessels of all kind on the Thames in Oxford (where it’s known as the Isis). While today’s blue fibreglass punts might lack the romance of older wooden vessels, they’re designed to withstand the odd knock so are perfect for beginners. From £20/hour.
● salterssteamers.co.uk
PADDLE LONDON
On a guided kayaking trip through central London, you’ll paddle past the London Eye and Houses of Parliament. From £39 per person for a two-hour trip from Chelsea to Big Ben, £72 to Tower Bridge (four hours).
● kayakinglondon.com