14.01.24
The Thames Journey – Where It Begins Cricklade Section 1A
On a cold morning four DP members set off on a ninety mile trek to start the Thames Journey at Cricklade, supported by our trusty shuttle driver, Graham. Led by Dave were Phil (without the girls – his two dogs Coco and Fifi), new joiner but very experienced paddler Glen and Chris who needed this section as part of his overall Thames trip.
This section can only be done in the winter when the area is in flood as it dries out and gets covered in reeds and general vegetation, making it more of a walking challenge. It was undertaken at a similar time last year by a small group and led to three swimmers, paddling across fields with tops of fences just above water level, and it was damp, as it does not rain on Dave’s trips.
This year the water was a metre lower and there was sunshine, albeit it was very cold. Judging by the vegetation levels in the trees the water had been several feet higher already this year but had drained down. Nevertheless, there were still some paddling through fields where the river expanded sideways, a number of hazards to negotiate where trees had blocked the river and the steady flow of the river increasing significantly where the fallen trees had narrowed the pathway.
Dave had to find ways through the blockages for others to follow, weaving his way in between the fallen trees and bushes. Dave’s chosen pathways sometimes proved a little more troublesome for Phil as his craft is much longer than the Pyranhas the others used. This more difficult transit through the turns required careful negotiation by Phil and sometimes lead to him bursting through small parts of the dead trees. This also meant that Phil took longer which resulted in Chris backpaddling to keep clear while awaiting his turn to go through, with Glen tucked in at the back in an eddy or two enjoying the spectacle and laughing his socks off!
Only one portage necessary where the flow under a footbridge left insufficient room to paddle. Getting back in was difficult as the flow was strongest next to the bank. Phil engaged with the bushes as he set off and we had to pull him back in and restart him. It was a lesson for all of us and we followed his relaunch example to avoid trouble.
The lunch stop was very muddy but welcome. We were entertained by a few hundred birds flying in formation but always dodging the cameras. The sad sight was several dead swans stuck in the undergrowth around the river. However, there were tens of others swimming happily in the many flooded fields.
Despite the challenges it was a lovely paddle on a beautiful day in good company. Glen joined us and did well actually sitting in a kayak and wearing a skirt instead of his normal kneeling position in a variety of other craft. Phil completed this section again without a swim and having negotiated a number of tricky manoeuvres through the obstacles. Dave just did what comes so naturally to him and led the group very successfully ensuring that we were all comfortable in tackling this river. I finished another part of my Thames journey and look forward to doing the missing ‘flat’ bits later this year.
We finished up in front of a log fire in a lovely warm pub for a debrief.
Write up by Chris Harper.