Thames....

Basically once onto the Thames we just kept going until we got to Teddington locks, the unspoken fear being that the tide would turn and we'd be swept out to sea, or at least to France....



Due to fading light and the fact that Mat needed to get back for work the next day, we stopped at Hampton Court. Once again the visitors mooring were full, but we found some useful pilings to tie up to. Mat caught a taxi home, while I finished off the bottle of Smirnoff Ice we'd been using to steady our nerves.




I'd mistakenly thought that Hampton court would be some kind of picture postcard English setting, but it was chav central. Firstly I got to witness an extremely agressive argument between two numbnuts in a speedboat, and some guy on a barge who had been taking pictures of them speeding. After shouting abuse and threats for 25 minutes, the two Miami-Vice wannbees roared off scattering wildlife and boats before them.

Just as I was thinking it was all over for the night, some local loons decided to have a motorcycle donut competition on the opposite bank. Still, gave me a chance to reflect on my own behaviour as a youth.