THE MOVE !

At last time to log an account of our move from the Thames and Kennet Marina at Reading to Wigrams Turn Marina at Napton on the Hill.
31st March
We left Reading in the afternoon and made our way across the Thames, mooring up at Tesco to collect those all important provisions for the journey.
1st April
After spending the night moored up above Maple Duram lock, we made a move, the weather was very cold and the River was running fast. When we reached Goring and Streatly we were advised by the Lock Keeper that it would be advisable to stay put as the River was very fastg and the level rising rapidly...so we dropped anchor and there we stayed for two days .Our Grandson Ronan joined us here for the rest of the trip and we made friends with fellow travellers Kirsty and Tug.
3rd April
So with two days lost of our journey we made a move today and travelled 18 miles, the weather extremely cold and the river current very strong, we reached Abingdon late afternoon and moored for the night.
4thApril
After a very hard previous day, we decided to take things easy and decided to call it a day when we reached Osney Lock just after lunch.
5th April
We made a fairly early start, and left our friends Kirsty and Tug behind and made our way on to the Oxford Canal. The locks on the canal were very different than that of the Thames, going from the very large manned, to the very narrow and of course manned by ourselves. Today we reached Lower Heyford, the weather still very cold and windy.
6th April
We left Lower Heyford today and meandered our way through many locks and swing bridges, and stopped overnight at Cropredy.
7th April
Another early start today and ready to do the Claydon Flight, reaching Marston Doles late afternoon, we moored here for the night....ready to complete the last leg of our journey the next day.
8th April
Today we made the last leg of the journey down the Napton Flight and arrived at Wigrams Turn around 11am.We really enjoyed the journey as did our Grandson Ronan as you can see from the picture, dressed for the job!

The journey from Reading to Wigrams Turn was:

87 Miles
53 Locks
16 Lift Bridges

DON'T QUIT

The trials that are sent along

Sometimes for us to bear,

May so easily discourage us

And weigh us down with care.

Yet, whatever you decide to do,

Never think of giving in,

For, no sooner will this time

havepassed,

Than a brand new chapter will begin!

For, if you ride out this time,

You'll find the strength to carry on -

Even if your energy

Seems at the moment to be gone.

For, if you do so, it is certain

The time won't be far away,

When you find you'll awaken

To a beautiful new day.

For, within every one of us

Lies a spark that's always lit

Which can easily become a flame

As long as we don't quit!

MY 'HOBBY'

Some of my creations.

SOUTH of FRANCE

For many years Jeff and I have spent our holidays in the South of France, near St Tropez!, we both loved our holidays there, always sure of the sun...although at times the French can be quite frustrating!We owned a mobile home in France which was situated on a very nice campsite, but at the end of the 2004 season we decided to sell it and concentrate our holidays on the boat....although I can't quite give up the sun and still visit a couple of times a year.In memory of the goods times we spent in France we decided to give our Boat a French name and called it 'PaixD'esprit'.....Peace of Mind or Free Spirit.....last year was our first real holiday afloat. We spent 16 days on the River Thames last August and meandered the river as far as Lechlade....14 days of scorching sun (bliss) and 2 days rain....long may the holidays continue!The picture is Old Father Thames who resides at the side of St John's Lock Lechlade.

ELLIS ISLAND

Over 40% of all Americans can trace their roots to Ellis Island. ..more than 12 million immigrants passed through these doors. Opened in 1892 the first immigrant to arrive was a fifteen year old girl from Ireland called Annie Moore.




First stop was the luggage room, they left their trunks, suitcases etc., here and then climbed the stairs to the Great Hall for medical and legal examination.
By 1917 complete medical examinations were required, the main purpose to find persons with contagious diseases or conditions that would make them unable to work.At best the entire process through Ellis Island took three to five hours.
By 1921, immigrants had to pass a literacy test and show a passport and visa.
Laws passed in 1909 required each immigrant to have at least 20
dollars before they were allowed to enter America.

Two thirds of the new Americans then boarded the ferry to New Jersey, where the next leg of their journey would begin. The remaining immigrants took the ferry to Manhattan to begin their new life in New York City, only one mile away!

Ellis Island re-opened as a Museum on September 10th 1990, dedicated to the history of immigration.

My Son Simon and Myself visited New York in March 2004,
and visited Ellis Island, all the pictures you see in this post
were taken by me. Some of the pictures depict various rooms
and there contents just as they were left in 1954.

BABY LOVE !

I love my Grampy but not too sure about the beard!

LIFE STYLE

Three years ago we decided to change our lives for ever, and sold
our 16th Century Tudor Cottage in Wiltshire where we had lived
for 24 years. We bought a brand new 57' Traditional Narrowboat.
Our children Nicola and Simon were married by this time, our Son's
first reaction was 'oh my God Mum and Dad are going to live on one
of those 'barge' things and be drawn up and down the tow paths by horse'!
Of course he soon came to think that it was an ok thing when we showed
him what we had in mind. Our Daughter didn't take as much convincing, with her Husband Jason they were sold on the idea right away, but with with the children, the lifestyle wouldn't be right...but they are definitely going to buy a boat at some stage in their lives...but with two Sons and a Daughter and another on the way it all seems a long way off.
So...our house sold, we started our life afloat at the Devizes Marina in Wiltshire, this proved to be a bad move and we sailed off into the sunset on the morning of the 14th December 2003 for the Thames and Kennet Marina in Reading...arriving just in time for Christmas!