Exploring Godalming and then Ben and Kat on MM.

 Thursday 8th July 2021 in Godalming.

Our friends Ben and Kat are joining us today. They are not due until this afternoon so we had a free morning to wander round Godalming and explore.

We started with breakfast in the Waitrose Café! Then M went on a mission to find a flower vase in one of the charity shops, which gave us a chance to admire the many beautiful old buildings in Godalming. We liked this way of measuring social distancing.

At the centre is what is known locally as the "Pepperpot", built in 1814 to replace an earlier timber market house.

We were amused to see these posters on the Borough Hall. We naturally assumed that the posters referred to the monthly council meetings - they must be a riot!

The town's church is built around a tenth century core and, although the spire looks quite modern and slightly at odds with the very Norman tower, it was actually built in the twelfth century.

The local park is dedicated to John (Jack) Phillips, who was the Chief Wireless Telegraphist on the Titanic. He became a local hero for staying at his post and continuing to transmit distress signals until the ship went down. 

A beautiful cloister was erected in the park in 1913, a year after the disaster, in his memory. At its centre, it has pond full of waterlillies, surrounded by lovely plants. An art group was enjoying the tranquil space and trying to capture the scene on paper.

Back at the wharf, a narrowboat managed to get wedged between the bank and a moored charity widebeam as its helmsman tried to turn around. R and the widebeam skipper helped to free the boat with a rope on the boat's stern.

The helmsman then tried to moor on to the service bay and again got the boat wedged between a boat moored on the service bay and the far bank. His boat was not only firmly wedged but also pinned by the river current. It took a long rope attached to the stern on the far bank and a total of seven strong chaps hauling on the rope, including R, several passers-by and the widebeam skipper, to get the boat free for the second time!

Ben and Kat arrived mid-afternoon. They are new to narrowboating, particularly Kat who comes from the Philippines and to whom narrowboating was a complete mystery. She was fascinated by MM and then thrilled to discover that we were going to take her and Ben for a trip. She took the tiller and very soon mastered the technique of steering MM.

We went down through Catteshall and Unsted locks, turned at Guns Mouth and then back up through the two locks and back to Godalming.

They were surprised by the low bridges!

As we approached the wharf, a voice called out to us from the towpath. It was Richard, one of Tali's adult choristers from the Geoffrey Searle Choir at St. Mary's Reigate. Great to see him again, if only briefly!

Ben and Kat left in the early evening saying that they'd had a brilliant day. 

It was a super afternoon; introducing people to the world of narrowboats is always special and it was wonderful to see Ben and Kat again.

Today: 3 miles, 4 locks and 3.4 hours (inc power).

Trip: 258 miles, 137 locks and 128.0 hours.