A long and winding road ...

We left our mooring at 09:30 this morning - it promises another warm dry day but I understand that all is to change for the Bank Holiday Weekend - typical!

 After filling the water tank at Cart Bridge we were soon through Worsfold Flood Gates

... and the long and winding road starts about here ...

 ... and you can see for miles and miles!

 Moore 2 Life has taken the lead for a while and is waiting for Rock n Roll in Trigg’s Lock ..

.. with its attractive lock cottage dating from 1770 and which at one time had a blacksmith’s shop attached.

William Stevens became the lock keeper here in 1812 and it was one of his descendants who gave the navigation to the National Trust in 1964!

This plaque is on the cottage wall and it states Birmingham District but I’ve no idea why it’s there - perhaps just for decoration?

wild and wonderful

Send Church just to our left, this is the same church that we walked to yesterday from Send

A cosy group of dwellings

 The long and winding road continues past Sutton Place one of the most important early Tudor houses in England - it’s a pity that you can’t even catch a glimpse of it.  It was once owned by the late Paul Getty but now I understand that a Russian owns it.

Bowers Lock - a very tight left turn into here.

This lock was opened in 1653 - that’s 359 years ago - amazing!

The cows and the ...

... horses shelter from the midday sun   ...

... isn’t he/she sweet!

The National Trust look after their trees (even though they are crack willow!) and prop them up as they ‘crack'

... and in the meantime they have planted a sapling against each old trunk - mostly attached with string to provide support and shelter presumably until the young tree can stand on its own two feet (as it were).

Stoke Lock comes next ...

... as soon after, having gone under the lowest bridge on the navigation (Stoke Bridge) we come to The Rowbarge.

In May last year we walked from Send to this pub and had a very enjoyable drink or two!

A bomb!!

Hotel Boats Snipe and Taurus at Dapdune Wharf ...

... where the renovation of this old barge is being undertaken ...

... and the chocolate box cottages are quite splendid!

We’re into Guildford now - a lovely old mill building just before ... 

... Millmead Lock opened in 1764 and is the first lock on the Godalming Navigation.

 Views through the galley hatch once we’d moored ...

... on the water meadows by Quarry Hills Footbridge.

It’s been a lovely cruise today, the road was good and with the exception of one, all the locks were with us; we only had to wait a few minutes for that one as a boat descended, there was lots of lovely countryside and as I said at the top of this posting - the weather has been purrrfect!

A good day!