Dan's 2002 holidays

June 2002: “Miss Beryl 2” Ferryline Cruisers of Thames Ditton.

Keen to try somewhere new we decided to look into hiring on the Thames for a weekend in June. Being on the last minute we struggled to find much available but luckily, after a call to Richardsons to see why their Thames Ditton base was still running, after disappearing from the hoseasons brochure revealed they had gone independent, and possibly as a result had a few choices available.
We chose 31ft Westward 31 mould “Miss Beryl 2” and cruised to Windsor and back.

First impressions were the boat was a little tired, with little modernisation since her build about 20 years ago. She was however clean and presentable, though there was a distinct ‘boaty’ smell! This was to later turn out to be a leaking diesel injector which the boatyard was quick to solve, despite our inaccesable mooring spot! We were really glad we tried the Thames and all really enjoyed it. The scenery was far better than expected, the locks easy and fun to navigate. We knew we’d be back again, but sadly the hirebase closed at the end of the year, most of the boats were taken back to the companies main base at Stalham, Norfolk to await sale or refurbishment.