The weather has been so lovely this week, such great opportunities
for topping up our tans ;) We were really excited to hear the hoomans talking
about a mini adventure that they wanted to take us on! The great thing about
living in Surrey is that we are surrounded by beautiful countryside and when
the sun is shining, it makes it that much more enjoyable to get out and about
in it.
We had heard the hoomans talking about going kayaking for a
while and we know that they were also thinking about buying one each so they
could go on many water adventures. It’s like every purchase though, you want to
make sure you are going to enjoy it before making the plunge. After all, it
would be a waste of money if they bought kayaks and didn’t use them, think of
all that treat money that would have been wasted! So the hoomans decided to rent
a canoe out for a few hours.
Although we live a five minute walk away from the canal,
they thought it would be more exciting if they took us a little further afield.
We travelled to a small village called Odiham, which is in Hampshire. It only
took us about 30 minutes in the car and they had researched a small boating centre
online before setting out. We arrived at Galleon Marine with a couple of other families
turning up at the same time – must have been a popular choice! We made our way
down to the reception area, where we were greeted by a very friendly lady who immediately
showed us to the canoes! It wasn’t just canoes that they had for hire, there
were also kayaks, row boats and also canal boats. The lady made a fuss of us,
before asking the hoomans how long they wanted to hire the canoe out for. You
could hire the boats out per hour or per half day/full day. Seeing as you got 4
hours for the price of 3 (half day) they thought that would be a suitable
amount of time, costing £36.
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There was a good selection of all types of boats to choose
from. We trotted onto the wooden marina and we both immediately went up and
sniffed the red canoe. Obviously, we went for that one! We were the first to be
placed inside the canoe! Bruno certainly has the better sea legs! The canoe was
a little rocky, but our dads got in and made it more stable. There was plenty
of room and we both headed towards the front, to help look out for any obstacles
in the water.
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The lady at the reception had told our hoomans that there
were two ways to go, either towards an old castle, or to the pub! We were sure
they would have gone to the pub, but we had all just eaten, so the castle
sounded like a better idea. Off we set,
our dad, Jay, sat at the back, whilst dad, Oli, sat at the front. Apparently
the person with the strongest stroke would sit at the back, they both argued
that their position was harder! It was beautiful, the sun was beaming down on
us and the cool air flowed through our flappy ears. It was really peaceful and
once we had found our sea legs, we were more confident to explore the canoe. We
passed a fellow row boat, who had a Frenchie on board, they seemed to be
enjoying it as much as we were. We headed up stream and found ourselves to be the
only ones on the canal. It was so peaceful, all we could hear were the strokes
of the oars in the water. We were making good way and we passed a field full of
cows. Funnily, they all started charging towards us, which of course we had to
let a little bark out at. This immediately stopped them in their tracks and
they stood there and looked bewildered at us. We passed a few bridges and one
lady waved at us all from above, then noticed we were in the canoe and made a
little squeal.
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We got to one bridge but wondered how we were going to get
underneath! It was ok for us as we’re small, so didn’t need to duck down. Our
hoomans, on the other paw, had a problem. They both leaned forward and slowly
paddled towards the bridge. Their backs must have only been inches from
touching the bottom of the bridge, pretty fun stuff! We made it through to the
other side and continued to make way to the castle. At this stage, we were both
confident enough to stand on the side and could look into the water. There were
hundreds of fish swimming by. Some of them followed the canoe, a bit like
dolphins, but less glamourous than that. We definitely thought we could have
had one for lunch.
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We arrived at the castle and moored up. It was a little
wobbly getting out of the canoe, but luckily we didn’t capsize! The castle was
close to the canal, so didn’t need to walk far. Although only part of the ruin,
it was still nice to be able to stop and read a little about the history. There
were tables dotted around and some people were already taking advantage of
these and having a picnic. We made our way round the ruin and stopped to take a
few photos. Before we knew it, it was time to head back. We made a couple of
friends whilst trying to get back in the canoe. A friendly spaniel came barging
through and jumped straight in the water, getting us a little wet. Typical
spaniel, aye? We turned round and made our way back to the boat centre. This
time, we were very brave. Jacob sat right on the front of the boat, like the
sea captain! Bruno sat on one of the seats behind and looked over the edge. We
came round the corner and a big barge was heading our way. They let out a little
TOOT to warn us. It was a visitor barge which takes people up and down the
canal. The ladies sitting at the front, immediately spotted Jacob on the front
of the canoe and got their phones out to take photos. We guess we’re used to
that! We made a steady pace back to the boat yard. Passing a few walkers on the
toe paths, who all shouted a friendly ‘hello’.
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When we got back to the yard, we were all quite hot, so
decided to take a seat on one of the funky multi coloured benches and ordered
some ice cream. They also had some ice cream for dogs too, delicious! We ate
that and sat for a while taking in the surroundings. It had been a really nice
afternoon and we really enjoyed it. It was nice that us dogs were able to go on
the boats and it was especially nice that we didn’t have to do any work! A perfect
way to enjoy life in the slow lane and take in some of the UK’s countryside.
We hope you enjoyed reading!
Jacob & Bruno
Looks like you had such a great time boys!
ReplyDeleteLove From, Steph & The Spaniels