Our NABO representative, Louis Jankel, has been approached by an organiser of the Thames Festival Trust who, over the last two weeks of August this year, will be managing the Source to Sea River Thames Relay. The Relay is a two week journey of a small bottle of water taken from the source of the Thames in Gloucestershire and carried downstream by different river organisations, clubs and individuals including walkers, rowers, swimmers, kayakers, traditional vessels and even a gondola.

There is an opportunity for NABO to get involved with the relay on Friday 29th August potentially between Bell Weir Lock and Chertsey or possibly Shepperton – though there might be a 1932 slipper launch pencilled in for the short Chertsey to Shepperton section.

Louis feels that it would be quite fun to involve a number of narrow boats (he is presently the only volunteer with a narrowboat)- on this section and have a NABO flotilla to escort the bottle to its destination at the end of the day.

Louis would like to gauge what interest there may be in participating, so please let him know if you might be on the Thames the weekend after the August Bank Holiday. It’ll be a fun thing to do and maybe turn into a mini NABO event in itself? In the past this pageant has caught local imagination and the local press and boating press usually cover it. It would be great if a flotilla on this most public of sections was a NABO exclusive.

Do drop Louis a line via NABO or email him at lbj@cixoffice.comif you have any questions or you’d would like to run anything by him?