July Gatherings
Colourful Cosgrove. Photograph by Richard Alan Lewis
Everyone is crossing their fingers for sunshine after months of careful planning – but boaters have fun whatever the weather!
6 July Guildford Festival Boat Gathering
The will be the biggest attraction on the River Wey this year. The annual event is organised by the National Trust and is being celebrated along the river by Millmead Island in the centre of Guildford from noon to 6pm. Activities for the children will be organised in partnership with the River Wey Navigations’ Learning Team and Woking Sea Rangers.
Twin highlights on Saturday will be the Lions’ Raft Race at 3pm followed by the decorated boat pageant, taking place at 4pm, when boats and crews dress up in this year’s theme: the Best of Britain.
Boaters will also stage a static illuminated pageant after dusk.
For more details of this event, see riverwey@nationaltrust.org.uk
12-14 July Evesham River Festival
The Festival is held on a wide loop of the river Avon, overlooked by the historic Warwickshire town and its graceful bridge. There’ll be plenty of colourful boats, stalls, a boat jumble and varied entertainment. If you want an opportunity to dress up, this year’s theme is fairy tales. For more details see eveshamriverfestival.co.uk
13-14 July Cosgrove Canal Festival and Lock Ransom
This annual event is set alongside the picturesque towpath between the lock at Cosgrove, near Milton Keynes and the recently refurbished Iron Trunk Aqueduct. It’s run by Buckingham Canal Society to raise money for the restoration of the canal between Cosgrove and Buckingham and to spread the word about its work. You’ll find historic boats, trade boats, craft stalls, games stalls, entertainment and more. Members from the society will on hand to chat about their plans, and you can discover which sections will be in water soon.
For more information contact events@buckinghamcanal.org.uk
