Where Was I? 31/3

[goodgoalie]

Think I've cracked this, but keep getting different lengths for both the river and the long-distance path. Makes me want to re-visit the city, haven't been for quite a few years - it's not that far from me, so maybe when some decent weather comes......

[davidsmith69]

Hi goodgoalie, According to the NRA official site the river is 96.4 kilometers long which is 59.9 miles. Many sites list the long distance path as 146 miles. Cheers David

[Tilly2]

Is it me or was it really too easy today?

[Flonska]

I'd never say too easy, Tilly, but it wasn't exactly the most challenging puzzle, this week. The answers to the clues more or less fell into place without a great deal of research although care was needed to confirm the accuracy of a couple of them - especially when the features are connected to others named in the vicinity. Didn't want to be led down the wrong path or left up the creek without a paddle - à la NCF - did we?

[Tilly2]

NCF?

[Tilly2]

Oh, Navigationally Challenged Friend ! Get it now.

[Flonska]

Mr Fautley's companion - Navigationally Challenged Friend (NCF)

[Toorak]

I think I got them both - does the river start with c?

[Tilly2]

My river starts with I.

[Toorak]

I think I must have been navigationally challenged :-)

[Tilly2]

Or I was?

[Flonska]

"I" is attributed to the river but not widely As I said earlier, there are several features in the puzzle that are not exclusive to the area and some are connected to each other. The poet did not confine himself to only one piece of writing either. Verifying which is which should help avoid confusion.

[Flonska]

^widely.^

[goodgoalie]

No wonder I was getting the wrong length - I had the wrong path. I thought it was The Thames Path, which also goes near the abbey. D'oh!

[Flonska]

When reading maps "upside down," the impression given is that NCF appears not to recognise that North become South and just as important, West becomes East - hence elaboration of the mistake made twixt path and canal.

The positioning of the dialogue in the piece regarding the proposed "works" is also interesting. It might suggest that they are to occur within the area of the features identified by the trio. Research indicates that their location is elsewhere - not within the city - in fact - not even close!

Even in what may seem "straightforward" offerings, Mr F appears to endorse the words of Sir Walter Scott, (who featured not that long ago), - "tangled webs, weaving and deceiving et al!"

[Etch]

Since I like to answer all the clues in the puzzle, the references to the impending fate of the river led to some fruitless searching. I eventually decided that "just the right time" in the last paragraph relates to the date of publication of the puzzle, 1 April (not goodgoalie's 31/3) , and Mr Fautley had been pulling the proverbial legs of his two friends, resulting in a giggle at their indignant reactions

[Flonska]

One of the references I found showed outline planning permission was applied for in October 2013. Apparently the application was approved in October 2016.

I thought the incident in the last paragraph was a "nod" to the time when the bell rang additionally.