Basingstoke Calling - Spring 2025 - Week 10

 Monday 5th May - Oxford to Jericho

Taken very early in the morning, this is the Oxford Canal as it goes down in to Isis Lock and then onto the River Thames.  

Beyond the lock the canal carries on for a short time and then stops at the road bridge in Oxford.  All along this stretch are permanent moorings with their own water tap and electricity bollard.

Today we moved up the canal to Aristotle Visitor Moorings just in front of Aristotle Bridge.  A very quiet and peaceful mooring beside a play park and in a residential area.

Our plan was to walk across the meadow to Wolvercote and visit The Trout Inn on the river at Godstow.  Despite a number of cows on the meadow, we made our way safely across and settled down on an outside table.  

We were delighted to be joined by Annie and our two grandchildren, Alba and Nina, a lovely surprise visit!

These two had a great time playing around the circular seating, eating ice cream and generally keeping us entertained with their lovely chatter.

0.75 miles, 0 locks, 24mins

Tuesday 6th May - Jericho to Thrupp

Our first lock today, we negotiated a sunken boat just before the lock landing and then into the lock.  

Closely followed by another of the lift bridges.  There are 20 surviving lift bridges in working order on this canal, the most southerly is St Edwards Lift Bridge in Oxford, and the most northerly is the Boundary Lift Bridge at Claydon.

Here we are approaching the lock immediately after Duke’s Cut.  The entrance to Duke’s Cut is to the right and takes you down onto the River Thames above Godstow Lock.  This approach to the Thames is out of action at the moment as there is a problem with the paddles.

Kidlington, a large village with the facilities of a town, but the canalside dwellings are pleasant enough.

We are just coming into Thrupp and hoping for a mooring!  We passed nb Ange de l’Eau moored outside the Jolly Boatman.  We met this boat in Paddington Basin 5 years ago when Fraser and Di asked if they could moor up against us as there were no moorings left.  The boat belonged to friends of theirs who sold it to buy a Dutch Cruiser based in the Netherlands.  It was good to see it looking so good.

5.75 miles, 4 locks, 3 lift bridges, 4hrs

Wednesday 7th May - Thrupp

Today we are having a rest day in Thrupp.  We spent the morning cleaning the inside of the boat and in the afternoon we had a cream tea at Annie’s Tearoom over the lift bridges.  These two thatched cottages sit behind the tearooms and look quite idyllic.

We walked along the canal to Shipton on Cherwell and visited the church there, part of the Gothic Revival buildings.  Shipton Manor, originally the home of William Turner and later bought by Richard Branson and turned into recording studio where Tubular Bells was recorded.

Thursday 8th May - Thrupp to Lower Heyford

A much colder day today, but we had had our 48 hours in Thrupp so it was time to move on. We went through Thrupp lift bridges and hoped to fill up with water and get rid of rubbish, but a boat had just arrived so we decided to keep going.

This is the Shipton Flood gate. This is a "stop-gate" and can be closed to isolate a section of the canal for repair or maintenance.
It can also be used to protect the canal from flooding, which may well be the use here, given the canals proximity to the river.

We continued to Shipton Weir Lock where the canal and River Cherwell converge.

The change in height through the lock is small and therefore maintaining the forward volume of flow into the canal every time the lock is opened can be a problem. This has been solved by building a wide lock with an unusual six sided "lozenge" shape. This increases the volume of the lock chamber, and thus the amount of water that flows into the canal every time the lower lock gate is opened.  We were able to share the lock with another boat going our way.

 

With a length of 64 km, the River Cherwell (catchment area of 943 km2) has its source in Northamptonshire (in the ironstone hills of Hellidon) where it flows south to empty into the Thames.  This is a stretch of about 1 mile where it joins with the canal, from Shipton Weir Lock to Baker Lock.

I have no idea how this got there or why it is still there, someone’s idea of a joke?  It must have been there a while as the towpath around it is well established now.

Just up from Pigeon’s Lock is this lovely place.  Jane’s Enchanted Tea Garden, very popular and always well booked up.  Looks very pretty and magical from the canal.

We found a mooring in Lower Heyford before the lift bridge.  After our lunch we went for a walk to the village and past The Bell which is only open Friday - Sunday from 5pm - how do they survive with such short opening times? Back down to the canal and over the lift bridge and back to the boat.

Unfortunately there was no EE wifi signal at all, our unit showed 2 red lights, the first time we have ever seen that!

8 miles, 5 locks, 4hrs 30mins

Friday 9th May - Lower Heyford to Aynho

Time to move on, and we set off through the lift bridges we walked over yesterday and out towards Upper Heyford.  Love this beautiful Tithe Barn.   Upper Heyford Tithe Barn is an early 15th-century tithe barn at Upper Heyford, Oxfordshire. It was built around 1400 for New College, Oxford. Its plan is 120ft by 24ft. 

We have been amazed at the number of Red Kites we have seen as we go along this canal.  This is one of a pair that were sitting together on the top of the bridge. Red Kites mainly feed on carrion and can often be seen soaring high above roads, on the lookout for roadkill. When soaring they constantly adjust the angle of their tail to steer, while barely moving their wings. 

This is Somerton Deep Lock, the deepest lock on the Oxford Canal.  The cottage is completely isolated and is only accessible by foot or boat. The cottage is off-grid with electricity produced by a wind turbine and generators, and bottled gas for cooking. 

As we arrived a boat was just leaving the lock which meant it was going to be set for us, however the man driving got off the boat and reset it for the boat behind him!  We were quite shocked as there was no way he hadn’t seen us.  The lock is 12ft deep, so they wasted a whole lock of water which we could have used.  We were not impressed!

We carried on to Aynho and found a mooring in front of the bridge.  We had our lunch in the Great Western Hotel and sat in their delightful sun trap of a garden.

I walked Toby along the canal and saw several of these fairy doors attached to tree trunks and wooden posts.  I couldn't resist opening the doors to see if anyone was home!  
Legend says that these enchanted doors are actually a portal to the magical kingdom - a way for mythical creatures to travel between their world and ours.

5.75 miles. 3 locks, 2 lift bridges, 3hrs 0mins

Saturday 10th May - Aynho

Today we are having a quiet day in Aynho.  We decided to go for a walk along the canal to The Pig Place.  On the way we passed a field of cows some of which were cooling off in the canal.

This is another of the ‘lozenge’ locks, but smaller than the one at Shipton.  This one, Aynho Weir Lock, is here because the River Cherwell crosses the canal on the other side of the bridge. Originally built in 1790 as a standard lock, it was very soon realised that not enough water was being passed through to Somerton, with the net result the pound (section of water between locks) was having more water taken out than was being put in. Therefore, Aynho Weir Lock was altered to this rather unusual shape to compensate.

The river joins the canal on the right of the photo and flows across the canal exiting via a weir on the left.  If the river rises it effectively changes the level of the canal all the way up to Nell’s Bridge.

We continued up to The Pig Place where we had a cold drink and enjoying the view across the Cherwell Valley.  We were sad to discover that they no longer have pigs because the local abattoir they used has shut down and it isn’t cost effective to transport the pigs a longer distance.  The ethos of the outdoor café was to produce rare breed pork and showcase it at the on-site outdoor café. The closure of the local abattoir prevents them from producing their own pork. They have explored other ways of keeping the quality they are well known for, but increased labour costs and buying in rare breed pork makes the running of the café regrettably unsustainable in 2025.  They are primarily a campsite with some moorings for narrowboats.

This is Nell’s Bridge, very low and comes immediately after the lock.  If the River Cherwell is high then this bridge becomes impassable.  With all the dry weather we have been having there is no problem getting under this bridge at the moment.

Sunday 11th May - Aynho to Banbury

A lovely day in store so an early start to get to Banbury.  We pulled over at Aynho Wharf and filled up with water and got rid of all our rubbish. As it was so early it was very quiet. 

We have come through the Aynho Weir Lock and travelled along the stretch of canal to Nell’s Bridge.  We waited below the lock whilst another boat came down but they seemed to take a long time.  Dave said that the boat had been pulled into the lock and that the owner was very particular about the boat not touching the sides of the lock.  As they came out of the lock there was a lot of use of the bow thrusters!

This is the lock cottage at Nell’s Lock, it doesn’t look as though it is lived in at the moment and looks really quite sad!

This is Kings Sutton Lock which is the exact opposite with the cottage beautifully looked after.  The buildings on the other side of the lock used to be a blacksmith’s forge and stable block.  

Then again, at Grants Lock the lock cottage is a real mess.  It stands by the second deepest lock on the Oxford Canal. The ground floor of the cottage was built in 1794 and the second floor was added in 1914.  The cottage fell victim to an arson attack in July 2020 and everything was destroyed, down to the bare bones of the brickwork. 

Waiting below Banbury Lock, the last lock of today followed by a lift bridge.  However, it was very busy at the moorings and we ended up out opposite Sovereign Wharf, where we were told in no uncertain words that we couldn't moor there!  Fortunately a hire boat had stopped briefly for lunch and we were able to take their space when they moved on.  It has been a very warm day, so we had a quiet lunch and peaceful afternoon on the boat.

6.5 miles, 5 locks, 1 lift bridge, 4hrs 12mins

Basingstoke Calling Spring 2025 - Week 9

 Monday 28th April - Pangbourne to Goring

The promise of lovely sunny weather with very light winds so time to cruise!

We left our mooring and headed for the lock.  We passed under Whitchurch Toll Bridge.  There has been a toll bridge here since 1792 and the current bridge is the fourth bridge which opened in September 2014.

On Shooters Hill there are seven Gothic-style houses known as the "Seven Deadly Sins". They were built in 1896 by the shop magnate D.H. Evans. There are alternative theories about the name "seven deadly sins". One is that they were built by D H Evans to house his mistresses, but another is that they were in fact built to house seven lady friends of the Prince of Wales (later King Edward VII).

I love this time of year as the greens are so varied, passing Child Beale we were impressed by the palate of greens on the river bank and moving up the hillside.

As we approach Goring we found the glass box hanging over the river.  It was designed by the architect who did the painting of Ella when we were moored in Goring 5 years ago.

We went for a wander through Goring and then across the bridge to Streatley.  This is taken from the bridge looking back at Ella on the mooring and you can see that it is incredibly quiet.  By late evening we had been joined by two other boats, but that is still unusual as the moorings are generally full along here.

The church in Streatley has a blue plaque saying that Lewis Carroll, who wrote Alice in Wonderland, preached here in 1864.  He stayed in the Vicarage in Vicarage Lane.

Ella in almost the exact spot where she was painted by Professor Alan Brooks back in 2019.  The painting is on the wall in the apartment in Worcester.

4.25 miles, 1 lock, 1hr 42mins

Tuesday 29th April - Goring to Wallingford

Another bright sunny morning so we continued on to the next lock where we could fill up with water.  The lock keeper was very helpful as he showed us where the water hose was ready for us to use.  Toby is sitting in the shade of the tree watching the world go past.

On our journey up river we passed many huge riverside properties.  This photo attempts to show the vast amounts of land some of these properties have, the house is way back in the distance!

Approaching Wallingford is a sign welcoming us to the town with information on where the moorings are.

We moored on the left hand side but it was a very high mooring and we struggled to get Toby on and off the boat both at the front and the back.  So we shuffled across to the other side of the river where the moorings were more narrowboat friendly, moored beside the open area swimming pool which was being prepared for the summer season.



6 miles, 2 locks, 2hrs 18mins

Wednesday 30th April - Wallingford to Clifton Lock

We decided to move on today and weren’t really sure where we were going to end up.  We passed this boat which must have been a casualty of the river flooding.  Floated up onto the bank and got stuck as the water fell again.  Not sinking as such, but it would be difficult to refloat without flooding the inside.

We are heading towards Day’s Lock, with a possible mooring for the night.  This is the mouth of the River Thame flowing into the Thames, down from Dorchester.  It is navigable for boats with a draft of under 1ft, but not for us.

A magnificent specimen of a horse chestnut, these trees can grow up to 40m and live for 300 years.  It is full of flowers at the moment. It is native to the Balkan Peninsula, first introduced to the UK from Turkey in the late 16th century and widely planted.  

We came through Clifton Lock and met Curtis The Lock Keeper.  He and his wife live in the lock cottage and tend the gardens.  He sells cuttings from everything he grows and his hut has two large freezers full of ice cream which he also sells.  We decided to stay overnight on the moorings at the far end of the lock landing.

Ella is moored at the far end of the pontoon.  A wonderfully peaceful mooring, we sat out on the pontoon and even had a BBQ in the evening. We have had some delightful moorings and this has to be one of the nicest!

9 miles, 3 locks, 3hrs 57mins

Thursday 1st April - Clifton Lock to Abingdon

A short hop today to take us to Abingdon.  This is  one of the pumping stations linked to the Didcot Power Station before it was closed and demolished.  Water would have been pumped out of the river for cooling purposes and returned to the river afterwards. The signs warning boats are still in place.

We moored up in Abingdon on the play park side, again, all very quiet with only two or three boats around.  In Abingdon, temporary moorings for visiting boats are offered free of charge for a maximum stay of three nights. This policy aims to encourage boaters to visit and enjoy the town and its surroundings, while discouraging overstaying or misuse of the moorings.  We decided to take full advantage of this. 

Bun throwing is an iconic 400 year-old tradition which is unique to Abingdon-on-Thames, when specially made buns are thrown to residents from the top of the historic County Hall in the centre of Abingdon. Bun throwings are held to mark a royal occasion and Councillors in full ceremonial robes climb to the top of the County Hall and throw several thousand currant buns down at the chanting crowds filling the Market Place below.  The buns are always specially baked for the occasion and are often preserved by local families and visitors.  The Abingdon County Hall Museum has a selection of buns from previous bun throwings throughout the years and there is even a local cafe named after the tradition with old newspaper clippings and pictures on the walls. 

4.25 miles, 1 lock, 2hrs 6mins

Friday 2nd May - Abingdon

Abingdon Abbey was probably founded in the late seventh century, but its great days started when it was re-founded by Bishop Aethelwold and the Wessex kings about 950. It remained one of the foremost of the English abbeys, and at the dissolution of the Monasteries under Henry VIII its income was assessed as the sixth largest in the country. At that time it was probably the greatest landowner in the county of Berkshire, and also held property in many other parts of the country. The Abbey church was of a size and splendour comparable to any of the great cathedrals. Nothing of it remains, but its outline is marked out on the ground in the Abbey Gardens.  These ruins in the Abbey Gardens are Trendell's Folly, built in the nineteenth century.

Toby relaxing in the cool of the rear of the boat.

Saturday 3rd May - Abingdon to Sandford

A lovely morning and we watched the weekly Park Run set off on the opposite side of the river.  It was very well attended with a large crowd of runners and supporters.  We then set off for the lock and stopped above the lock to fill with water and dispose of all rubbish.

We had a good journey to Sandford Lock only to find that all the moorings were full.  The lock keeper was very helpful and offered us the mooring on the other side of the lock behind the Environmental launch.  It was a little tricky, we had to reverse the boat through wooden poles, passed other moored boats and then tuck in behind the launch.  The river was quite silted up so we could only go so far back and the bow of our boat had to be moored beside the launch.  A celebratory shandy, well earned!

Ella on her mooring, tucked in behind the Environmental Launch.  Despite being opposite the pub, we weren’t disturbed at all, possibly due to the rapid fall in temperatures!

5 miles, 2 locks, 2hrs 24mins

Sunday 4th May - Sandford to Oxford

A much colder day, we had to go back to long trousers and winter coats as the wind was really very cold!  Saying goodbye to Sandford Lock and our last mooring on the river for this trip.  It has been a brilliant experience and we’ve enjoyed every minute but I am looking forward to getting back to canals and smaller locks!

Ella in Isis Lock, the first narrow lock of this trip.  The cruise to here was very good although a little windy coming through Oxford and all the twists and turns.  We also had to negotiate a novice rowing boat of 4 rowers, who were struggling to keep their boat in a straight line, and managed to collide with another boat whilst we watched!

We moored on the canal and after some lunch we went for a walk into Oxford along Walton Street.  This is the Radcliffe Observatory.  The Radcliffe Observatory is a historical landmark and Green Templeton College’s centrepiece. Meteorological records commenced here in 1772, and for almost 200 years this listed building served as the only astronomical observatory of the University of Oxford (1773-1934). The Observatory has been used since as a medical research facility, a teaching centre and now a hub for the college. 

Hertford Bridge, better known as the Bridge of Sighs, is a famous bridge in Oxford. Heralded for its uniquely striking design, the bridge has become a landmark for sightseers. Completed in 1914, this beautiful bridge acts as a link between two Hertford College buildings.  This bridge symbolically links the old and new quads of Hertford College.

The Bodleian Library is one of the oldest libraries in Europe, and in Britain is second in size only to the British Library. Together, the Bodleian Libraries hold over 13 million printed items.  The Bodleian Library has been a library of legal deposit for 400 years.

The Radcliffe Camera is an iconic Oxford landmark and a working library, part of the central Bodleian Library complex.  It is linked to the Bodleian Old LIbrary by the underground Gladstone Link.  The Radcliffe Camera is home to the History Faculty Library (HFL).  The Radcliffe Camera is one of the most celebrated buildings in Oxford. Instantly recognizable, its great dome rises amid the Gothic spires of the University. Dr John Radcliffe was the most successful physician of his day. On his death in 1713 he directed that part of his large fortune should be used to build a library on a site at the heart of Oxford, between the University Church of St Mary's and the Bodleian.  The Radcliffe Camera is a great rotunda surmounted by Oxford's only dome, an architectural masterpiece and Britain's first circular library.

We ended up in the Turf Tavern for a drink.  Its foundations and use as a malt house and drinking tavern date back to 1381.  The low-beamed front bar area was put in place sometime in the 17th century.  It was originally called the Spotted Cow but the name was changed in 1842, as part of an effort to extinguish its reputation as a venue for illegal gambling activities.  It also features in the TV series Inspector Morse.

4.5 miles, 3 locks, 2hrs 30mins