Voyages of Gabriel: Oxford to Gibraltar (but not that one!)

Mon 23^rd August Osney Bridge to Kidlington Green

We walked to Waitrose, where we bought a few items and had a coffee and a croissant for breakfast. Then we took a bus for just two stops to get to Aldi, where we did most of our shopping, including a new curly hose. On the way back we overshot our stop and were dropped near the station, as the stop near the bridge was closed due to the roadworks. The advantage of this was that we found a post box which we needed. We caught a bus back as the shopping was heavy. There are so many bus routes that use this stretch of road that there is one every two or three minutes.

Back on the boat, Hazel unpacked the shopping, while James turned the boat around in the millstream, and we went upstream under Osney Bridge, avoiding the water jets again.

Leaving Osney Bridge

Into the Sheepwash Channel, Isis Lock was in our favour. As were going through, a Muslim family were watching, so we gave them “How do locks work?”. We gave a second one out to a lady who was walking past.

The end of the Sheepwash Channel

Into Isis Lock

The Oxford Canal

St Barnabas Church, Jericho

We stopped at a sanitary station at bridge 238 further up, and we filled our water tank from being a quarter full. It took 35 minutes. Much faster than it would have been on the Thames with the pressure release valves they have installed.

Water point

Boats moored among loosestrife

Muddy Waters

Then there was Wolvercote Lock, Perry’s Lift Bridge and the A40 before the junction with Dukes Cut. One lift bridge (233) had been removed since we last came through here in 2017.

Perrys Lift Bridge

Under the A40

After Duke’s Cut is Duke’s Lock, and then Drinkwater’s Lift Bridge. This is manual, and used to be released with a key, before raising the bridge by pulling on chains. Now it is raised hydraulically with a windlass.

Junction with Duke’s Cut

Duke’s Lock

Drinkwater’s Lift bridge

We moored before Kidlington Green Lock, where we found a length of piling. The plan is to arrive in Thrupp just as others are leaving, which will give us some mooring options.

Moored before Kidlington Green

Having seen very few boats moving earlier in the day, several were on the move in the evening, presumably relocating after work. A small Oxford Cruisers hire boat arrived in front of us.

3 locks, 5 miles and 2 lift bridges. Dep 1135, arr 1440, with 35 minutes at facilities.

Tue 24^th August Kidlington Green to Thrupp

We had four boats in a row, all facing up stream. The first to leave was the light blue one furthest back. This was followed shortly by the small hire boat in front of us. The one behind us we think was unoccupied.

We left some time later, and used Kidlington Green Lock, which was half full due to leakage. After skirting round Kidlington, we arrived at Roundham Lock, and were surprised to see the small hire boat still going up in the lock. They were either very slow, or had paused somewhere. We reset the lock and took our turn.

Kidlington Green Lock

Roundham Lock

We passed the hire boat as they filled up with water at Bridge 224. We moored in Thrupp at the first visitor mooring near the Boat Inn. We walked back to the Jolly Boatman, where we met James’s cousin Priscilla and Gerard for lunch. It is probably three years since we last saw them.

Priscilla and Gerard

The Jolly Boatman

We had seen on the news last night that three canoeists were canoeing from Liverpool to London, and were going via Oxford. It was in aid of awareness of suicides among war veterans. Today we spotted them paddling past us.

Three canoes

The internet signal was extremely slow, and the phone signal almost impossible. Why is it that popular canal locations suffer in this way? Thrupp, Stoke Bruerne, Crick and Braunston all have the same problem. Other problems here include noisy trains, noisy planes, and noisy people. Bah! Humbug! Otherwise, Thrupp is lovely.

2 locks, 2 miles. Dep 0925, arr 1035.

Wed 25^th August Thrupp to Bakers Lock, Gibraltar

Moored in Thrupp

We went to visit Anne Clark, a good BCF friend we have known for 24 years. We had lunch with her in the Boat Inn. It was good to see her.

James Anne Hazel

We decided to move, as the internet signal was very poor, and we had a Zoom meeting this evening. As we set off, we discovered that Rowan had arrived this morning and was moored halfway to the lift bridge. We had a chat with David and Jane, before we found we were blocking the way and needed to move. Somebody kindly opened the lift bridge for us.

David and Jane on Rowan.

The lift bridge at Thrupp

We had given out two Canal Ministries leaflets as we left. One was to a lady on Joss, and we passed her boat in Thrupp Wide.

Joss

Shipton on Cherwell church

We had hoped to moor just before Shipton Weir Lock, but there was a boat there. Plan B was to moor on the river next to the lock. That was also occupied. We were concerned that we would have to go on for ages before finding a mooring, so we tried to tie to trees on the river, but we couldn’t get ashore. We acquired a lot of weed on the prop. We finally found, to our surprise, that the moorings below Bakers Lock were all available, so we gratefully tied to the piling.