After 14 days cruising with the big boys on the Thames we are back on the canal system at Oxford. We had a eventful time meeting new people, being laid up waiting for the alternator to be fixed and catching up with the family at Henley and Abingdon.
An Oxford rowing club, and first sight of the River Cherwell - we'll be seeing a lot of it
Now back to where we left you at Abingdon, the onward journey took us to Oxford passing the university rowing clubs laid out along the banks, one for each of the different colleges. We had thought of mooring opposite Christchurch Meadows just before Oxford’s Folly Bridge but as we were on the last day of our Thames license we decided, against some advice which had recommended using the Duke’s Cut, to head up onto the Oxford Canal through Isis lock.
Welcome to Oxford?
Once through Folly Bridge, we thought we were on a different river – or it might have been a canal. Gone was the broad expanse of water and big cruisers, we were suddenly in a narrow waterway passing unnoticed behind back gardens. The entrance to the Sheepwash Channel which takes you onto the canal wasn’t even marked! After a tricky bit of manoevering underneath the railway and round a right angle bend into the lock, we were rewarded by a fantastic mooring just up from the lock within 10 minutes walking of the city centre, but in another world.
We spent two great days exploring Oxford, mainly just walking around in the sunshine admiring the architecture, with visits to the Pitt Rivers and Natural History museums. We discovered a great little pub in Jericho just on the other side of the canal, recently reopened, the Old Bookbinders, and spent our evenings there. On Friday evening we were joined by friends from Mold, Gillian and Glyn, who happened to be in the area for the weekend, saw our location on Facebook and contacted us to meet up. A lovely surprise and a good ending to our time in the city.
Isis Lock
