Narrowboating – Oxford and Thames

Our long term friends Keith and Jill mentioned last year that narrowboating was on their bucket list. It’s always on ours so all that was needed was a route. We found a new boat layout that was geared to couples where the cabins each had an ensuite. It operated out of Lower Heyford about 15 miles North of Oxford. Our first evening’s stop underpinned the appeal. Nothing but calm with activity limited to a preening swan.

The crew’s view of the level of activity was abruptly changed the following day as our supervisor gave instructions on operating lift bridges.

A 15-mile dawdle saw us in Oxford. As this was a one week down and one week back up trip we had two opportunities to explore the various towns and villages. The Ashmoleon museum was first item on our Oxford list thanks to a recent Helen book reading. A half day barely scratched the surface of what was a well laid out museum with small galleries focussed on specific areas of interest. The coin section was particularly interesting as it gave a real insight into who minted coins and why they did (often to demonstrate power/wealth).

Of course we had to take in Hereford bridge that links the college of the same name (sometimes referred to as the Bridge of Sighs given its similarity to the Venice version).

We took in a few streets slightly off the beaten track and were rewarded by an unexpected jazz evening and also the spectacular brickwork of Kemble college.

At Oxford we changed from the canal to the river Thames. There were so many beautiful locations (and pubs!). This was looking South towards the Nags Head near Abingdon.

Many of the locks had keepers – they were not always on duty probably because they were working on the presentation of their cottages and gardens. Clifton Lock was a good example.

The main goal of the first week was to get to Marlow for a lunch planned earlier in the year with Helen’s cousin. Marlow is steeped in history with the 1832 chain suspension bridge built by William Clark (MICE). His other remaining bridge joins Buda and Pest across the Danube (see Feb 2018 blog). We were also lucky to moor near DAYBREAK the last vessel built in UK to carry cargo under sail. The lee boards were huge. She was purchased privately and converted and restored by a couple who now live on her. On our return leg she had moved upstream.

A close up of the bridge and adjoining church (of similar vintage) seemed appropriate.

Our lunch with John and Jane was at the Hand and Flowers. A colourful pub, good food and excellent company ensured it was a particularly long lunch!

The weir at Marlow is also spectacular although being built in 1939 it is by comparison a comparatively modern affair.

Needless to say a stop at Windsor was essential. Helen and I went through the castle which was a fascinating experience. The restoration of nine staterooms destroyed by fire in 1992 was particularly impressive. I also found the ‘Order of the Garter’ engrossing. Behind the choir stalls in St Georges chapel are plaques with the coat of arms of all those elected to the order. Banners of the coats of arms also flew above the stalls – but only of those that are alive. There were a couple of vacant spots...

Pictures inside the castle were not allowed but the grounds are manicured.

With the formidable moat fulfilling a new role of appealing garden.

Viewed from the Thames in the early morning light it is a colourful but still imposing structure. 

This trim stretch of land was Crown land. The trees had some of the largest mistletoe ‘balls’ I have ever seen.

We made our way down river to more crown estate in Runneymede where several interesting structures reside. This is a sculpture by Hew Locke called the Jurors. Its twelve chairs had pictures of world wide good deeds – the idea being for viewers to reflect on and then consider a similar number of other worthy deeds. Here a volunteer clearly enjoyed regaling two new jurors.

 

We visited both the JFK and (below) Magna Carta memorials.

Helen and I also hiked up to the Air Force memorial which flies high over the valley including a massive view ranging from Windsor castle through to Wembley (not in shot).

There is a lot of fun to be had on the river with many diverse topics and 'bubbly' conversations.

Each lock cottage seemed to be in competition as to which was the most photogenic. This is Bray lock.

What I hadn’t appreciated was was Jill's fascination with morbidity. At Cookham there was a dig at the abbey which we were obliged on our return journey to visit. I confess to finding the foundations of an 8-9^th C Anglo Saxon abbey of interest. However, Jill could not be dragged away from the graveyard where numerous bodies were being exhumed. She delighted in telling us the bodies had been buried in shrouds so were well preserved. (Coffins tend to collapse after a while and distort their contents…told you she was morbid….)

Henley on Thames was also a beautiful historic and bustling town. It was busy but I imagine nothing compared to when the Oxford/Cambridge boat race is being run. One unique component was its streetscape of Gingko trees. Somewhat larger than the one that sits in a pot on our home veranda.

It is difficult to pick the most attractive town of the trip, but Abingdon would be near the top. Viewed from our mooring the lights of the Nags Head were difficult to resist and Keith and I found ourselves drawn into consuming a couple of pints.

As for fauna there were three standouts. Red kites were everywhere and on one occasion there was four pair circling. A wonderful sight and a remarkable turnaround from my all over England teenage cycling adventures when seeing any bird of prey was a very rare affair.

Herons were also a daily sighting. Some have really adapted to their urban surrounds. This one seemed frozen in time as we walked into Oxford. On our return an hour later he was still there unmoved. Coincidentally, as we floated past the following morning, he flew into the upstream end of the culvert to once more take up his fishing station. Clearly a creature of habit.

At Oxford the canal and Thames run in parallel and we opted to navigate the latter on our return. It comprises a huge flood plain which was enjoyed by many animals with numerous horses and cows eating and wondering into the river to drink. There were also plenty of dog walkers although some had less control of their pets than was desirable. The dog is in full flight after a squirrel. It appears to be a regular affair given the horse's disdain....

Alongside the canal were many blackberry bushes and inevitably that meant a bit of scrumping. As were waiting to go into a lock Keith opted to cut a few small branches of fruit and then remove the berries once we were underway. The end result was a wonderful crumble.

This shot rather says it all. Basking in the sunshine with a G&T in a picturesque spot not 50 metres from a pub. Is there any wonder we keep being drawn into a week or two of narrowboating.

And that wraps up our 2024 Northern venture. Plenty of countryside, fresh air with some reasonable activity (but counterbalanced with much more leisure), good food and drink and in in particular great company.

Dumfries House

On our way back from Aberdeen we opted for a couple of days near the Lake district and visited Dumfries House (an hour North of the town). We undertook a tour of the house but as is increasingly the ‘norm’ photos were not allowed.

It is an extraordinary JIT (just in time) story. The house was up for sale for £45M but a group (including Council) had only raised some £25M. The dilemma was raised with Prince Charles and in three weeks he brought together additional resources. Meanwhile the sellers (thinking the sale would not proceed) arranged to sell whatever they could including sending a large amount of unique Chippendale furniture to London for auctioning at Sothebys. The truck was on the M6 when the driver was called to turn around. The result speaks for itself. 10% of the worlds Chippendale originals are now on display for all to see.

Examples are in every room. One unusual aspect that Charles had requested was no roped off areas. Visitors are asked to walk on strips of matching carpet which overlay the original. Clever crowd control. 

A key driver for Charles was supporting young people to develop skills. The tree house playground was a great example and was a drawcard despite mediocre weather. (I had to wait quite a while to get this person free shot.)

An exception (where contractors were used) is the Chinese bridge. The original design dates back to the 1800s but was never built. Changing the design to meet current standards was a challenge but the bridge was opened one day earlier than planned in 2017.

Past the bridge are the gardens and they are beautifully laid out including some fun use of old pots. The summer house was a winning design from the Princes foundation design week competition. It was built by trainees learning new trades and included some older construction techniques.

Initially we were dismayed that quite a few vegetables appeared to be past their use by date but were assured that even plants in seed were given to the chickens so nothing goes to waste.

The rose gardens were a recent development opened in 2023.

The whole design enables a slow climb up the gardens to yet another pavilion where the layout can start to be appreciated.

In short a good reason for a stop over if you are passing the lake district. Even if the weather is inclement the café is worth a visit as tables are in the stables.  That in itself is an interesting experience.

Shetlands

We continued our visiting of Northern Isles by taking the ‘van to Aberdeen and catching the ferry to the Shetlands. We had a small caravan park near Scalloway overlooking a loch, golf course and heather covered hills. There were quite a few campers on the site which made for some lively and fun discussions in the small kitchen/laundry facilities. A funny self depricating 73 year old camping/cyclist rather put our level of adventure into the category of tame!

As with the Faroes our timing was rather lucky. When visiting shops in the capital Lerwick we found a brochure advertising 'Fiddlers week'. The first night was free while they got together and met one another. One started a tune and others listened, watched, softley plucked the notes and then joined in.

It warranted a video.....

Fiddlers week

A major driver for Shetlands was to enjoy some of the many walks. We started on St Ninians Isle in perfect weather. Here a sand causway needs to be traversed to get onto the island. Simply stunning.

The island had many little offspring islands. All with their wonderfully complimentary blues and greens.

There was little evidence of accommodation as all the crofts had been dismantled and the stone re-purposed for fencing. We did find one exception – although clearly in need of some TLC.

It seemed that everyone was enjoying the weather with these three working on their tan.

Shetlands has a much softer landscape compared to Faroes and the cliffs are nothing like as precipitous nor as windy.

The final leg of the walk took us past the remnants of St Ninians chapel which is from the 12^thC. It actually sits over an older structure part of which can be seen through a small grate (inside the wall).

We rounded off the day with a trip to the Southern most point on the mainland where the Sumburgh Head lighthouse had a commanding view.

A quick exploration was followed by a sighting of one of this seasons few remaining Puffins. Most had headed out to sea, but this one seemed reluctant to leave its lovely garden.

Our second walk was Culswick on the West coast. This was a quite different landscape and included the deepest peat we have seen, although unlike our 2022 Hebridies visit we saw little evidence of peat harvesting.

The end goal was Culswick Broch which was accessed across a causeway. Both had seen better days with the latter requiring careful negotiation.

After several days we finally found time to go into the nearby town of Scalloway. The museum was fascinating not least the section that covered the ‘Shetland Bus’. This was a small and brave group of seamen who collected and delivered people and equipment across to Norway during world war II. On the town front there is a monument to the ‘bus’.

For our final walk we headed North to Eshaness lighthouse. The sea has pounded the shore into some amazing shapes. How long would you give this arch to survive?

Here is one that is long gone and now an island. The adjoing inlet was some 300 metres long.

This looked great in the sunshine but would be pretty bleak in a winter storm.

We did get caught in a short summer squall and had to don waterproofs. The first time on the Shetlands so certainly can’t complain. 

There are occasions when even the wind produces a magical feel...

Windy patterns

And with that our short week in Shetlands was over. On the return ferry we passed the boat club where we were entertained by the fiddlers. (The glass fronted building just to the right of centre.)

But we were not yet shot of them. It transpired many had sailed up for the week and on the return trip regaled us again both on deck 

And in the bar. 

Thankfully both overnight ferry trips were calm. I suspect that is not always the case as this was the first time we had seen lounge chairs chained to the floor. The islanders seem particularly trustworthy so theft would not appear to be the driver.

Two great but quite diefverent weeks and as a result difficult to pick a preference. I’m glad we did both.