Rediscovery Cruise: Day 4

Another lovely sunny day, but very slow going.  We have done seven hours, but only just over five with the engine on!  As it was a Sunday we treated ourselves to a cooked breakfast, and set off at ten to nine.  The summit twists and turns, so that sometimes the sun is in your eyes, and a few minutes later it’s behind you.  Lots of it is also very pretty.

We negotiated the Fenny ‘tunnel’ without seeing another boat, then went through the most northerly of the Oxford Canal’s signature lift bridges; immediately after this we crossed the boundary fromWarwickshirw into Oxfordshire.

At the Claydon Locks we found a boat going down the top lock and another waiting.  By the time we were going down, another boat had arrived behind us.  There were also a few boats going up.  In the longer pound there are works on the towpath, so you have to wait quite a way from the lock.  When we got there, both the boats ahead were still waiting.  The flight of five locks all seemed to take forever.  When we got to the bottom we stopped for lunch, as leftover chilli on toast is tricky to eat on the move.  We only stopped briefly, though, and by the time we set off again we found that the boat that had been behind us was now in front, and the one that had been in front was now behind.  As we negotiated the next three locks, which are fairly close together but not really a flight, we saw both regularly.

As we approached Cropredy Marina, where a large additional basin is being built, a boat came out — so we had longer to wait at the lock.  It’s not helped by the fact that only one bottom paddle is working.  It was a while before we made it into the lock, with its very pretty Cottage alongside.

We moored up just before 4 on a nice stretch of piling next to a farm, with Slat Mill Bridge and Lock within sight.  It’s a mooring which isn’t shown in books as it’s not official, but is in the Waterway Routes maps.

10 miles, 9 locks.  (50 miles, 38 locks)