Thursday 21/5 Thrupp to just past Heyford Common Lock

Left our mooring at 7.45 for the reverse up the canal and under the lift bridge to the winding hole. Where is the audience when you'd like one. It is a rule of narrow boating that the bigger the stuff up the bigger the audience and conversely when something tricky is executed perfectly no one is around to admire. We pulled into the Services mooring to fill with water.

It is Lawrence's bête noir again - the squirting hose fitting

The fill was so slow I had a shower and still had lots of time to kill. 

This bench was commissioned by the Thrupp Canal Cruising Club who look after the grounds and garden areas around the winding hole and the services area. The bench is beautifully made and couldn't have been placed on a better position. Lawrence has made tea while we wait

Details of one of the hanging baskets

We also learnt the following while we waited. The construction of the Oxford Canal started in 1769 and was officially opened on 1/1/1790.

It took an hour to fill with water - the longest yet.

The Holy Cross Church looms menacingly over the canal

We passed fields of canola

And through another curly wurrly

A boat coming out of the lock as we arrive - always a good sight as the lock is set in our favour, which means the water is at the correct level for us to enter the lock and an added bonus is, if the locker sees  you coming they will live the gate/gates open to you can go straight in.

How many wind generators does one little narrowboat need?

How about this house at Enslow, talk about living beside the canal

We stopped for lunch at Lower Heyford, a most delightful village, not immediately apparent from the canal. To get to the village we were directed to go passed a couple of cottages, through the kissing gata, around the field, through another kissing gate, passed the church

And follow the lane. This building is intriguing as it is built to follow the shape of lane. A couple of angles to follow the bend

A bit further on the same building curves to follow the shape of the lane

Passed a couple of houses in the village

We had lunch at The Bell in the very pleasant walled garden. And then we took a different route through the village and along the towpath back to the boat. Another pretty cottage

A thatched cottage

Passed a fantastic old tree house overhanging the canal. Once, it must have given some kids years of fun.

We had not long been underway when the most dazzling sight came toward us. unfortunately L. wouldn't let me take a full frontal shot. It was the English idea of the great bronzed British body.

Under the lift bridge we crossed over after lunch on our 2km+ perambulation

Passed this glorious chestnut tree

Colour is starting to arrive in the wild bits

We moored up at 4.30 feeling a bit broiled from all the sun today - think what the unclad bronzed Brit body is going to feel like tonight! Our mooring spot tonight, in the middle of nowhere.

Out came the BBQ for its second run. It takes ages for theBBQ briquettes to turn into not colas, but when they eventually did, it cooked the sausages with a little help from Lawrence.

I was flicking through a Waterways World mag at lunch time, whilst Lawrence read the Smh on the tablet, and there was an article on some of the boats that will be on show at the Crick BoatmShow this weekend - you know, the one L. won't let us go to - and this is one of the boats. See G&R the fates are telling you that you will go narrow boating one day. I must say it looks a lot flasher the Aqualife, speaking of which, Rhonda asked for a pic of the living area

I'm still waiting for the correct answer to last nights quiz

today 10 miles, 7 locks, 3 lift bridges in 6 hours