#nbpenelope

A leisurely start in the sunshine saw us complete the rest of the summit pound. The south Oxford canal is a contour canal which means that it weaves around the rural landscape, the banks are overgrown and apart from the stretches of Armco it is difficult to moor as the sides are rocky and shallow, not to mention curves.

In order to avoid the hill at Wormleighton, the canal meanders right out into the countryside, there is little sign of habitation other than the rather grand Wormleighton Grange which has a pretty ladder bridge to allow foot traffic from the A423 to the Grange. This bridge is known as The Wedding Bridge and is engraved with this name and MMIX, although no one knows the origin of the name or which wedding it may commemorate.

Occasionally the hedges are low enough that you catch a glimpse of the countryside and you realise how high you have climbed, on a gloriously sunny day such as we were enjoying, you can see for miles.

Rounding the bend the view of the decaying Willison’s Bridge (number 128) is in stark contrast to the construction of the HS2 bridge behind it. Many of the old communication bridges only exist to provide the landowner or farmer access from one side of the canal to the other and have no public access. They are often in poor repair and there is a tendency to hold your breath in case they disintegrate as you glide under them!

Finally we arrived at the Top Lock of the Napton Flight, the village on the hill ahead, Buffalo in the fields below - we hope there is a space in the pound above the bottom lock for us to moor!

We found a mooring very close to the station so I can nip into the office and it is a very pleasant spot! When we arrive it is a Train strike day so the mooring is very tranquil, a picture which changes when the trains resume the following day!

I manage to finish knitting the socks that my sister provided the pattern for, somewhat distressingly I have managed to knit one foot is longer than the other - that is what happens when you are not assiduous in recording your rows! But I am very pleased with a first attempt and love the wool!

When we arrive we moored bow to bow with a Girl Guide boat so over lunch were entertained with a jolly sing song 😄 After their lunch stop they headed out and were replaced by a CanalTime boat share - they all have names of birds and the blue front with the porthole window makes them quite distinctive. This one was called the Ambonia King which is another name for a Moluccan Parrot, a brightly coloured bird native to Indonesia.

The next morning is an early start for London and the day starts with a magnificent sunrise although it was really chilly on the platform. I had to travel to Reading and then change for the Paddington train and when I got there, I treated myself to a ride on the Elizabeth Line into Farringdon.

Another short cruise today, to take us into Newbury.

As I am slaving over my laptop I only managed to stick my head out the front of the boat to take a picture of the rather pretty entrance to Newbury Marina but as you can see the lock landing is quite some way from the lock, so Martin had a bit of a walk!

We were fortunate enough to find a mooring right in the middle of Newbury next to Victoria Park, opposite the Cafe on the Canal and the departure point for the trip boat. It was also bird central, from what looked like hundreds of pigeons roosting on the roof of the Library and perched on the crane to the tens of geese, ducks and swans which were loitering around optimistically trying to cadge food from any human unwise enough to put their head out of their boat 😳

After a rather grey afternoon the weather perked up and while busy talking to my colleague Katherine on Teams, Martin stuck his head round the partition to say he was off to the pub! While this was unusual mid afternoon I thought nothing of it because I was deep in conversation. A little while later I got a text message from him saying, “Can’t you get away from work?”, to my astonishment it was nearly 6 o’clock! I broke off my meeting (sorry Katherine) and headed out along the towpath, to see if I could track Martin down!

The towpath was delightful, on the opposite side there was an eclectic mix of buildings, several of them hostelries with outside drinking areas overlooking the canal. I managed to find Martin sitting on the veranda of the Lock, Stock & Barrel overlooking Newbury Lock. It was very pleasant as the sun went down but we retreated inside and had the place to ourselves while we enjoyed and evening meal!

The next day was very, very wet! I managed to get out for a walk after work and wandered across Victoria Park and up Northbrook Street, enjoying the mixture of new and old buildings.

I was rather taken with the metal tree sculpture in the park which has acquired a variety of padlocks which is often a tradition on bridges! Victoria Park used to be called The Marsh but acquired its royal name when a statue of Queen Victoria was unveiled there.

Another interesting building was The Clock Tower, while looking as though it was a meeting point with great historical interest, it was actually designed and built in 1929. It is shaped like a little house with six sides and used to house a telephone although that is long gone! While we think of this as being Newbury, it is actually Speenhamland an area that was of great importance to the coaching trade between London and Bath.

The rain was coming down quite heavily now, but Newbury Town Hall still managed to look imposing. Built in 1881 the mixture of red and grey brick is very decorative. They still have a market twice a week in the market place in front of the clock tower.

The Granary Stores dating from the 17th Century look fascinating and they form part of the West Berkshire Museum, if only it had been open I would have loved to look round. They are on the Wharf, so boats would have come up from Bristol and Bath with their wares and been unloaded into the stores.

By now I am very damp so I take the opportunity to take a picture of Penelope from the Wharf before heading back over the bridge.

Another short hop today, heading for Midgham.

There was a challenge for Martin in the shape of a swing bridge and a lock in close succession! The instructions tell you to prepare the lock before you open the road bridge because of the strong flow on this section of canalised River Kennet, I’m meant to be working but manage to snap a photo of Martin returning to the boat after closing the bridge. At least the road swing bridges are all motorised and operated from a control panel, but getting the right time to do it in order not to make the motorists wait too long is a hit and miss affair although this particular swing bridge is marked with a plea to avoid opening it between 8:00 and 9:00 am!

We manage to squeeze onto the 48 hour moorings, it is nice and open so we manage to get some last rays of sun on the solar panels!

As Martin ties us up the boat in front causes me amusement, it appears to have a floating pod behind it with a domed roof but an open front - not sure if this was a floating dog house!

For my evening walk I go to explore Woolhampton, most confusingly the rail station is known as Midgham which is some 2 miles away. Apparently, the station was called Woolhampton when it opened in 1847 but the name was changed in 1873 to avoid confusion with Wolverhampton station!

I find a little footpath and set out to explore the metropolis which is Woolhampton!

Along the main street there is a splendid brick building with a clock tower that looks as though it has been a community hall and a library in its time, but I couldn’t find anything more about it. The lamp outside was a very interesting time and I wondered if as the village was an important coaching stop towards the West Country this had been used to light the road.

Many of the buildings were made up of this red brick with decorative yellow bricks and stone, in particular the fountain which was constructed to celebrate Queen Victoria’s diamond jubilee.

The village is somewhat marred by the A4 ploughing through the centre, the main road between Bath and Reading and there are many modern houses sandwiched between Victorian villas and even older buildings. There were lots of “Ghost Signs” painted advertisements on the sides of buildings which in former lives had been shops, pubs and even a hotel!

Making my way back to the boat I had to wait at the level crossing for the two car Great Western train as it arrived at Midgham station on its way to Newbury or beyond, hopefully I will be able to catch a train on this line to get me into London later this week!

The majority of mooring points we have found so far are only 24 or 48 hours so the next morning it is time to move on. We are not planning to go all the way down the K&A, and are only planning to spend a week on the canal before returning to the river so we decided not to go too far and headed for Tyle Mill lock.

You can just see the image of a mooring bollard below Lock 99 but when we got there discovered that it was a wild mooring in a field of cows! This made for an entertaining afternoon’s work as they came right up to the window to peer in while I tried to concentrate on an exhilarating day’s training about PowerPivot in Excel, I certainly know how to live!

I neglected to go out for a walk after work so no extra pictures here.

The next morning dawned chilly and misty and I managed to get a lovely shot through the porthole with the cows in the mist.

After passing more interesting houses than you can shake a stick at, we find ourselves heading into Kingston:

We manage to moor downstream of Kingston road bridge, hoping it will be quieter than mooring directly under the pubs and restaurants further upstream!

There is time to enjoy lunch in one of the hostelries on the waterfront and then we go for a wander around the town centre.

Opposite the Guildhall is the ancient Clattern Bridge, built originally in 1175 and widened in the 18th Century to cope with increased road traffic it is one of the oldest intact bridges in use in England.

In the forecourt of the Guildhall stands the Coronation Stone, a sarsen stone, not local to the area, was thought to be used in the coronation of seven Saxon kings, who were in effect the first Kings of the English.

Martin and I spent some time trying to work out the Roman numerals for each King’s coronation!

Edward the Elder crowned 899

Æthelstan crowned 925

Edmund 1 crowned 939

Eadred 946

Eadwig 955

Edward the Martyr 975

Æthelred the Unready 978

I think I would be happy to visit Kingston by river again, moorings were fine, plenty of choice of food and drink and shopping was varied, including an M&S with the largest selection of clothes for some time! After an enjoyable evening with company in the shape of a colleague from work who lives locally we had a restful night to prepare for day 2 of our river journey!

The joy of boating in London, and even more so on the river, is the vast range of craft you see, from tiny little row boats to great gin palaces and everyone waves and smiles 😁

The passage is enlivened by a variety of Aits - these are small islands in the river, some are merely scrub covered bird perches while others have homes - a particular favourite is Eel Pie Island which is home to some unique homes and is an artist community.

As we leave Richmond behind, admiring Ham House on the crest of the hill and even more striking sight approaches us - The Royal Rowing Barge, Gloriana sans rowers but being powered by its impressive electric motors passes us with a cheery wave, on its way to the Jubilee Reflections Flotilla on 24th September. The 24 Carat gilding was beautiful in the sunshine and it was a treat to see:

As we approach Teddington the houses sport a wonderful array of boathouses and summer houses and it is hard to know when to stop snapping pictures - but here a couple of favourites:

Next hurdle - Teddington Lock, we find ourselves sharing with a trip boat and in order prevent boats from moving too much you have to hold the ropes front and back - I just about managed to take a picture while hanging on!

This lock marks the point where we leave the tidal river and move onto the non-tidal section - as the chandler’s shop isn’t open for Martin to buy engine oil, we decide to move on towards Kingston-upon-Thames to see if we can find a spot to moor up for the rest of the day and overnight.

Today’s journey takes us from Rugeley to Haywood Junction, where we turn left so that we can moor in Tixall Wide.

The weather is bright and sunny although a little windy! Martin is in charge as it is Wednesday and I am at work, so we are taking our time as we head to Stone. We decide to get as far as the junction at Haywood.

The nature of the canal changes in this stretch with fields either side and plenty of livestock to see out the windows! The main place en route is Colwich, a town which has developed around the canal with a rather attractive lock and lock cottage.

A last minute decision sees us turning left at the junction to find a spot at Tixall Wide. Also known as Tixall Broad or The Broad Water, this wide stretch of water was created on the advice of Capability Brown as part of the development of the Staffordshire and Worcester Canal. The 3rd Baron Clifford of Chudleigh only allowed the canal to pass in front of his baronial hall, Tixall Hall, if the canal was made to look like an ornamental lake!

Whatever the reason, it is a fantastic spot to stop and feels most peculiar to look out of the window and see so much water!

We decided to walk into Great Haywood village to pick up supplies. We pass the junction which now is home to an Anglo Welsh hire boat centre, and cross the lock, passing a small brick building with a lovely plaque commemorating the canal:

The village of Great Haywood is interesting with two churches, one CofE and the other Roman Catholic - testament to how the reformation had less of an impact on the religious buildings in this part of the country.

St Stephen’s Church designed by Thomas Trubshaw became the centre of the village in 1854 and has a school attached to it called Anson Church of England School.

The RC Church, St. John the Baptist, was originally built at Tixall as a private chapel for Tixall Hall, was dismantled and relocated to Great Haywood when the Tixall estate was sold to Lord Talbot in 1854, the family being Protestant and not wanting local Roman Catholics to visit the chapel. Built in the Gothic style, it has a particularly fine belfry but the the Gothic bay window didn’t make the transition. We weren’t able to see inside and the building was surrounded by trees so the pictures aren’t as good as I would have liked!