I love mornings where Richard and I sit, over a coffee, deciding where
to go today! Our journeys are usually so
planned out that we never need to think about it.
When we got to Wolvercote Junction and turned left and stayed on the
Oxford Canal. It’s been a while since we
went along this bit and I wanted to see what has been built recently.
Just under the A34 there is little lift bridge. The mechanism has been vandalised, so I had
to walk over it and put all my weight on the beam to open it. Great, that worked. But it was a different story trying to close
it! It closed so far then swung open
again. On the second try I had to try to
walk up the bridge which finally opened it.
I left a very bouncy bridge behind!
The next lift bridge was working properly, and it went up and down with
one finger – well almost!
There has been a lot of building since we were last this way. This block of flats is new, and I reckon that
some of them will be very expensive!
There is still one more development to be built so maybe we need to come
by in another few years.
I think that Isis Lock is one of the prettiest on the system. So please excuse all the photos!
Out onto the Thames and under Osney Bridge to the East Street moorings
– oh no, not one to be had ☹
Like Thrupp we have never not been able to get in here before. This does not bode well for the summer!
We dropped down through Osney Lock and headed downriver looking for a
mooring for the night. As usual it was
all scruffy liveaboards which seem to have taken over even more river
bank. We finally found somewhere almost
opposite Salters depot. I can’t get off,
but do I really want to? Not a good
introduction to the Thames this year.
During the afternoon we had a very interesting chat to a guy called Tim
Wiseman who is the Oxford Waterways Co-ordinator for Oxford City Council. He stopped to ask us if we would like to take
part in a survey for people who don’t have a home mooring – which we have. However, I asked him the BIG question – what
are Oxford City Council going to do about the moorings south of Folly
Bridge? His answer – nothing! The Council aren’t bothered about them at
all. Tim would like to see some
visitors’ moorings put in and then official long term moorings with some
facilities as, at present, there is no water, rubbish or elsan emptying
anywhere on the Thames in Oxford. We
asked what the boat people do with their sewage and he rather skirted round
that question which made us think that it is just dumped in the river. Tim said that he is rather banging his head
against a brick wall with the Council over the moorings and lack of services
and he would love to receive any emails from people who have a point of view to
put over – he will then pass them on to the right person. We have seen a marked deterioration in Oxford
in the 10 years we have been coming to the Thames and Tim said please add
anything like that in your email. He
also told us that the towpath from Iffley Lock to Folly Bridge is not owned or
registered to anyone which is probably why neither Oxford City Council nor the
Environment Agency want to take responsibility.
Tim’s email address is twiseman@oxford.gov.uk – go on drop him a line
and lets see if boater’s power can win the day!
Along long stretches of the canal between Wolvercote and Jericho are
Agenda 21 moorings. I’ve seen them
before so thought I would see what they are all about. Agenda 21 is a non-binding action plan of the
United Nations with regard to sustainable development. A set of proposals, made
at the 1992 UN Conference on Environment and Development, Rio de Janeiro, to
promote sustainable development. It sets out environmental strategies for
managing coasts, oceans, and water, monitoring and reducing chemical waste,
eradicating radioactive waste, and conserving natural vegetation and soils
(through sustainable farming). Other proposals include measures to improve
health care, reduce poverty, and develop fair and environmentally friendly
trade policies. The aim is to promote global sustainable development at a more
fundamental level than traditional aid programmes, based on common needs and
interests. The requirement is for local governments to develop their own ‘Local
Agenda 21’ in order to promote and implement sustainable development. So, I see it that Oxford City Council can now
feel very proud of themselves as they have put some canal bank over to
liveaboards – is that what Agenda 21 is all about?
6.67 miles
4 locks
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