It was just coming light as we drew back the bedroom curtains of our narrowboat which we’d moored the previous evening just below Eynsham Lock. I prepared breakfast on board whilst the engine was being started and then we began to gather our belongings together as our narrowboat adventure was nearing its end.
We slipped out of our moorings at 8.40 a.m. and just had to wait a few minutes before entering the final lock of our holiday ten minutes later. The sun had just broken through resulting in a bright, autumn morning. Simon and I sat out on the foredeck for the final stretch back into the Anglo Welsh base at Eynsham where we safely returned the boat at 9.15 a.m.
David got off the boat first to bring the car down to the quayside for packing up whilst the rest of us checked all the cupboards, drawers and wardrobes to make sure we hadn’t left anything behind.
Although narrowboats have ample storage I recommend using holdalls rather than suitcases as they are easier to stow away. We seemed to end up with quite a collection of bags but there had been room on board for everything. After having a little chat with Jo and Dan at the boatyard about how we’d got on it was time to bid farewell to Cunningham and to get used to travelling by car once again.
As we still had most of the day ahead of us we decided to spend a few hours in neighbouring Oxford. Although it had been lovely experiencing the slow life on a narrowboat, it obviously took us a much shorter time to drive into the city. After leaving our cars at one of the out of town park and rides, we caught the shuttle bus into the centre for a wander around.
We then popped into one of Oxford’s pubs for a bite to eat and a cup of coffee before strolling along car free Broad Street which is lined with numerous listed buildings, colleges, interesting small shops and cafes. Our walk took us past Balliol and Trinity Colleges, the Weston Library and the Museum of the History of Science.
We’d chosen a good day to visit as by chance it was one of Oxford University’s graduation days and the streets were filled with graduates wearing their gowns, some of them filing in to the Sheldonian Theatre to attend their degree ceremony.
Our walk continued onto Magdalen Bridge where we spotted graduates punting on the river in their gowns. Punting is a popular pastime in the city and apparently it’s an Oxford tradition to go punting on graduation day. We didn’t see anyone fall into the river but with bottles of champagne being quaffed there were a few collisions.
We then followed the path down to the river for a stroll through Christ Church meadows. The tree lined avenue running through this wide, green space is formed of a mix of lime and poplar trees and they were looking beautiful with their autumnal tints. Both the Thames and the Cherwell run along either side of the meadows and it was an interesting place to walk as we had just been along this stretch on our narrowboat.
The path led us to the magnificent Christ Church College building which dates from the 1860’s. This is where Lewis Carroll taught in the mid-19th century and was where he was inspired to write both his famous novels, Alice in Wonderland and Alice through the Looking Glass. Christ Church is a unique dual institution with its Cathedral and college both making up part of the University of Oxford.
This concluded our visit to Oxford bringing to an end our narrowboating holiday. All four of us agreed that it had been one of the best family holidays ever. We’d embraced the relaxing slow life of the waterways but kept active on board steering the boat and working the locks. We’d adored every minute of our narrowboat adventure so much that we can’t wait to do it all again.
We were invited on a press trip provided by Drifters’ Waterways Holidays member Anglo Welsh and as always all views and opinions are entirely my own.
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