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Date: Thursday 13th June 2024
Canal: Oxford
Direction: South
Locks: 0
Swing bridges: 0
An isolated mooring in Priors Hardwick
The cruise:
We left our mooring in Priors Hardwick this morning and headed south to Fenny Compton.
We would have been happy to stay in this beautifully isolated setting for a bit longer, but we have plans for next week and this move will allow us to make them happen.
To be honest we probably didn’t pick the best day to cruise, it looked lovely and sunny when we left but actually the wind was very strong and surprisingly cold for June. Our summer jackets had to be pulled out, but it was still rather chilly, and the wind made it difficult to control the boat at times.
There were a surprisingly large number of boaters out today, but I’m pleased to say that we only had one near mis and narrowly managed to avert a glancing blow.
Despite the challenging weather conditions it was very a pleasant cruise, especially when the sun did decide to come out. The yellow water irises, white cow parsley and pale pink dog roses were joyful.
The Oxford Canal is always narrow and winding, being a contour canal. Although this can be challenging at times, it does makes for an immersive experience as we travel under the ramshackled brick bridges, past the open farmland, between the overgrown vegetation and try to avoid getting grounded on the silted-up canal sides (this part of the canal is badly in need of dredging).
As always John travelled slowly through the HS2 building work, so that he could get a good view of the progress and inspect their working practices.
We passed a Second World War pillbox. The plan was for it to be used to defend the vital canal networks in the event of a Nazi invasion. Happily, it was never used for its intended purpose, but it is still an intriguing landmark and a reminder of the canal’s historic past.
After a two hour cruise we arrived in Fenny Compton and took advantage of the water point before looking for a mooring.
Cruising on a cold and windy June day
Today’s mooring:
Outside the Wharf Inn there is a row of 2 day moorings followed by a few 14 day moorings. We were lucky to get the last mooring and so tied up on the Armco using our chains.
John trimmed the long grass back from the side of the boat, because doing this helps to keep the ants away and also allows us to see any dog mess (unfortunately a common site on the tow paths).
This is a pretty and popular mooring with a variety of wild flora and plenty of birds. However, what makes it special are the pot-bellied pigs in the field on the offside of the canal. It’s wonderful to watch them running across the field at mealtimes and wallowing in the water on warm days.
From our mooring the pub is a two minute walk along the towpath. The Wharf Inn is a surprisingly quiet pub, considering the popularity of these moorings. The menu contains pretty standard pub grub, but the food is good quality and very tasty. We have eaten here a few times now and it is always a pleasant experience. In fact, we have family members traveling here from all over the country this weekend and the pub was very helpful when we were trying to arrange this get together.
We have been living on narrowboat Round Tuit for five months now and, although she has had a name from the very beginning, she has never had a naming ceremony. So, this seemed like a good excuse to bring our family together and to show them how we are living our off grid lifestyle. The champagne is in the fridge and our boat will be ceremonially named this weekend.
Apart from the convenience of getting to the Wharf Inn this mooring is a good spot for getting our food shopping delivered. The LeeSan shop is also within easy walking distance, so John will be visiting to top up our supply of cleaning products.
Fenny Compton church
Fenny Compton:
The Oxford Canal runs about one mile to the east of Fenny Compton.
This small rural village, in Warwickshire, has many pretty stone buildings.
The church is 14th century and grade II listed.
The name Fenny Compton means ‘settlement in a marshy valley’.
Pioneers of the computer industry Andrew and Kathleen Booth were residents. But today the village is probably best known for the role the village hall played in the Post Office scandal (as the location for the first meeting of ex sub-postmasters and mistresses in 2009).
A well-known boating landmark is Fenny Compton Tunnel. Opened in 1776 it was just under one mile long and wide enough to allow two-way traffic. However, the tunnel became a bottleneck for the high volume of traffic needing to pass through so in 1865 the decision was made to remove it. By 1870 it had been converted to a cutting and bridges were added to allow access from one side to the other. But Fenny Compton Tunnel is still shown on maps and the site remains highly visible as you navigate through. As far as facilities for boaters are concerned Fenny Compton has a pub and a village shop.
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We are John, Lorraine, and Boasley the Boat Dog.
Follow our adventures as we learn to live the life of contiuous cruisers on the British waterways.
