The South Oxford Summit Pound

 Monday 4th May 2026 at Napton.

As we are doing so well for time, we made a late start after a leisurely breakfast. We have arranged to moor up MM in Braunston on Wednesday until next Monday so that we can go home as M is babysitting over the weekend. The plan when we get back next Monday is to take MM straight up to Crick as we understand that we can moor her there for the week before the show.

As we set off we passed underneath the montrous carbunkle of a white elephant that has scarred the countryside for miles around. Too expensive, too ugly, way behind schedule and totally unnecessary - it was the north of Englnad which needed an improved rail network, not down here. As it is, this hideous structure has done irreparable damage to this, the most peaceful and beautiful of our waterways, not to mention all the surrounding landscape. 

What a ghastly sight... 

At one point this massive embankment nearly falls into the canal and dominates the landscape for miles around. Makes you want to weep.

As you leave the horrid disaster behind, the relief is that some unspoilt countryside exists (so long as you don't look behind you)..

There were even newborn lambs gambolling in the fields in an attempt to cheer us up.

Soon we came to the end of the lock free summit pound and prepared to go down the Napton Flight.

After taking on water (which took ages; it was very slow!,) we ended up at the end of a convoy of four boats, so every lock was against us. However, M went ahead at each lock to set it so that we still made good time, arriving at the bottom lock at 3:00pm. As is usual with a flight of locks, you make short term friends with the other boaters going down (or up) with you and share life histories/boating histories with them! This time, we have made friends with a lovely couple who had hired a boat for the first time and it turned out they live in Redhill!  M gave them our contact details and we hope they follow up our suggestion that we all meet up later in the year.

 

Just round the corner, we moored up as M wanted to walk into the village to post a  birthday card. On the way we met lovely Belinda, who was scraping the roof of her narrowboat (huge job!). She told us that the village shop does excellent homemade bread, pies and breakfasts, so we decided to stay the night here and go to the village shop tomorrow for breakfast.

Today: 7 miles,9 locks and 3.6 hours.

Trip: 48 miles,38 locks and 24.4 hours.