Bikes Jags and is there a pub up here?

So there was coffee and paracetamol for me this morning and  much later I drove back to Abingdon and into the arms of Truest Darling Angel Love, aka David.  You can see how see how I won the nickname competition in France eh?

David had asked me to get back early-ish so we could set off but that didn't happen, so after a nap (Him and me) and cheese on toast and I think then early night.  

The next morning David had this mad idea that I would meet him at Waitrose here at 7am  Hahahahahaha....  
He had been out cycling and moving the car, I overslept and received a phone call saying don't worry I can do it.  Twenty minutes later it was you'll have to come after all I've run out of money!

So I scampered off and after the big put away we did set off and the lock had just opened.

This was last nights mooring, in my absence David had escaped the goose poo all over the lawns on the right of the picture and with the help of Sarah and Chris on 
NB Dulcieblue,   (and thank you both very much for having him to supper when I was out clubbing)  he had nipped over to the left side of the photo.  By this morning many boats had already wandered off.

Abingdon's skyline.

We made our way northwards and got to like this stretch a bit more.  Previously I have thought it a bit featureless and dull, but not today grey skies notwithstanding.

On the way down almost a month ago, on a sharp bend a little south of Oxford, we met a wide beam on our side of the river, bombing along and had it not of been for David's sharp intervention with the cissy button (Bow thruster) we may well have collided, the woman helming just called out to David "Sorry" and didn't reduce her speed at all, now today on the exact same corner look who came bombing around!

We didn't see this behind the trees approaching, bit of a surprise he chose a corner to overtake on but that's trip boats for you.

This guy was doing the Hawaii-Five-O stuff balancing gamely on what appeared to be a pencil.

I was hoping for him to fall in but actually he was quite good.

Now I haven't seen this before, is it the way forward I ask?

So we came down the left side in the photo here, but its a blind corner going upstream,  David went to the right.

You can choose your archway...

This lovely place is in need of a face lift.

The walkway has been completed but I have decided far too close for me to open water.

We were undecided about moorings for tonight, it was lunchtime and we didn't really think these moorings at Osney Bridge would be available but they were and we hopped on.  The wee sailing boat was there already and as we moored up the owner popped his head over the top of that wee green almost a door, he was very chatty, said he would like to go on the canals but he was a bit too wide and needed fenders too.  I don't think he had sailed it from Canada but he was headed for London.  The cover over the wee green door had his solar panels on, a most comfortable coffin type arrangement I felt.

David asked me if I was up for a bike ride, actually I thought it might do me good so off we went.  But before we could get on this quiet country lane.....  we had to get around these roadworks on a dual carriageway intersection and roadworks, I almost went home.

This was a bit of a treat to come across... if you are unsure, its an MK IX Jaguar 1961, 57 years old but a nice polish job.  He drove past us as we slogged up the hill and it sounded like a road drill.

So this is what we came to see..... impressive eh?  I only pushed the bike a wee bit too up here to Boars Hill.

Amazing view!!!!

For those of you that can't quite see;  

I did my very best to get it all in but you can read all about it here  HERE  

So a bunch of poets washed up here, one of them Thomas Arnold who wrote the line "And that sweet city with her dreaming spires" in his poem Thyrsis in 1865.

Further on we finally found Jarn Mound, I was excited as it was this stonking great hill, built by hand, to have the wonderful view of Oxford preserved...we climbed up the very steep and deep steps to get to the top and this was it;

The tress won in the end, although the whole site is owned by The Oxford Preservation Society, I think their hearts are not in it any more.

  

 The good thing about getting to the very top of Boars Hill, is that the whole way home is downhill, a nice circular route brought us passed a new Waitrose 500 metres from the boat, Oh how we laughed!!