The Oxford Canal Towpath

I arrived in Oxford a few days ago, and today used a sunny spell of weather to follow the Oxford Canal Towpath: I walked from where I am staying near Hythe Bridge in Jericho (in the city centre) as far as Oxford Airport, which is about 10km one way, for the first six kilometres on a concrete footpath and then on more varied, narrow and muddy tracks. 

For the start of my walk, the Canal was busy-ish with walkers, joggers, cyclists, fishers; most of the way, it's lined with prettily-decorated narrowboats, many of which had fires going and must be used as homes, some rather luxurious-looking, others seeming to be overrun with grass and reeds, so well are they embedded in the bank. 

After a couple of kilometres, I had long stretches of the Canal more or less to myself. It was very soothing. The colours of autumn were deepened by the interplay of light and shadows that comes with the quickly-changing weather that Oxford is having at the moment.

When I got to the Airport perimeter, I found a food cart, and got chatting to a regular, a motorcyclist who said he liked to stop and talk to the owner about a favourite sport, motorcross. 

'It's a hell of a week we're having,' he said to me.

I wasn't quite sure what he meant, given the state of the world at the moment. But I agreed. And then I asked if he meant the weather. 

'Yes,' he said. 'Terrible. Though it should clear up later. And then get worse again.'

He mentioned the upcoming game on the weekend, and again I was left searching a little. 'Oxford United?' I said.

'Yes. They've been getting good crowds. Though I don't like going myself.'

'No?'

'No. Last time I went to the football I was sat next a fellow dressed as a banana. Oxford were about to be relegated, one game from it.'

'I wonder why he was dressed like that,' I said.

'Don't know.'

'Not because the team was slipping out of the division,' I suggested.

He gave it some thought. 'Couldn't tell you,' he said.

We collected our food and said goodbye and I looked for a bus stop. 

I had thought I might make it as far as Blenheim Palace, which was only another couple of kilometres along the road. But the weather was turning, as the man at the food cart had said it would, so I decided to leave that treat for another time.