Bank Holiday

We took my mother and sister on a cruise today. Just a little trip to the Red Lion in Cropredy for lunch. It is just ten minutes away in the car but it is so much better to spend a couple of hours getting there by boat.

Getting my 88 year old Mum on the boat has been a challenge. The last time we did it, the engine wouldn't start. This time all went well. The new back steps were negotiated and Mum got into the saloon and was quite happy looking out of the the front windows. Unfortunately we do not have huge picture windows like some of the hire boats around and Mum is not very tall so the view was, at times limited but I think she enjoyed the peace and calm of the South Oxford as it meandered north from the town. There was quite a lot of traffic and much of it was boats returning to Sovereign Wharf in Banbury! The world and his wife had been out for the weekend including nb William the Conqueror.

After a very nice Bank Holiday lunch (special menu for the day!) My sister drove Mum home and we turned the boat and cruised back to home mooring. The sun shone. A nice day out.

On the way home we met up with a collie dog at Bourton Lock. He had been left behind by a boat ahead of us. How do people do it? We did notice one of the crew running back up the tow-path when we neared Banbury. We told him where we had seen the dog. He had at least a three mile run back to catch up with the boat again! I felt sorry for the dog who would need to run the same distance too!