Date - 22 /05/08 Day - Thursday Start - Aynho Wharf 0940 End - Cropredy 1800
Last night we ate in The Great Western Hotel at Aynho and were made very welcome with some nice food and beer. First thing this morning we crossed the cut and filled with diesel at 79p/lt, it wasn't long after this we met Dusty selling Bio diesel from his boat. I don't know what his price was as it wasn't on display but I was not aware that you could buy Biodiesel in a tax rebated form, I may be wrong. Again ther was quite a bit of traffic about. BW have disposed of all the old boats that were in their yard at Nell,s Bridge and replaced them with mobile offices/units and at Kings Sutton lock they had just arrived with a work boat to install the new bollards by the lockside, all three of them. Now these are not "strapping posts" as they are on the off side, so you cant step off the boat as it enters the lock with your centre rope, walk up the lock side and strap your boat to a standstill, because the bollards are on the other side. We continued on to Banbury where we stopped for lunch and Diana did a bit of shopping while I restowed the anchor after our Thames trip. About 3.30 we were on the move again but this time we had a boat ahead of us. Someone has seen fit to try and set fire the the lock cottage at Bourton lock, the attached outhouse has had the roof destroyed and there is fire damage inside the main house. All the doors and windows of the house have been boarded up but there is a door between the burnt out outhouse and the main house that is open so its a bit pointless, I don't know it the property is still owned by BW. We moored for the night some way above Cropredy lock as all the visitor moorings above the lock were full and the next section is still marked "long term permit holders only" even though they have not been let for about 3 years. Maybe I will complain to BW yet again and see what they say this year. -- Brian <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Join SOW and help save our waterways http://www.saveourwaterways.org
