Oxford Canal
Idyllic scenery needs our protection as much as our heritage structures do, says Paul.
Postcard from the
Oxford Canal In April, IWA National Chair, Paul Rodgers, spent a week boating from Braunston along the Grand Union Canal and down the Oxford Canal with his wife, Amanda. He shares his standout moments and musings from the trip
The view that will be transformed when HS2 is built.
I
n my busy life, I grab every opportunity I can to take a short break on the water. When Tim Coghlan offered me the use of Braunston Marina’s narrowboat Victoria following filming for BBC’s Countryfile in March, I jumped at the chance. In IWA’s 75th year, it was humbling to see reminders of the Association’s origins as we boated for the first time through familiar Oxfordshire towns and countryside not far from home. We passed under the Tom Rolt bridge and visited the place which marks the precursor to IWA’s story, Tooley’s Boatyard. It’s where Tom Rolt had his boat Cressy fitted out before setting off on the journey that inspired the book Narrow Boat and the founding of IWA. The owners of Tooley’s are opening up areas of the boatyard to visitors as a way of safeguarding its future, and it was fantastic to meet the team. I also met up with my local MP, Victoria Prentis, who is very supportive of the waterways. By far the highlight of the trip was boating along the stretch of waterway that epitomises my canal-building hero, James Brindley. I saw two of my wonders of the waterways in a day: the Wormleighton Wandering and the Topless Tunnel. Winding our way along the Oxford Canal we passed several historic boats. This stretch is also rich with heritage structures. We saw low bridges, lift-bridges, skew bridges and several crumbling bridges. We also boated through a diamond lock and past Aynho Weir. These are all examples of unique waterways heritage that needs our protection. Bridge 100 is one that requires some serious attention and underpins the importance of the efforts we’re making in working alongside Canal & River Trust in its grant review with Defra, which will take place over the next five years. Will Bridge 100 be standing then – who knows? But we do know that there is a backlog of maintenance projects that need funding. It’s not just the heritage structures that we need to look out for. We took in the quiet scenery that will be forever changed where the HS2 viaduct will cross the Oxford Canal on the tranquil summit section at Bridge 128 near Wormleighton. IWA has campaigned to mitigate the impact of the high-speed rail project for over a decade. We influenced major changes in areas such as Fradley Junction, but we remain particularly concerned about the noise impact here. As well as campaigning to minimise the negative impacts of HS2 on the waterways, we are also lobbying for the project to regenerate areas of the waterways through improvement works where possible. The waterways that we love are under threat from insensitive development, underfunding and lack of protection. Seeing some of these issues along a relatively short but popular section of the connected waterways, you can start to imagine the scale of the job to campaign for the regeneration of 5,000 miles of navigable waterways in Britain, and the 500 waterways that are under active restoration. Your contributions are vital in helping to make sure canals and rivers like this remain open to all and retain the heritage and character that make them so special. Thank you.
Autumn 2021 033 pauls postcard AH SS.indd 31
Bridge 100 on the Oxford Canal is just one of many heritage structures in need of urgent attention.
More ways to help
■ Enjoy the waterways to the fullest and, if you can, visit some of the quieter spots and take part in our Silver Propeller Challenge ■ Share your time, skills or expertise – there are many ways you can volunteer with us ■ Make a donation or pledge further support – much of our work is made possible thanks to additional donations and legacies Find out more at waterways.org.uk. A trip to Tooley's Boatyard in Banbury was among the highlights of the trip.
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