Saturday 3rd June '17

Just spent a while (unspecified) looking for the wire that attaches my camera to the computer to download my pictures. After this aforesaid while, during which I'd tidied up the office space (where the camera lives) and also the dining area (where I write the blog) twice and looked in unlikely places like under the rear steps - well you never know - and the fruitbowl - well to be fair lots of stuff DOES end up there and even checking down by the top of the bed (no idea why) I found the wretched thing HIDING on the table next to the computer. I ask you - who'd have thought it???

Anyway we said goodbye to the north Oxford and hello to the south Oxford after another relatively early start. I'm not sure why but I think it's something to do with hoping to beat the weather.

It's been a funny sort of day. The sun has generally been out but there's been quite a still breeze so I've been taking my jacket on and off all the time. John said it was idea weather for locking so that was good.

We've climbed the Napton flight and are now on the summit, gentle meandering our way around the fields and hedgerows.

You pass an increasingly large herd of water buffalo as you are going up the locks. I was glad of my zoom lens which makes them look much closer than you'd want to be to them!

lovely view as you climb the hill.....I think I must like skies as I do seem to take a lot of photos of them!

I'm sure I mentioned a few days ago something about plants growing in locks. Here's an example of plants just above the waterline.

John tells me this is a kestrel. It was hovering in the wind for ages and so I was able to get a decent shot of it. We saw a couple of red kites, but as always they were too high and I didn't have the zoom with me at the time. Knowing my luck with trying to photograph them they'd have flown off anyway!

Two years ago when we last came past here we thought they were going to dig an opening through to the canal for this, but no, it's still landlocked and obviously lived in! It's in a field of sheep so I wondered if it's the latest thing in shepherds huts?

Whilst coming up the locks, we were followed by a lovely lady called Ruth who was on a boat with her daughter Chloe and going to collect her son en route. We got chatting as you do and it was their first set of locks on their first day out, so John gave her the benefit of his wisdom and it turns out that she lives in Runnymede, so we said we'd wave as we cruise past in a few weeks time!

We're moored on a good section of pilings just before bridge 124 and the towpath is wide and dry so Paddy will have a good long run later tonight. I'm getting off and walking with him most days, desperate to keep my fitness level up through the summer before getting back to the gym in the autumn.