Walk with Ray from Kidlington, 5.5 miles

Wednesday 2 December 2020

On the day we were released from the November lockdown into the dizzying freedom of Tier 2, Ray and I both took a midweek day off to meet up for a walk. We agreed to meet at Kidlington as Ray had identified this on the map as a rough halfway point between Wolverton and Kintbury (about an hour's drive for each of us). We met up at the Watts Way car park, which is nicely placed in the centre of the town and has a handy public toilet, an important consideration for our middle-aged bladders.

We set off from the car park along Lyne Road and across the railway to join the Oxford Canal, which runs roughly north-south to the west of Kidlington. We turned northwards to follow the towpath initially through nondescript industrial areas but later reaching the village of Thrupp.

Oxford Canal heading north from Kidlington

Canal Road at Thrupp

At Thrupp, the canal turns left in a 90° turn to roughly follow the path of the River Cherwell.

Ray on the lift bridge over the canal at Thrupp

Boats at Thrupp

We carried on walking north as far as the village of Shipton-on-Cherwell. At the bridge at Shipton, we turned away from the canal to follow a path across a somewhat flooded field to a footbridge over the Cherwell.

Looking back towards Shipton and Holy Cross Church

Footbridge over the Cherwell

Further on, we passed under the railway and followed the footpath leading to Hampton Gay. This had a couple of points of interest: a church that seems to be marooned in the middle of a field, and the ruins of a sixteenth-century manor house. From internet research, there was formerly a more substantial village at Hampton Gay than there is now; this has a bit about the former village.

St Giles, Hampton Gay

The ruined manor house at Hampton Gay

We followed paths and bits of road south-east to Hampton Poyle and then back into Kidlington, where we had a snack lunch in the back of Ray's VW camper van - not strictly within Tier 2 rules, but it was too cold to eat outside.

Ray crossing one of many fields

This was a grey day but a very interesting walk. Part of it followed the Oxford Green Belt Way, apparently set up by the CPRE to highlight the importance of the green belt around Oxford.

Our route in red below, showing start and end points in Kidlington at the bottom.