Oxford Cherwell Paddle

As the first trip I have organised for WKCC, I opted for the usually docile Oxford Cherwell on Sunday 7 th December 2025. The original intention was the classic there and back trip, but local advice from Oxford Clive, led to a last-minute switch to a downstream only trip from Sunnymeade to the Riverside centre with our 10 strong crew. The river was up, but overall, the flow was relatively gentle. However, the first half of trip had quite a number of tree shaped obstacles. Well done to Marie, Steve and Nigel for mastering the art of tree slalom.

Lunch was had at Parson’s Pleasure, originally an area for male nude bathing. Crazy to think Oxford Dons would be baring all on the river banks, as embarrassed ladies punted past them. After dining in the rain, Leighton got himself some hero points, with a clean shoot of the little weir

The next section was portaged due to the many river-wide tree blockages. Back on the water again, we soon passed The King’s Mill, and from there on the trees start to give way to the historic buildings, parks and offshoots. One of these offshoots is the old city walls route, which Oxford Clive knew about. Not an option at normal levels, the high water opened up a secret corridor into a hidden part of Oxford.

Thank you to all who made it a great little adventure.