May I introduce my new bicycle…

It was a birthday present from Garrett and myself, and after several weeks I’m falling deeply in love with it. It is a 2010 Dawes Kalahari hybrid bicycle, which means that it should perform equally well on roads, tow paths, and the occasional foot path. I’ve been riding almost every day, in all sorts of situations, and so far I’m completely satisfied with it.

I’m overwhelmed with the sense of liberty that it brings. I suppose that after two years of hoofing it around Oxford on foot, the change in speed and range should seem remarkable, it does. I find great delight in planning routes, exploring towns and villages I’ve never seen before, just wandering. I love knowing that what I’m doing not only brings me joy, but is healthy and good for me as well, and it’s great to feel my stamina and strength growing each week as I push the boundaries further.

This weekend I went for a ride along the towpath and canal on Friday afternoon after work, a long ride (for me!) to the historic town of Woodstock on Saturday, and then another long ride today with my friend Ravi to a charming country town called Wheatley. According to Cyclemeter, the iPhone app which I use to record my routes, I burned off nearly 3000 calories this weekend. Ya Hoo.

I took my pocket camera with me on Saturday, here are some snapshots from my ride.

I left Osney Island and started up the towpath along the Thames. Right now there are bunches of purple loosestrife in bloom along the edge of the river, which is stunning as the river looks bordered with large, vibrant streaks of colour. I passed a swan and baby cygnet.

I took the shortcut that joins the Thames to the Oxford Canal, and started heading North.

There were narrowboats all along the way. I love them. They remind me of gypsy wagons. The boats are usually painted in a very particular style called “roses and castles”, which are the two most traditional themes. It’s common to see not only the boat, but also the accessories hand-painted in this style: buckets, water cans, planters and such. My mom used to paint objects like this, so whenever I see it, I think of her. She could have made a fine living selling her wares here, they were beautiful.

I joined a path that led into Woodstock, the historic town about 8 miles north of Oxford that used to be the Royal hunting lodge in the middle ages. The Bear is an inn that dates from the 13th century.

I had a hard time finding a place to park my bike. Shockingly, Woodstock is not a very bike-friendly town, especially considering that it is on a National Bike Network route and is a favourite tourist attraction in Oxfordshire. Eventually I locked the bike to an 18th century drainpipe in front of a building thinking no one might care if the bike were stolen but everyone would have noticed someone breaking a piece of historic hardware!

The beautiful old church of St Mary Magdalene was originally built in the 12th century, although most of it is now much later.

One of the doors still has the Norman period doorway.

After exploring the town I headed home. On the way I passed the tiny village of Begbroke, and took a picture of their parish church.

I passed a charming cottage.

I caught the canal heading back south.

I cut over to the Thames at Wolvercote, and passed the ruins of Godstow Nunnary. Godstow has a notorious medieval history of the nuns (many of whom were sent there as unmarried daughters and widowed wives) getting up to all sorts of naughtiness with not only the scholars of Oxford, but the monks of the nearby monasteries. After the Suppression of the Monasteries by Henry VIII, it was sold into private hands and began its long story of decay. Now only the outer shell remains, this the corner building probably where the abbess lived.

I cycled past Port Meadow along the towpath before returning home. Port Meadow is one of the great treasures of Oxford, given to the Freemen of Oxford by Alfred the Great in the 10th century to graze their animals and has never been ploughed. To this day, cattle and horses freely wander the 300 acres, all less than a mile from the centre of town.

The iPhone app kept track of my route, and then exported it to googlemaps. How cool is that. Click here if you’d like to see the route.

Thanks for the birthday present Gaz.