Ausk has no trouble finding the alley, right there around the corner of the tavern. The side alley is about 10 feet wide and the back alley is about 5 feet wide.
It is still mid-afternoon. You find the alley is pretty normal looking, dirty and deserted. The Blue Ox has a back door opening in to the wider side alley, but no entrance in the narrow rear alley.
The barrel containing rain water is non-threatening and the debris here and there is benign.
Looking upwards, the Blue Ox Inn and the nearby buildings are two stories with overhanging eaves. There are no balconies visible, but a skillful climber or second-story man could potential scale the side of the buildings.