Hello walkers,
As we enter the final week of August and the kids prepare to go back to school, it really feels that the summer is coming to an end…when it never really got going in the first place.
September brings a short opportunity to really make the most of the Thames Path before autumn sets in – good weather combined with fewer visitors make for a perfect month. In fact, September is probably the best month for walking the Thames Path. Come on. It’s not too late!
The Ashmolean Museum in Oxford has been open for 2 weeks now and is featuring an exhibition on Young Rembrandt.
The Museum of Walking is looking to recruit 500 volunteer voices for a project that involves reading aloud poetry and prose that is inspired by the Thames during Sound Walk September. The Museum promotes walking, and art and creativity, bringing the two together.
We reported last week on the closure of Hammersmith Bridge to foot passengers. Regretfully the situation is unchanged. Diversions are in place for the Thames Path. Boats cannot pass under the bridge. Though just a minor inconvenience to walkers, spare a thought for the locals who need this bridge!
We had our first flood alert this week for many months. This was caused by high tides and happened between Teddington and Putney. Perhaps that was what prompted the Environment Agency to test temporary defence barriers at South Hinksey, just past Oxford. We’re approaching the season when we need to stay tuned to flood alerts. Latest alerts are posted on our website here.
Not your usual animal to see by the Thames, but a Boa Constrictor was found near Barnes Bridge. Presumably escaped or abandoned by a pet owner, it is now in the safe hands of the RSPCA.
A row has erupted around badgers. Apparently there are plans to commence the culling of badgers in Oxfordshire in September. This is to prevent the spread of tuberculosis in cattle. According to BBO Wildlife Trust, there has been a successful vaccination program since 2014. For more information, visit the BBOWT website.
Not much to add this week other than we continue to fill out the topological map with detail and photos. We added Whittington’s Tea Barge as a coffee stop in Reading. This is found just across the water at Reading Bridge. We have also added the picture below as a point of interest on the map. Any idea what and where it is? Clue: It’s found at mile 100 on the map.
Last week we featured Marsh Lock just upstream from Henley. This week we have decided to continue our exploration of this area, momentarily skipping Henley, and looking at the stretch of the Path leading downstream from the town to Hambledon.
The river flows due north out of Henley, leaving town by the Leander Club where the stands are erected across the finishing line of the Royal Regatta which takes place in the first week of July. A week later the stands turn into a stage for the Henley Festival. The path is firm, being tarmacked for a good mile out of Henley.
Past the village of Remenham on your right lies beautiful Temple Island. This can be seen from a distance and marks the start of the Regatta. The island is actually owned by the Regatta, purchased on a 999 year lease. Further on. across the water, is Greenlands, the former home of W H Smith, now Henley Business School, part of Reading University.
It’s just 1.9 miles from Henley to Hambledon. The Chiltern hills make a nice backdrop on the far side of the river. Hambledon itself is a small village on the far side of the river which the Thames Path avoids. Its mill dates back to the Domesday Book and used to supply flour to the Huntley and Palmer biscuit factory in Reading by boat. It is now a development of flats. The village can be reached by crossing through the lock gates and then across a long metal bridge.
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