Thames Path News Round-Up

Route News

The first fritillaries have been spotted although not at Cricklade. They were spotted at a nature reserve in Maidenhead, although not on the Thames Path. Those at North Meadow Cricklade are possibly sitting under water.

Many migratory birds have now arrived: sand martins, swallows, warblers and winchats. The first arctic tern was spotted at Farmoor, Oxfordshire close to the Thames Path.

A small section of the left (north) bank of the Thames in the City of London has opened up. This is at Globe View where previously you had to divert to the busy Upper Thames Street. The City of London Corporation’s Mayor said “This finally completes the Thames Path in the City of London, allowing people to walk along an uninterrupted route from Temple Gardens to Tower Bridge, and giving the City an unbroken section of that magnificent 185-mile trail along the River Thames to London from its source in Gloucestershire.”

Other diversions currently in place:

The river bank has collapsed on a short stretch between Swinford Bridge and Eynsham Lock. The Path is closed whilst repairs are undertaken. This is likely to last about 3 weeks.A diversion is in place. Walk 100 yards along the road and away from the bridge. There is a path to your left which will take you back to the river and beyond the collapsed bank.

The weir at Benson Lock has been temporarily closed due to strong currents and debris creating a risk of damage. You will need to follow side roads through Crowmarsh Gifford. The route is well marked. The closure is likely to be in place until well into the spring.

The footbridge at Little Wittenham is under repair and therefore closed until early April. This means that there is no access to Wittenham Clumps or Shillingford detours from the Thames Path.

Diversions remain in place around the closed boardwalk upstream from Marsh Lock, Henley. If walking downstream, there seems to be a sign missing: if you get to the fenced off boardwalk leading to Marsh Lock then you’ve missed the turn. There is a path leading to your left about 20 yards before the boardwalk. 

Webinars 

Our webinar season has now finished. We look forward to putting these back on next winter. Thank you to those who participated. I hope you had a good time. We certainly did.

Our last webinar was of The Ridgeway which we are supporting this year. You might be interested in seeing the following video on Youtube by Hedley Thorne whom we mentioned.

Events

If you’ve watched the first episode of Great Expectations on BBC1 you’ll have seen that the opening scene, supposedly set in London, is actually of Marlow Bridge. Available on catch-up.

Abingdon Museum has a new exhibition on quilts. The museum can be found in the County Hall where, for a small fee, you can climb on the rooftop for some glorious Oxfordshire views.

Repeated:

The Ashmolean Museum in Oxford has an exhobition entitled Labyrinth, Knossos, Myth & Reality, the exhibition explores the myth (or reality?) of the labyrinth that contained the minotaur at Knossos on the island of Crete. The exhibition runs until 30 July.

Dorchester Abbey is hosting Mozart’s Requiem performed by the Orchestra of St John’s on April 7. Full details can be found here. 

Reading is hosting a walking festival between May 10 and 14. The festival will include local walks as well as a guided walk along the Thames Path as far as Goring. More details here.

The Tate is hosting an exhibition of work by the Rossetti family: Dante, Gabriel and Elisabeth. Readers may be aware that Dante Rossetti shared Kelmscott Manor with William Morris.

The Royal Mews has opened. This can be found next to Buckingham Palace and houses the collection of Royal carriages including the Gold State Coach which will be used in the upcoming Coronation. It can be reached in less than a mile by turning left at Westminster Bridge, past Big Ben, and through St James’ Park.