Thames Path News Round-Up

Hello and greetings from a very damp Thames Valley. We are back from our short break in Africa. More of that to follow. The weather is predictably wet and the days are quite short. Occasionally we are blessed with bright sunshine and it’s on days like these that one must seize the moment and get out. It’s a day such as that when we took our first steps on the Camino Ingles. That is also to follow.

The days are also much shorter and we’re only a month from the winter equinox. With the light starting to fade at 3pm, there’s not much scope for a long walk – unless you’re into night-walking!

Whilst we were away we did receive a few messages from walkers asking about the state of the Path. As we were in a remote part of Tanzania with limited internet (the nearest internet cafe was 3 miles way and suffered power outages) even when we could respond we really didn’t know. So sorry for those we didn’t get back to. 

Since we’ve been back we haven’t ventured too far. However, the river is quite high at the moment and the ground is saturated. So we would surmise that the section from source to Oxford is heavily under water. From Oxford down to London it’s likely to be muddy. Whilst London will be entirely passable – a good time to tick off those sections.

Route News

Here’s a quick rundown of the diversions that are currently in place:

The diversion at Benson is set to be in place for a long time, at least for the duration of this year and probably well into 2024. This diversion is in place because the bridge over the weir is deemed to be unsafe. A boat service ferries walkers across the river to Benson Lock thus avoiding the diversion. The ferry is now only running Monday to Friday and from 9:00am to 3:00pm. However, service has been hampered by strong currents forcing them to stop operating at short notice.

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. 

A diversion was put in place in June at Temple Lock, just past Hurley. Once again, the bridge has been deemed to be unsafe. So, instead of crossing the river onto the left bank and walking into Marlow, you must follow paths, lanes and then a road on the right bank through Bisham and into Marlow.  It’s possible to cross the river at Hambledon Lock and follow paths on the left bank through Medmenham and all the way to Marlow. It’s a little convoluted but avoids walking on the road through Bisham.

Further details of all these diversions can be seen on our website. We try to keep this page current so, in the absence of a newsletter, please refer to this.

2024 Pricing

We will be updating our prices for the 2024 season on December 1. This will impact both packages and bag transfers. However, any enquiries received before then will be processed at 2023 prices. Eve at the new prices we will still be lower than all our competitors despite offering, what we believe, is a superior service.

We are currently calibrating our hotel accommodation to see what bands they should go in, depending on actual prices achieved in 2023. There will be some changes with some going up a notch and some going down. These will all be completed by the time the new prices come into effect.

As part of that calibration we have taken a look at some of the hotels that we will not be including on our planner. These are:

River Arts Club, Maidenhead – the building has recently been sold and we don’t know what the new owners’ intentions are

Toby Carvery, Old Windsor – well, we’ve had a few issues over the years with bag transfers: sometimes happy to take and sometimes rather reluctant. Sadly this year we were given a clear message that we weren’t welcome and so we’ve taken them off our planner. This also means that we won’t be able to do bag transfers either.

Pilot Inn, North Greenwich – there’s nothing wrong with this hotel. They’re the last decent place to stay before the end of the Path. But, because they’re the only hotel within walking distance of the O2 arena, their scheduled prices put them beyond the realms of most walkers. And the Admiral Hardy at nearby Greenwich is a better location and offers greater value for money.

What’s On

There’s still plenty of cultural events happening over the early winter period and we’ve pulled out what’s on at our favourite venues on the Thames Path

The Ashmolean Museum in Oxford is hosting a new exhibition entitled Colour Revolution: Victorian Art, Fashion and Design. The exhibition includes fashion pieces – from Queen Victoria’s monotone mourning dress to the most daringly vivid clothing and accessories – and works by artists including Millais, Ruskin, Rossetti, Turner and Whistler. The exhibition is on until mid-February.

Dorchester Abbey will be hosting Handel’s Messiah on December 16 featuring the Orchestra of St John’s.

The Mill at Sonning is showing Cole Porter’s High Society. Based on The Philadelphia Story the production starts on November 29 and lasts until January 20. Cole Porter, of course, wrote one of our anthems “Don’t Fence Me In” although that doesn’t appear in this show. “Who wants to be a millionaire” does!

It’s already Christmas at Kew Gardens where twinkling lights and seasonal sounds fill the air. Opening times are specially extended to enable you to enjoy this festive spectacular. It runs until January 7.

From December 21 to 30, a Christmas Carol will be staged at Middle Temple Hall in London. This is one of the four Inns of Court in London, home to barristers and judges alike. Charles Dickens was a member and so it’s appropriate that it be staged here. The hall is just off the left bank of the Thames mid-way between Westminster and the Tower, between Waterloo and Blackfriar’s bridges. Don’t forget to pay a visit to the nearby Temple Church.
 

Local History

We were lucky to hear a talk by local historian Peter Halman at our local history society about the Thames between Oxford and Windsor. Whilst we are somewhat familiar with the Thames, there were still a few things we learned:

1. The ironage earthworks at Dorchester were dug to create a defensive island. The dyke let in water between the Thames and the Thame cutting off the land adjacent to the river from marauding tribes
2. The Mill at Mapledurham is the last remaining flour mill on the Thames
3. Flashlocks, which preceded the poundlocks that we know today, worked downstream by letting boats through a section of the weir. To go upstream, however, the boats had to be pulled by a rope through the same gap with a capstan (winch). Little did we know that there is a surviving capstan at Hurley.
4 The talk made great use of aerial photographs. This is something we might want to utilise in our next series of winter webinars – which have still to be announced. Watch this space!
5. Most pognant of all, when compared with the Nile, the Mississippi or the St Lawrence, the Thames was described as “liquid history”

We mentioned that we’d been away in Tanzania; so a little more of that. We stayed in a remote village in the Rufiji District. Once a quarantine centre for people with leprosy, since the 1960’s it has has been a place of refuge and support for those affected by leprosy thanks to a retired English priest who made his home there. Richard is a trustee of a UK charity that provides all of the funds to support to the village: a kindergarten for all, educational funding for children of families affected by leprosy; and food, accommodation and medicines for patients.

So we spent a week in the village living (almost) like locals: no running water, intermittent electricity, no internet, food (beans and rice) cooked on charcoal, and a primitive toilet (where a poisonous snake decided to take up residence one evening).  The absence of internet was quite rewarding: a digital detoxification at the end of a busy season that we might well try to repeat in future years.
 

That’s all folks. Mind how you go!