Heading out for our fifth leg of the Thames Path this morning, neither Helen nor I were really feeling it, suffering from an unexplainable malaise. However, we pushed on and were really glad that we did. The weather was supposed to be sunny but feel like only four degrees due to a cold wind, but the wind never really appeared, so it was another perfect day for a walk.
Whitchurch
We passed through some very pretty villages on the walk today, starting with Whitchurch, a place I described on our last visit there as somewhere “you know is posh when the only shop it has is an art gallery!” It’s stuffed full of Tories and I know that as they seemed to like to advertise the fact at every turn. I was quite taken by the irony of a place called The Little House as it was anything but little but everything’s relative I guess!
Out of Whitchurch, the path hugs the river but at an elevation, and you spend quite some time being in earshot of the water, hearing boaters go by and catching glimpses of the water before finally meeting up with the river three miles in.
Another diversion
Something that has been a constant on our Thames Path walks is the need to veer off the actual path to take a diversion for one reason or another. Actually, the main reason the diversions are in place seems to be the failure of some key infrastructure which those responsible for maintaining it have failed to do so. I don’t say this as a dig at the relevant councils and agencies as I know that they are pressed for cash but some of these diversions have been in place years…
I mention this diversion, on the outskirts of Goring, as it gives me an opportunity to shout out the OS Maps app, which has been a godsend on this walk. The clear and familiar maps, along with GPS from my phone, allow me to pinpoint exactly where we are, and unlike, say, Google Maps, it clearly shows the Thames Path, making the walk stress-free. It come’s highly recommened.
At Goring we switched to the other bank and continued our house spotting. There were some interesting looking houses (see pictures below for one particularly interesting example) and I was particularly fascinated in the structures at bottoms of gardens – too small to be lived in but surely too big to be a summer house?
Lunch stop was at the Beetle and Wedge, Moulsford but sadly not inside.
Lightweight
This comment poped up on the Thames Path Facebook group recently:
Some of the comments in response really made me feel a bit of a lightweight given the modest mileages we do each leg but I think we are comfortable with our progress to date. We have also decided that we can manage about one mile less than the total distance each time!😂
To Date
Day: 13
Start: Pangbourne
End: Cholsey
Distance: 10.28 miles
Cumulative: 122.9 miles
To go: 80 miles