The Thames Path
The Thames near Wallingford
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Wallingford Market Place and Town Hall
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Cholsey to Shillingford
Wallingford Riverside
Sunday 3 July 2016
What can I say about Cholsey? I thought that after last week’s uninspiring walk from the Thames to the train station, I would return to the river via the village centre to maybe get a better impression of the place. I wanted to find St Mary’s Church and the graveyard where Dame Agatha Christie is buried. Unfortunately, I couldn’t find the church. I walked down Church Road as far as the locked church offices but as no one was around to ask for directions I decided to give up and return to the Thames Path as quickly as possible. I did find some life in the village: it centred around Tesco Express!
At last, an hour after getting off the train, I was back by the Thames. The weather was perfect; warm but not hot, a mixture of sunshine and clouds. The path first passed through a nature reserve with marshy grass meadows on one side and the shrub-fringed Thames on the other. I enjoyed walking along, listening to the birdsong and watching the action on the river. Rowers were out training and many people enjoyed a cruise on the river. Summer seems to have returned. Soon my attention was turned to a beautiful wildflower meadow. As well as oxeye daisies, field scabious and clover, I spotted Purple Orchids. The meadow was alive with butterflies, bees and bumblebees. Wonderful!
After passing Oxford Brookes Rowing Club and then the huge Oxford University boathouse, I arrived in Wallingford. It is well worth spending time in this historic town, either exploring its ancient history by visiting the town’s museum and castle ruins, or browsing the wide range of shops. Detective fiction fans will be interested in the links this town has to Agatha Christie (a former resident) and Midsumer Murders (location for filming). I opted for coffee and cake in Market Place!
Re-energised I headed down High Street to the riverside and followed the lovely path to Benson. This was a particularly enjoyable section with large mature trees (willows?) along the river and another nature reserve and wide open views on the other side. Good to see so many people walking here. It wasn’t long before I arrived at Benson Lock and Weir. Crossing the river here was wonderful and exhilarating.
I now had to make a decision of whether to continue walking or catch a bus and return home. As it was only just gone three and I’d missed the three o’clock bus, I decided to carry on walking. I wasn’t sure what transport option I would have further on but I thought that I might just manage to walk all the way to Abingdon if necessary. So I passed the busy Waterfront Café, the marina and mobile home park and left Benson at a brisk pace. It wasn’t too long before I approached Shillingford Bridge. There is large hotel on the other side of the river but my path didn’t cross the bridge. It veered away from the river for a short stretch and I lost my way a bit here. As I walked along, glued to my guidebook (sometimes it is not easy to follow directions when you’re walking in the opposite direction of that described) I strayed into a private drive not noticing the sign and direction arrow painted on the road. So I backtracked, found the right path but then missed another turn. I followed a narrow hedged footpath rather than turn into Shillingford’s charming (according to the guidebook) Wharf Road. But never mind, it’s all part of the adventure. On reaching the A4074 Oxford to Reading road, which the path now follows for a short stretch, I spotted a bus stop. I was very pleased to find that a bus en route to Reading was due to arrive in five minutes, so it seemed sensible to stop the walk here.
Although I didn’t cover too many miles today, quality is surely better than quantity. From the time I rejoined the river at Cholsey this walk was thoroughly enjoyable.
My highlights:
Wildlife:
Useful information
Transport:
Refreshments:
Public Convenience:
What can I say about Cholsey? I thought that after last week’s uninspiring walk from the Thames to the train station, I would return to the river via the village centre to maybe get a better impression of the place. I wanted to find St Mary’s Church and the graveyard where Dame Agatha Christie is buried. Unfortunately, I couldn’t find the church. I walked down Church Road as far as the locked church offices but as no one was around to ask for directions I decided to give up and return to the Thames Path as quickly as possible. I did find some life in the village: it centred around Tesco Express!
At last, an hour after getting off the train, I was back by the Thames. The weather was perfect; warm but not hot, a mixture of sunshine and clouds. The path first passed through a nature reserve with marshy grass meadows on one side and the shrub-fringed Thames on the other. I enjoyed walking along, listening to the birdsong and watching the action on the river. Rowers were out training and many people enjoyed a cruise on the river. Summer seems to have returned. Soon my attention was turned to a beautiful wildflower meadow. As well as oxeye daisies, field scabious and clover, I spotted Purple Orchids. The meadow was alive with butterflies, bees and bumblebees. Wonderful!
After passing Oxford Brookes Rowing Club and then the huge Oxford University boathouse, I arrived in Wallingford. It is well worth spending time in this historic town, either exploring its ancient history by visiting the town’s museum and castle ruins, or browsing the wide range of shops. Detective fiction fans will be interested in the links this town has to Agatha Christie (a former resident) and Midsumer Murders (location for filming). I opted for coffee and cake in Market Place!
Re-energised I headed down High Street to the riverside and followed the lovely path to Benson. This was a particularly enjoyable section with large mature trees (willows?) along the river and another nature reserve and wide open views on the other side. Good to see so many people walking here. It wasn’t long before I arrived at Benson Lock and Weir. Crossing the river here was wonderful and exhilarating.
I now had to make a decision of whether to continue walking or catch a bus and return home. As it was only just gone three and I’d missed the three o’clock bus, I decided to carry on walking. I wasn’t sure what transport option I would have further on but I thought that I might just manage to walk all the way to Abingdon if necessary. So I passed the busy Waterfront Café, the marina and mobile home park and left Benson at a brisk pace. It wasn’t too long before I approached Shillingford Bridge. There is large hotel on the other side of the river but my path didn’t cross the bridge. It veered away from the river for a short stretch and I lost my way a bit here. As I walked along, glued to my guidebook (sometimes it is not easy to follow directions when you’re walking in the opposite direction of that described) I strayed into a private drive not noticing the sign and direction arrow painted on the road. So I backtracked, found the right path but then missed another turn. I followed a narrow hedged footpath rather than turn into Shillingford’s charming (according to the guidebook) Wharf Road. But never mind, it’s all part of the adventure. On reaching the A4074 Oxford to Reading road, which the path now follows for a short stretch, I spotted a bus stop. I was very pleased to find that a bus en route to Reading was due to arrive in five minutes, so it seemed sensible to stop the walk here.
Although I didn’t cover too many miles today, quality is surely better than quantity. From the time I rejoined the river at Cholsey this walk was thoroughly enjoyable.
My highlights:
- Wildflower meadow
- Wallingford
- Benson lock and weir
Wildlife:
- Ducks, geese, a great-crested grebe, coots and moorhens
- Red kites and other birds
- Butterflies, bees and bumblebees
- A couple of rabbits
Useful information
Transport:
- Train to Cholsey (Reading to Oxford line)
- Return: Bus from Shillingford to Reading (X40 Oxford to Reading bus route)
Refreshments:
- Wallingford
- Waterfront Café, Benson
Public Convenience:
- Wallingford
Benson
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Path near Shillingford
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