Trips in September 2022

Trips in September 2022

September was a quieter month for long distance overnight trips, other than a holiday to Jersey (spent playing with various buses with my tourist hat on)

 

2^nd September – Onwards to Derby

 

The month began for me, as I had a room in the Travelodge at the Derby Cricket Ground booked, the idea being a Lincolnshire Day Ranger to do the novelty of a 180 to Skegness.  I managed to book a £20 EMR Summer Sale return which was a nice little bonus, booked on the 21:00 departure from St Pancras which also gave me a more relaxing journey to London.

 

The usual 17:59 service took me to Basingstoke, changing over to a pair of 444s to take me to Clapham Junction, where I did a little time-wasting move involving a 378 to Willesden Junction, followed by a 710 to Euston and a short walk across to the annex of St Pancras to await the 21:00 service to start boarding.  222007 was the unit taking me to Derby, calling only at Leicester along the way, followed by a mile & a quarter walk to reach the hotel.

 

Bond, Meridian Bond, licensed to carry

 

3^rd September – Skegness

 

My original idea was to do a Lincolnshire Day ranger, but in the end with the weather forecast being favourable, I decided to change it to a simple day return to Derby (as it worked out cheaper than both the ranger & a return to Nottingham).  I checked out of the hotel (one of the better Travelodges in my eyes), swinging via the city centre to a large Sainsburys for breakfast (better than Greggs at Derby station), before reaching the station with 180109 waiting on the station.  I took a seat in the 1^st class area, although the AC wasn’t working that well, it gave me a chance to sample 1^st class on a EMR 180 (and it was quite nice, although a bit tired).

 

The train got busy at Nottingham before running nonstop to Sleaford where it had a 10-minute pathing stop due to the single track beyond, this gave me a chance to pop out for a photo (and fresh air).   Next stop was Boston where again it had a little pathing stop before going to Skegness, using platform 5.  After a couple photos I set out on foot to do a little walk towards the seafront, doing a small loop to the south before a loop towards the North Shore (via the pier, where the toilets did come in handy).   I returned to the station which was quite busy and was lucky to get a seat on a 3 coach 170 working the next Nottingham train (ended up in the former 1^st class area on a single seat).

 

Waterfront at Skegness, splashing

 

I took this 170 to Boston where I alighted to do my 2^nd walk of the day, heading towards the bridge over the River Witham (which was a lovely shade of green), before following the river towards the docks area (passing a railway swing bridge for the docks, picking up a slightly overgrown footpath running alongside the “South Forty Foot Drain” (with the railway swinging in on my right as the way I was walking).  I followed this path to reach a level crossing (A52 road) in the Wyberton Fen area, pausing to grab a photo of the 2^nd 180 heading back towards Derby, before going into Tesco for some supplies.

 

180110 heading away from Boston, crossing the A52 at Wyberton

 

The 2nd part of this walk was along a mixed used path alongside the waterway (with the railway line on the opposite side).  This path took me to Hubberts Bridge, served by 2 trains a day in each direction, where in the last couple years has had a new platform built to replace one which was slipping into the waterway.  I took a seat to await the afternoon Nottingham train, a pair of former GA 156s which were lightly loaded.

 

156916 arriving at Hubberts Bridge Station

 

I took these 156s back towards Nottingham, with a reversal at Grantham, where I had roughly an hour before the next train towards Derby, so I did another gentle walk, this time heading out of Nottingham station towards the canal to walk along the towpath to the River Trent (a busy path with kickball fans heading back from the kickball ground after what sounded like a disappointing game).  Anyhow I followed the bank of the River Trent towards the Wilford Toll bridge (now used by the trams), following Queens Walk (and the tram tracks) back towards Nottingham station, jumping onto a 156 bound for Crewe.

 

Nottingham Trams 230 & 227 passing at Meadows Embankment

 

 I took this 156 a couple stops to Long Eaton, where I headed to a nearby Sainsburys local for some dinner items, before taking a 222 to Derby, where once more to waste some time (roughly 30 minutes) before my booked train to London, I did another little loop, heading out of Derby station at the pride park exit, returning via the main entrance. Just something to waste some time, rather than sitting on the platform waiting.

 

Pride Park entrance to Derby Station... Guarded by Miles

 

My train to London arrived, formed of 222011, I managed to get my reserved seat without issue, although this train was the stopper (calling at Long Eaton, East Midlands Parkway, Loughborough & Leicester before running nonstop to London).  Arrival into St Pancras was roughly on time, as I headed towards the sub surface line to take a Metropolitan line service to Baker Street, followed by a busy Jubilee line to Waterloo.

 

The final train of this trip was the 22:20 from Waterloo towards Salisbury, formed of a 159+158, as I took a seat for the trip towards Hampshire, followed by a walk home.  A good day in Lincolnshire, visiting Hubberts Bridge to look at the rebuilt platform was on my list for a while, as I had heard good things about that path alongside the drain.

 

4^th September – Walking the Downs Link (Part 2)

 

Today I changed my mind from doing something in London to do the southern section of the Downs Link path, from Christs Hospital towards Shoreham on Sea, following the remains of the Steyning Line.  To make my life easier coming back, I decided to drive to Romsey to catch a 158 to Southampton (going via Chandlers Ford to waste some time), before a 377 took me to Barnham.

 

At Barnham I headed out of the station to the Tesco to grab some lunch items before returning to take a seat in the front unit of a triple set on the stopper towards Christs Hospital (taking a seat in part which came from Bognor which was empty).  I exited the station at Christs Hospital, fired up Strava and followed the signs for the Downs Link path.  Along the way I passed Southwater where there had been a triathlon around the country park, but after that area it was quiet with the odd cyclist passing (and passing the odd walker).

 

377444 departs Christ's Hospital

 

I carried on reaching the settlement of Copsale, and afterwards the remains of the station at West Grinstead (the only station on this line which remains in place).  After the former station I carried on reaching Partridge Green where the Downs Link path goes along the road (as the former railway route has been built over).  This was the worse part as the pavement came to an end before I reached the turn-off onto a farm access track.  Soon I re-joined the former railway route, continuing south, crossing over the River Adur and Henfield (with a couple miles in between).

 

At Henfield the former railway route isn’t available, so I followed the road for a short section (passing a little Stagecoach garage).  I re-joined the path once more, following it as it crossed over the River Adur once more, before the former railway line came to an end and the Downs Link path continued climbing into some hills joining onto a little lane to reach the outskirts of Steyning.  I continued following the signs as the path soon ran alongside the bypass (which was built on the railway route).

 

Former station at West Grinstead

After doing a little loop towards the river (avoiding the need to cross the busy A283 road on the flat) I joined the old railway route once more, heading towards Botolphs, with the long-distance South Downs Way.  I followed the South Downs Way for a short section, before following a path running alongside the River Adur before the Downslink path broke away, to carry on towards Shoreham on Sea.  I carried along the path in Shoreham to go underneath the railway bridge and to visit a Co-Op for something to eat & drink, before making my way towards the station.

 

Views from the Downs Link Path

 

A very busy 377 rolled in bound for Fratton (would be Portsmouth but has an 8-minute stop at Barnham due to the withdrawn GWR service to pass it).  I got lucky with a seat (all be in the 3+2 coach), switching to a table at Barnham.  I changed at Havant for a short wait for a Southampton train to take me to Cosham, changing over to a GWR service (a 165+166) to take me the final leg to Romsey.

 

I enjoyed my 20 mile walk along a disused railway line in Sussex, well signposted and the surface quality was reasonable.

 

A Southern 377 crossing the River Adur in Shoreham by Sea

 

11^th September – A spin to the Isle of Wight

 

My original idea for today went into the bin when I noticed 484005 was out on the Island Line, so I felt it was worth a trip to the Isle of Wight to rope in another 484.

 

A 159 took me from Grateley to Salisbury followed by a 166 all the way to Portsmouth, where I had a short wait before boarding Wight Ryder 1 (sitting on the sunshine deck).  This took me across the water to Ryde, where RTT was correct and 484005 was on the Island Line.  A spin to Shanklin & back saw it over ten miles, where I just about made the ferry connection back to Portsmouth.

 

With the next GWR service starting from Southampton, I took a 444 to Eastleigh, followed by a 158 to Romsey (via Chander’s Ford) then a quiet 165+166 combo to Salisbury followed by a pair of 158s back to Grateley.  A nice quiet day trip, giving my legs a rest after they were busy on the Saturday.

 

484005 at Ryde Pier Head

 

24^th September – Another spin to the Isle of Wight

 

Back from my long weekend in Jersey, I had a few options where to head too today.  My decision was made when I noticed my last 484 was out on the Island Line, working the “short” services from Esplanade.  It also gave me an excuse to have a walk on the Island involving a couple disused railway lines and to give the Hovercraft a try.

 

I started from Grateley on a 159+158 combo on the first westbound train to take me to Salisbury, followed by a quick visit to Sainsburys to waste some time before a 3 coach 165 rolled in to take me to Portsmouth & Southsea (getting lucky to grab a seat in the former first-class section).  At Portsmouth & Southsea, it was a short walk to the bus stop where the “Hoverbus” picked up from, which took me to Southsea Hoverport, where I got the impression those with rail tickets were treated like second class passengers compared to those who paid out full price for the hovercraft tickets themselves.

 

Basically, got told to wait in a queue in the open (wouldn’t want to do this if the weather was bad), waiting to gain access to the hover terminal.  Certainly, in my eyes the ferry from Harbour was a lot better waiting experience, although the ferry does hold a lot more passengers than the hovercrafts (and I’m sure both are down on what they were before Covid hit).  Anyhow I boarded the 11:00 departure formed of “Solent Flyer”, running a few minutes late.  My first hovercraft since I was much younger where I have vague memories of doing one on holiday.

 

Hovercraft Solent Flyer departs Southsea Hover Terminal

 

At Ryde Hoverport it was a fast walk to Ryde Esplanade to board the late running train, formed of 484001, my last of the class.  I took this to Shanklin, returning to Brading where I made a connection to 484004 working the other service, which I took to Shanklin.  After a quick lunch, I headed on foot following what is signposted as the “Red Squirrel Trail”.

 

The first part followed the old railway route beyond Shanklin to the village of Wroxall, before heading cross country via the estate of Appuldurcombe house, then onto some bridleways giving some nice views.  One bad point was crossing the A3020 on the outskirts of Godshill as that road was quite busy and the crossing didn’t give good views.  I carried on with the “Sunshine Loop” of the Red Squirrel Trail, reaching the remains of the Central Isle of Wight railway route from Sandown towards Newport.  I headed towards the remains of Merstone station, before doing a U-turn to follow the path towards Sandown.

 

Mostly along the old railway line, but some detours where the original trackbed has been lost.  Sadly, no real evidence of former stations (in terms of platforms), but a nice walk on a busy route with changing scenery (a walk I would recommend).  At the Sandown end I headed towards the sea front, to walk along the cliff path to Lake (to meet up to where I walked from Lake to Shanklin with mum earlier in the year).

 

Remains of Merstone Station

Coastline near Sandown

 

Annoyingly Lake station has no seats on the platform itself, so I couldn’t sit down to rest, however I was only there for 10 minutes before 484001 rolled in to take me to Ryde Esplanade, where I had a fast walk to the hoverport, getting allowed inside to wait the next departure of the hovercraft (it was still running around 5 minutes late from this morning). I headed back to Southsea, boarding the bus, jumping off at The Hard interchange to walk to Portsmouth Harbour station.

 

A pair of 450s was on the Basingstoke service, as I made myself comfy in the leading coach joined by a group of youngsters at Hilsea who started spraying silly string everywhere before they jumped off at Cosham.  The train carried on towards Basingstoke, where I had a short wait before taking a busy 159 to Grateley to relax.  A successful day in my eyes, clearing the small fleet of Island Line units along with an enjoyable walk on a sunny afternoon.

 

484004 & 484001 passing at Brading

 

25^th September – A London area walk

 

My last trip of September (time flies!), originally, I was going to walk from West Drayton along the Grand Union canal towards Rickmansworth, but things didn’t go to plan.  The day started with the 07:38 service to Basingstoke which I took to Andover, stepping back 10 minutes to board the Reading train.  This service took me to Reading where I was faced with a screen full of the dreaded C word… Cancelled.  The next train towards Paddington wasn’t due for over an hour with the next couple Elizabeth Line services starting from Maidenhead due to late running (caused by late running engineering works).

 

I decided to park my planned canal walk for another trip to break out a section of the Thames Path, as I took a seat on a pair of 450s on the Waterloo train (going for the first-class area for that bit of extra comfort, seeing as these are standard class only services).  Eventually the train reached Twickenham, where I alighted, heading towards the river front, joining the path on the north side of the river to Richmond area, crossing over on Twickenham bridge.  I remained on the south bank all the way (other than for a small detour around Barnes Bridge where the path was closed for construction work).

A 455 crossing the River Thames on Richmond railway bridge

 

The path along the edge of Kew Gardens was quite scenic in places, with trees and the occasional view of the river.  I carried on the Thames Path passing Hammersmith Bridge, reaching Putney, and carrying on to Wandsworth going via Wandsworth park, before reaching Wandsworth Town station, an enjoyable riverside walk ticking off another section of the Thames Path.

 

River Thames

 

At Wandsworth Town I took a busy pair of 458s to Waterloo, giving me around an hour to get to Paddington.  I took the northern line to Tottenham Court Road, changing over to a central line service to Queensway.  I exited the station for the short walk along the road to Bayswater station for a District line service to a busy Paddington.  A busy pair of 802s on a Bristol service took me to Reading, going quite slowly due to issues around Ealing Broadway, arriving in Reading around 15 minutes late.  Thankfully I had a good buffer planned to visit Wendys for some dinner before returning to the station for the 17:12 service to Grateley.

 

An enjoyable walk along the banks of the river Thames, even if at times the view of the river was hidden behind trees.  A busy route in places, both with other walkers/joggers & cyclists, seeing a part of London I wouldn’t have seen otherwise. 

 

More photos taken throughout the month, including those when on Jersey are located here:

Flickr Album 

Trips in August, Part 3

 Trips in August, Part 3

19^th August – Walking the Cranleigh Line

The idea for today was to avoid central London due to the underground strike, but also to have a nice long walk.  The weather looked nice to walk and my aim was on the “Downslink” path between Christ’s Hospital & Shalford, along the route of the old Cranleigh Line.  The 09:59 service from Grateley took me to Clapham Junction, followed by a pair of 444s for Clapham, which unlike previous trips were lightly loaded.  I grabbed supplies from Sainsburys outside the station and waited for the delayed Portsmouth train to take me towards Christ’s Hospital.

 

This service was around 14 minutes late from Clapham, until it reached Gatwick where a last-minute platform swap from P3 to P2 delayed it by another 5 minutes due to waiting for passengers to cross over, time it never got back.  At least I got a bit of money back as delay repay.  I alighted from Christ’s Hospital, found the signs for the Downs Link path, passing the restored former branch line platforms and onto the path.

 

Disused Platforms at Christ's Hospital Station

 

An enjoyable walk, mostly on the old trackbed, but parts where the path went away from the old track, the worst parts was crossing the A281 on the outskirts of Rudgwick (busy main road) and an unexpected climb on the other side of Rudgwick where the railway went into a tunnel and the path goes over the hill, crossing over from Sussex into Surrey.  Other than those 2 parts the path was mostly traffic free (a couple minor roads but not that busy).

 

 

Two Tier Bridge for the disused Cranleigh line in Rudgwick

 

I swung via the Sainsburys in Cranleigh for some supplies (mainly more water) before continuing with my walk in the rural wilderness.  The former station at Bramley had platforms still in existence with a little history board which was a nice touch, as the path got busier on the approach towards Shalford, before I walked towards the station along the road, with 15 minutes to spare before the next Reading train

 

Remains of Bramley & Wonersh Station on disused Cranleigh line

 

This 165 took me to Guildford, followed by a 444+450 combo for the 6-mile trip to Woking, for a 50-minute wait for the next Exeter train.  I was going to linear hop on a pair of 444s to Basingstoke, but I noticed a 701 rolling in on test, so had to get a photo, before boarding a busy 159+158 combo for the run back to Grateley, followed by a walk home, where I got attacked by the dog who was happy to see me.

 

701048 on test at Woking

 

21^st August – Walking the Thames Path (Shepperton to Windsor)

 

Today I returned to the Thames Path to carry on walking, this time the section was from Shepperton towards Windsor, making use of some extra trains towards Shepperton due to engineering works at Twickenham.  Unusually they ran nonstop from Teddington to Shepperton for a bit of a novelty of skipping those branch-line stations (Ok, this might have been the main reason why I was doing this route today!)

 

A pair of 159s took me to Clapham Junction, followed by a pair of 455s for the run to Shepperton, where I started my walk along the “Alternative” route of the Thames Path (basically an alternative for those not wanting to use the ferry between Weybridge & Shepperton).  Signposts were a bit rubbish in places, but I soon joined the Thames, walking along the towpath towards Chertsey, then towards Staines.

455720 at Shepperton

 

Swapping over to the opposite bank, my walk continued passing a posh looking hotel at Runnymede, following a temporary path due to construction work near Old Windsor, before coming onto the roads at Datchet due to the original towpath being lost to the Windsor Castle grounds (with lots of threatening signs for anybody daring to trespass).  The other side of Datchet and the riverside path resumed, taking me towards the centre of Windsor, the end of my 17-mile walk.

 

River Thames around Staines

 

I headed to Windsor & Eden Riverside for a pair of 458s back towards Clapham Junction, skipping Sunnymeads & Wraysbury but calling at all the other stations on the Hounslow loop, but I was in the former 1^st class area with my phone on charge, so the slow running didn’t bother me.  At Clapham Junction, I popped out to the Sainsburys for dinner before a triply 159 took me back to Grateley, where I spent the remainder of the evening relaxing ready to return to work the next day.

 

458521 arriving at Windsor & Eden Riverside

 

27^th August – Walking the Flitch Way

 

The Flitch Way is the name given to the mixed used path which uses most of the trackbed of the former Bishop Stortford – Braintree line, something which had been on my list for a few trips (and the distance I had been working up towards).  The weather forecast looked good so I decided today was the day I would attempt the walk.

 

The day began with the 06:59 service from Grateley to Waterloo, followed by the Jubilee to Stratford (which skipped Bermondsey, I assume due to the station being closed due to lack of staff), followed by a 720 to Braintree.  After swinging via Tesco for lunch items before joining up with the old railway line.

 

720526 at Braintree

 

Along the railway line I passed the restored former station at Rayne (the building is now a busy café with an old railway coach at the station), next up was the remains of the small Bannister Green Halt, as the route became more rural and treelined.  There was one small detour due to an unsafe road bridge, before the railway route came to an end around the former Felsted with a short section along the road.  The former station building (I presume) is in a sorry state of disrepair and the path is a bit rough (in terms of surface quality) before it joined the old railway route once more.

 

The path continued before it came to another end (well the railway route continued to a dead-end) due to the route being built over by the A120 dual carriageway, so I came down from the railway route to follow a couple byways to reach the outskirts of Great Dunmow.  I followed the roads, using the pavements and a footpath to reach the start of the Dunmow cutting, the B1256 bypass being built where the track & Dunmow station used to be).

 

Remains of Bannister Green Halt on Flitch Way Path

 

Dunmow Cutting was probably the worse part for surface quality, as it was muddy in places, I dread to think how bad it would get during winter months or after heavy rain.  A handy bench allowed me time to sit down to have my lunch in the sunshine before continuing for another detour caused by the A120 dual carriageway removing a bridge.  After returning to the former railway line route towards the area around the former Easton Lodge station, where the mixed used path has another small division due to the station building & I presume old platforms being in private ownership.

 

I continued along the path of the old line, with one more small detour due to an infilled road bridge, before reaching the platform at the old Takeley station, the station building having work done to it.  The route was a lot woodier due to Hatfield Forest being close by, as I passed the remains of Stane Street Halt, and the noise of aircraft became more of a background noise (due to Stansted Airport).  The railway route came to an end at Start Hill, looking at Open Street Map it suggests the path continued (maybe as a permissive path) but was very overgrown.

Remains of Stane Street Station on Flitch Way Path

 

With the old railway line complete, the easiest route would be to head towards Bishops Stortford, either along the roads or by some footpaths, but I decided to head towards Stansted Mountfitchet, following a bike route going over & under the motorway (and the slip roads) to reach the village of Birchanger, following some footpaths (including one across a field) to Forest Hall, before a couple final paths to reach the area of Stansted Mountfitchet station, where I popped via the Co-Op to grab some extra drink & some food.

 

Flitch Way Entrance at Start Hill

 

 

An enjoyable walk, just over 20 miles in total according to my Strava app, so close to beating my record for longest walk, although I was glad to take a seat on a 720 to take me towards Whittlesford Parkway for a short wait before my last required 755 rolled in from Norwich (755406).  I took this to Stansted, followed by a 745 to Bishops Stortford followed by winner 720506 for the run towards Cheshunt, stepping back to another 720 for the run to Liverpool Street.

 

755406 at Stansted Airport, class complete :)

At Liverpool Street, I headed towards the Elizabeth Line platforms for a 345 to Tottenham Court Road, followed by a Northern line to Waterloo and the 21:20 service to take me home to Grateley.

 

28^th August – Dartmoor ‘Round Robin’

 

A trip to sunny Devon with mum, doing something we had hoped to do earlier in the month but got bowled out with cancellations, thankfully today the services hadn’t been cancelled on the Gunnislake branch.  A walk to Grateley station followed by a pair of 159s all the way to Exeter, delayed due to the speed restriction between Tisbury & Gillingham but thankfully only by around 12 minutes (not as bad as some delays, as trains get held at Honiton to allow London services to pass there instead of Pinhoe).  At Exeter St Davids it was a short wait for a busy 9 coach 800 to roll in from London where we got decent seats for the run via Dawlish to reach Plymouth.

 

150266 & 150247 at Plymouth

 

At Plymouth we popped out to visit Sainsburys (I noticed the little Spar shop has been removed to create a wider gate line), before returning to board a 150 for the run to Gunnislake, been a few years since I was last in this area, and I had forgotten how steep the climb is!  We changed over to the waiting bus working a route 118 service to Okehampton via Tavistock (extends to Gunnislake on Sundays only), a lightly loaded Dartline Optare).

 

This bus route gave us around 50 minutes at Tavistock, so we headed towards the old viaduct, a job for another trip for me is to walk the old railway route on top of the viaduct.  We returned to the bus station for the next section of the bus, however due to an accident on the A386, the bus lost time doing a detour via some country roads (came off near Wilminstone to re-join at Mary Tavy), some nice views from the bus window.  The bus continued towards Okehampton, but the extra time taken for the detour meant the connection was missed for the train.

 

 

With 50 minutes to waste before the next train I had a short walk from Okehampton station towards a viaduct (sadly no decent views due to the trees of “Tramlines woods”).  I returned via a bridleway on the opposite side of the main road, returning before the next 150 rolled in.  The line speed has certainly increased since my last visit to this line, a lot faster, although the train got delayed around Crediton due to a late running train from Barnstaple.

East Okement River at Ball Hill Viaduct, Okehampton

 

We transferred to a pair of 150s on an Exmouth service to take us up the hill to Exeter Central (the train from Okehampton terminated into the bay at St Davids), where I made a quick dash to the Co-Op to grab dinner items before the next Waterloo train took us back to Grateley.  Went via Chard loop to a late running Exeter service which I think is the first time I’ve done that loop heading east.

 

An enjoyable day in Devon, the scenery from the bus is quite good, and is only £3 for a single (or a return) at the moment.

 

29^th August – Walking the Thames Path from Culham to Cholsey

The weather forecast looked good for the bank holiday Monday, so a good time to do another section of the Thames Path, this time from Culham towards Cholsey in rural Oxfordshire.  I headed towards Culham via a pair of 159s to Basingstoke (dashing out to Sainsburys for lunch items.  Next was a pair of voyagers to Reading, a pair of 387s to Didcot Parkway on a stopper before finally a 2 coach 165 on a busy Oxford service.  I was the only passenger to alight at Culham (looked like there was one passenger waiting for the Didcot train with a handful at Appleford).  Originally, I was going to turn left from the station, heading along the road to Clifton Hampden to join the river, but decided to have a last-minute change to head towards Culham village to join the river (the idea being to reduce the distance on the next leg towards Oxford).

 

165125 departs Culham station

 

I walked along the main road with a pavement, and I reached Culham village, doing a little loop of an island formed by the river being split by a lock, before joining the towpath for a gentle walk along the path (one not to do during winter as it will probably be muddy).  Although the views of the river itself were hit & miss due to bushes & trees separating the path from the river but it was very peaceful in rural Oxfordshire.  I went underneath the Appleford railway viaduct and continued reaching Clifton Hampden where the path changed banks for a very rural section, featuring some cows (moo) to Day’s Lock near the town of Dorchester on Thames.

 

 

Cows on the Thames Path

The path swapped sides at the lock, where I paused for a lunch break in the shade, before continuing towards Shillingford where the Thames Path went away from the river due to a missing historic ferry, along the road (with a pavement) and along some footpaths towards Shillingford bridge where I decided to head out to do a loop along part of the towpath I missed as there was a loop available involving a permissive footpath.

 

Clifton Hampden Bridge over River Thames

After this loop, I re-joined the Thames Path itself for the next section towards the town of Benson, where I popped to a nearby Co-Op to buy some more drink, before returning once more to the path which swaps banks at Benson lock.  This section of the path had a hard stone surface (compared to the dirt/grass) and was a lot busier.  Sadly, it was also a bit rubbish for views of the river due to bushes & trees.  This path took me past the remains of Wallingford castle and onto the streets for a short section, before returning to the river bank, returning to a more rural setting before going underneath the A4130 bridge (getting a soundtrack of an old WW2 plane flying overhead).

 

My walk continued through a rural area, with the occasional garden (dread to think how much those houses are worth!), before reaching Cholsey Marshes and finally Ferry Lane meeting up where I was in early June.  I headed along Ferry Lane and finally Papist Way to reach Cholsey station, arriving with a couple minutes before the next London train, finishing my 21.5-mile walk, breaking my record for longest walk (and by accident due to those two extra bits I did!).

 

The same pair of 387s I had earlier in the day took me to Reading, as I collapsed into the seat, and throwing my phone on charge.  At Reading I popped out of the station to visit Wendys for dinner before returning to the station with a pair of voyagers to Basingstoke (with the Network Rail ‘950’ train on platform 8 at Reading).   Finally, it was the same pair of 159s I had in the morning to take me back to Grateley for a slow walk back home as my legs had started to ache a bit.

 

387163 arriving at Cholsey Station

More photos from August can be viewed here: Flickr Album