Nine determined Poly Ramblers set off from Pangbourne Station despite warnings of storms and heavy rain. Our route took us through Whitchurch. Passing on a toll bridge over the river, built in
1792 to replace the ferry to bring your sheep or lambs across the Thames! The present iron bridge of 1902 replaces two previous wooden toll bridges. Today, pedestrians cross the bridge toll-free although there is still a charge for cars. We walked past St Mary’s Church, in Whitchurch dating from the twelfth century. St
Birynius is said to have landed at the ferry crossing at Whitchurch and, on seeing how fine the place was, decided to build a church there.
The route continued along part of the Thames Path National Trail (which opened in 1996) past Coombe Park, to a wood with lovely views down to the Thames before climbing through a nature reserve and Great Chalk Wood. The rain held off for most of the morning and as the clouds darkened we took a short cut to Hill Bottom and the Sun Inn where they very kindly allowed us to sit in their conservatory and eat our packed lunch as they had only limited food options for sale. We all bought drinks and some of us did so after lunch so we could sit in the main pub and enjoy the fire whilst the heavens opened. Fortunately the rain had eased a little when we left and proceeded through a small park before re-connecting with the original route to go through woods and fields, then back down through Whitchurch. We retraced our steps over the bridge to Pangbourne Station to catch the train home. By which time we were all a little soggy but agreed it was a beautiful walk and would be a perfect addition to a summer programme another year!.
We set off from Waterloo on a fast train to Guildford and more walkers joined us at Clapham Junction. I was really pleased there were 18 of us on what was an overcast day in late November. I was worried about completing the walk before it got dark (sunset at 15:58) and perhaps I may have overdone it a bit during my short briefing in which I stressed that we needed to keep up a good walking pace.
The station isn’t far from the river Wey which we followed south out of Guildford. It wasn’t long before we were out in the countryside walking by a very full river with a weir to our right, noisy with rushing water. The water meadows on the other side of the Wey were heavily flooded. It was a relief to me to be back in nature and away from the traffic of the busy town.
After a while we left the banks of the river, heading west, up a steep short hill and over a railway bridge to get to Sandy lane. We then branched right and followed the North Downs Way climbing through a pleasant rural valley which headed towards Compton and lunch at the Watts Gallery. It was not raining and we were quite warm so we stopped for a brief water break and to remove a layer of clothing. Everyone was chatting and seemed happy and I was surprised to get to Watts Gallery about 20 minutes early. So I need not have worried after all!
Most people had brought there own lunch and sat at the picnic tables outside. This was just as well since it was very busy in the tea room. It’s a delightful place with a lovely shop and many of us enjoyed a pot of tea or cup of coffee after lunch. This was originally a part of the Arts and Crafts movement and a pottery was opened here in the early 20th century by George and Mary Watts. Currently there is a resident artist here and an art gallery which unfortunately we didn’t have time to explore. After an hour we left and headed for Watts Chapel which is less than a 10 minute walk away. Watts Chapel and the cemetery were well worth visiting. The chapel is quite stunning and beautiful both inside and out. It was built by Mary Watts with the help of the local villagers from Compton. We paused to view Aldous Huxley’s grave before continuing on our walk.
We passed through a stud farm and then through a wood. The path through the wood was very muddy in places but nowhere near what it had been like on my walkover a few days before. Then there had been a stream running down the centre of the path! Emerging from the wood I suggested we have a drinks break and various people said they would like either a brandy or a gin and tonic. So witty! None of which I had of course. We then walked up a country lane to Polsted Manor and then forking right we headed up to Loseley Park. There is an imposing and historic Mansion house here set in a big estate. It is perhaps now more famous for Loseley ice cream but the house itself was once visited by Queen Elizabeth I. The park is closed at this time of year so we skirted around it and passed by an ornamental lake which had recently been dredged. We then continued east on a well marked path back to the river Wey and from there it was only a mile to Guildford. We crossed over an attractive bridge and then walked between the river and the flooded meadows before arriving back at the A3100 on the outskirts of the town.
We had made good time and I needn’t have worried. Some of us headed back to the station, others went for tea and cake and I joined a group who went to the White Lion for a well earned drink.
Leader: Chris
Photos by: Ida, Joyanna, Patricia, Lois and Hilary
Sixteen of us were on this sunny evening walk around Bermondsey and Rotherhithe. From Bermondsey tube station, we made our way to the Thames which we followed for a short while. We learned about Dr Alfred Salter, his wife Ada and daughter Joyce. Alfred and Ada became involved in local government in an attempt to improve conditions for the poor of the area. There is a statue group of the family by the Angel Inn. Opposite are the remains of a 14th century manor built for Edward III.
We walked to The Ship pub, passed the mortuary building which is now used by the Time and Talent Association, Hope Sufferance Wharf, the Watch House and the former parish school with the figures of two schoolchildren. We went into St Mary’s churchyard where there is a memorial to Captain Jones, master of the Mayflower. There is also Prince Lee Boo’s grave in the churchyard. I had forgotten to check who he was so could not enlighten the group. But after asking Google, I found out that: “Prince Lee Boo was one of the first Pacific Islanders to visit Great Britain. His life and untimely death from smallpox, only five months after his arrival in London, captured the imagination of the British, and wider European and American, audiences.”
We passed the Mayflower pub and the Brunel Engine House which was designed by Marc Brunel with his son Isambard Kingdom to be part of the infrastructure of the Thames Tunnel. It held steam-powered pumps used to extract water from the tunnel. It was originally used as a boiler house during the construction of the Thames Tunnel between 1825 and 1843.
We rejoined the Thames to look at a statue of a Pilgrim Father reading a child’s comic. We left the Thames and made our way to the quite bland Library and Finnish Church and the pretty Norwegian church of St Olav. Both churches were built to serve sailors from Scandinavian ships who delivered their timber cargo to Rotherhithe and Surrey docks. Then we made our way to Southwark Park. It was a lovely summer evening, and the park was busy with people relaxing or having a picnic. We went through the Ada Salter Garden and along the lake. After a toilet stop by the nice new cafe, we exited the park and went through King George’s Field, passing the former Dock Manager’s Office before reaching Canada Water station where the walk ended. All the pubs mentioned in this report have been patronised by Danny. After the walk, eight of us took the overground to Surrey Quays to go to the Surrey Docks Wetherspoon pub for dinner. Get in touch with me if you want the details of this walk.
Nineteen Poly Ramblers met at Acton Town Station made their way to Gunnersbury Park to visit the museum which has an incredibly varied collection of around 50,000 museum and archive items. The collection provides an insight into the heritage and culture of Ealing. Sadly we missed meeting the most recent occupants of Gunnersbury Park, Salt and Pepper (two Kunekune Pigs), however we enjoyed a walk around the pond before making our way towards South Ealing Cemetery. This is one of the largest cemeteries in London; Agatha Christie’s parents and Spencer Perceval, the only Prime Minister in British history to be assassinated, are buried here.
We had lunch at Boston Manor, a combination of woodland and open space adjoining the Grand Union Canal. There was a chance for the group to visit the 17th century Boston Manor House where there was an intriguing collection of spoons created by members of the community during the Covid Pandemic!
We continued the rest of our walk along the Grand Union Canal having avoided a heavy downpour. We spotted cygnets and ducklings. The leader pointed out some of the orchards planted along the canal where people could forage.
We finished our walk at the leader’s house for refreshments and Cake to celebrate her birthday.
Ten Polyramblers met at Chorleywood station for a seven mile walk exploring the picturesque Chess Valley and surrounding countryside.
Walking through woods fragrant with the smell of lime trees we reached the pretty village of Chenies with its Tudor Manor House. We visited the adjacent fifteenth century church before walking east past meadows of vibrant blue Lacy phacelia to Mountwood Farm and north through Mount Wood to Crestyl Barn, sadly no longer a watercress farm due to sewage in the river.
Joining the Chess Valley Walk we passed through Sarratt Bottom, deviating uphill to Church End for our picnic in the churchyard and a drink at the Cock Inn, and onward to the Local Nature Reserve at Chorleywood House Estate.
Finally we walked through the attractive Chorleywood Common, stopping to admire a striking Memorial Tree, before returning to the station.
Sunita and Jennifer with thanks to Nita and Hilary for the photos.
The Polytechnic Rambling Club – Walking with friends
