TP3
Thames Path - Walk 3
SUNDAY 16TH JUNE 2019:.It’s 2 years since I last walked any of the Thames Path but another opportunity arises as I am in London to see a concert at Hammersmith Apollo over the evening of 16th June. I book flights for early that day and late the next, giving me most of 2 full days to do some exploring and to put a few miles on the clock
Sunday morning, off the back of my ‘commute’ and I am at Vauxhall Bridge at 09:00 for set off, the aim to reach Richmond. It’s been miserable weather this June and today is not an exception as I am welcomed by grey skies and light rain, but forecast is for improvement
I plan to switch between North and South banks on occasion and start to the North by crossing the bridge. To my right is the London Eye signalling central London but today I will be leaving these busy, built up areas and heading towards the country. I hang a left at the end and am faced with the dominance of the old Battersea power station, currently under development – there must be a dozen tower cranes! Lots Road power station, further along near Chelsea, also appears to be under development. Old power stations are now in!
The Thames can very often flood parts of the riverbank but not for me, the tide is low at this point and the opposite is true, so quite a bit of mud on view, but good for the birds. Some houseboats or canal boats also sit in the mud or gently float
Boats of a different sort appear around Chelsea harbour, these a bit more expensive, indeed the whole area appears manicured and monied. This feeling of ‘well to do’ness is a bit of a feature along many of the areas today, from Fulham to Putney, Hurlington and Napier Avenue to Richmond. Some nice areas, houses, cars, restaurants etc
Apartments generally front the river banks in these areas but mostly there is a path alongside, occasionally I am pushed away, sometimes into other residential areas or small parks, but this all adds to the interest
The other stand out feature are the bridges, all different in design, look, colour and function, all with a bit of history or a story attaching. I do like all that
At Putney bridge I cross to the South bank, popping in to peak at St Marys Church, adapted internally to an unusual but very smart design. The bell ringers are in action with it being Sunday morning and the place is busy, including an adjoining café. This looks very tempting and I stop for a rather fancy sausage sandwich whilst perusing the Sunday papers which are spread out for customers to read
Suitably refreshed I emerge into a day much sunnier and warmer. Putney bridge is something of a dividing line – look to the East and you have metropolitan London, look West and you see mainly green or low rise building, in other words you are leaving the city behind
Putney is of course famous for rowing and is the starting point for the annual University Boat Race, a course I will walk alongside today until the end at Mortlake, some 4 miles 374 yards upstream. I pass several rowing clubs and slipways, with boating equipment everywhere, whilst on the water several glide past, from single skulls to ‘eights’ sometimes with people shouting at the rowers!. It is quite an art form, you can see that technique is so important
From here the trail becomes a natural path for at least 2 to 3 miles, just water and trees on this side, albeit the North bank shows buildings, including a few nice looking pubs. Jealousy starts to set in….its looks more fun the other side!
I do cross over again a little later on, with a purpose, as I want to pass through Strand-on-the-Green, a quaint little section with some historic features to enjoy. One of these is the Bulls Head pub – a pub site for over 400 years! - where I stop for a cider, sitting outside in the sun by the river, which seems a popular thing to be doing. Very pleasant
One more bridge cross back to the South side and I enter Kew, passing Kew Green where a cricket match is being played – the batsman bowled out just as I take my photo! I have to decide whether to follow the path around the river bank or not, but instead opt to pass through Kew Gardens. I have visited before many years ago but the refresh is good, however, my main aim is to visit the Great Pagoda, recently opened following major refurbishment. This was originally built in 1762, at the time the tallest building in Britain, and King George III used to climb to enjoy the view. Today I climb the 10 flights of stairs, around the spiral staircase (all 253 steps) to the top and have a great view over surrounding areas, including in the very distance the faint outline of London city skyline, including the London Eye, nearby my start point this morning
I leave Kew Gardens and wrap up my walk at Richmond, completing my planned itinerary, totalling nearly 17 miles. A very enjoyable walk, with lots of variety and interest. So many times we walk along without necessarily paying attention to our surroundings, the key to a walk such as this is to maintain curiosity, really look around, read the placques dotted around, look at the statues here and there, explore the alleyway or path that catches your attention. It does mean a bit of meandering but that is sort of the point
