The weather was looking like rain later in the day so I made the decision to try and get up early 0530 breakfast and was in Henley-on-Thames to catch the train to twyford and pangbourne at 07:23. The train was very quiet I managed to charge my phone on the first one to twyford. Total journey with only 36 minutes which had me on the thames path by 8 a clock, a great start.
The first part of the path out of pangbourne had lots of barges and river cruises parked up and many of their occupants were out walking their dogs in their dressing gown. It wasn’t long before I reach Tilehurst where the path goes in land through a housing estate then back over the railway and down onto the path, just at the point of a welcome to Reading sign.
After about a mile of path with a railway embankment to the right and the river to the left I came across so small marina. An angler got talking to me and asked me to identify the fish he described to me wondering whether it was a salmon or trout. I decided it was probably a trout but I did ask being a fisherman he should be able to identify the fish in the river.
As I approached Reading I noticed quite a few rowing boats about, it turns out the Reading amateur regatta was on. For the next couple of kilometres I had rowing boats passing at race pace or heading back to the start. The finish was near Cavendish bridge in the centre of Reading I stopped there for a coffee from the rowing club.
As I left Reading I passed the Oracle building, on the grass fields by the river some one was flying a model aircraft. I was surprised how quickly I got to Sonning. I decided to treat myself to a pizza in the Coppa Club. It was very noisy with families with small children, however the place was busy which is always a good sign for a restaurant. My pizza was average, but it filled a hole nicely, and the establishment was close to the Thames path.
I tired a bit as I got towards shiplake another walker slowly caught up and overtook. Before he passed I asked if he was walking the Thames he said no he was just on a local walk. I sat for a while in the centre of shiplake near the post office. As you leave Shiplake you go down a footpath which goes past the house which has a large gauge model railway in the garden. You can see a station which is in my mind either Swiss or Austrian mountain station.
Once I hit the river again it was a bit of a sprint to get to the rowing museum at the edge of Henley. When I got to Henley there was a lot more people about people who only managed to get within less than a mile of the town. I dump my stuff at the car in the car park at the railway station, then heading into town where there was supposed to be a food festival on.
The food festival wasn’t up to much just a few stills and to do it was raining and the end of the day so there wasn’t much left and some of them were even closed. I grabbed a coffee from an independent coffee shop then headed back to the car and drove home via the country roads Christmas Common, Watlington and Chinnor.
I was home by 4 so despite a very early start and quite fast walking during the day it still took the whole day to do the 15 and a bit miles.