This was our very long day and it looked as if it could get quite warm so we had been unsure how we were going to get on as we had been getting rather tired, but after a rest day we were on good form.
As we left Runnymede Pleasure Grounds, two traditional wooden cruisers came past flying the red ensign. The first one was captained by a man in full naval uniform. Perhaps they were off to the Traditional Cruisers Rally we had seen advertised previously.
With the M25 and the M3 featuring on today's section, we weren't expecting much but the locks are as pretty as ever and the M25 bridge is impressive not just for its size but also the lightness of its construction, in fact the A30 west is on a separate more traditional bridge, the M25 bridge carries the motorway and the A30 east. A little further on we found this coal post marking the spot where anyone carrying coal was warned that they were due to pay a levy on it under an Act of 1831.
We soon found ourselves approaching Staines where the riverside has been prettied up with various installations including the London Stone, which once marked the limit of the jurisdiction of the Corporation of the City of London, and the statue of the Swanmaster.
This turned out to be a day of unexpected sightings, such as this German Police boat (proudly labelled 'Polizei'). The riverside properties are mostly rather less grand than further upstream but no doubt still hugely expensive. And every little boatyard seems to have a Thames sailing barge in amongst the usual collection of tired old boats.
And so we came to Chertsey lock and bridge, where the view of the bridge is utterly ruined by what must surely be the ugliest and least appropriate riverside development so far.
The guidebook promises 'the colourful community' of Rye Peck Meadows, which turns out to be a collection of houseboats of very variable design and condition. But we did like the unusual method of making your home look occupied when when it isn't.
Possibly the highlight of the day was the ferry crossing between Shepperton and Weybridge. It runs on the quarter hour if someone rings the bell to summon the helm, though ours turned up unbidden at the appointed time! The fare (£2 each) works out at about a pound a minute! There is still a green corridor with varied wildlife even this far into London. Further along the very elegant Walton Bridge having cost over £32m opened in 2013 and is the sixth bridge to have crossed the Thames at this point.
Hampton boasts a substantial sailing club building on stilts and a fair number of dinghies in the park, but amazingly for a Saturday afternoon, absolutely nothing going on. We can't work out how these clubs survive. The 'temple' is just a folly in the grounds of an impressive mansion, but you can also find an impressive line of floating 'mansions' moored against one of the many islands.
We watched some trainee rowers under instruction and found a striking rowing monument in a rather unlikely orientation before finally sighting Hampton Court Bridge. The whole area was extremely busy as it was the last but one day of the Hampton Court flower show.
As we reached the bridge, we had completed the 147 miles of the Thames path in the country. We have been incredibly lucky with the weather having walked in warm dry weather for 7 days from our first base in Lechlade at the beginning of June and another 6 days from our base at Ashampstead at the beginning of July. We are taking a break again and looking forward to completing the Thames path in London some time soon.
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