The Trek

British Heart Foundation 50km trek, Saturday 13 May

Took the 0612 train from Reading on Saturday morning, getting off at Staines and heading to the Spelthorne Leisure Centre for the start of the London to Oxford Trek (or the London to Henley ‘day trek’, in the case of six out of eight of our group). Our team convened in the sports hall to register and collect our BHF red T-shirts and a map of the route. Matt, Guy, Rebecca and Hai had spent the Friday night in the Staines Travelodge, as the journey by public transport from Milton Keynes is cumbersome; Sara’s husband Scott had delivered her, Galina and Louisa by car.

Start of the trek at Spelthorne Leisure Centre, Staines

Team 'OU Pretty Things' ready for the off

After an inaudible safety briefing, we set off at around 8:00am. The route was well signposted with arrows throughout, so there wasn’t much danger of getting lost. Although it hadn’t been planned that way, we fairly swiftly fell into two groups, with Sara, Louisa, Rebecca and Matt striding ahead and Guy, Galina, Hai and me walking at a more reasonable pace some way behind.

Guy, Galina and Hai having a sit down at the second checkpoint

At Maidenhead. Flagging

Our 'Tier 2' team arrived at the first checkpoint in Windsor, 15 km into the walk, at around 11:00am, and the second checkpoint, at Cookham Reach Sailing Club, at around 3:00pm, after the speedy lot had already left it. We were all flagging a bit as we walked through Maidenhead – albeit it was the halfway point for the 50km event, the realization that there was the same amount to go ahead of us was a tad depressing at that point. We were obliged to sit on the ground at Cookham Reach as the tables were all occupied, but still valued the chance to take our shoes off and eat something.

Guy started to get knee pain at around Marlow and spent some time looking around for a walking stick, eventually finding a huge thing that we joked looked like Gandalf’s staff.

We reached the third checkpoint, at Hurley Lock, at around 5:45pm, where we had some more food and drink from Michaela’s Tea Shop, plus a nice sit down. By this point in the walk, difficulties had evidently kicked in for some, with various people with their shoes off being ministered to and one woman lying on a bench wrapped in foil. I recognised her as a woman who'd overtaken us earlier, but nobly resisted the urge to say "Ha, not so quick now then, are you".

Guyndalf

Having a sit down at Michaela's Tea Shop

Insufficient toilet arrangements at Hurley, coupled with Hai lingering over her tea cake, led to Guy and I setting off from the checkpoint ahead of the other two as he was keen to keep his knee moving. We managed to get what we felt was quite a decent pace up, spurred on by the thought of the finish line, but the last section into Henley felt interminable. We finally crossed the finish line in Mill Meadows at around 8:30pm, with Galina and Hai arriving around half an hour behind us.

Guy and I cross the finish line

We were scanned at each checkpoint, I guess to check that everyone was in - indeed I have subsequently received a personalised email congratulating me on finishing.

 

Here's the map of the route:

And here are the stats from MapMyWalk. I didn't pause the tracking at the checkpoints, so the 12 hour time is the overall time.

Amazingly, Matthew and Hai completed the full 100km, setting off from Mill Meadows around 9:30pm and walking through the night to reach the finish line in Oxford around 11:00am on Sunday. Matt is impressively fit and had recent experience of a combined day-and-night trek of over 50 miles, but Hai freely admitted to finding it very tough - not helped by heavy rain in the early hours. Here they are at the 100km post - though it was apparently then about 3km further on to the actual finish line in Oxpen Meadows. Hai said on Tuesday morning, somewhat indignantly, that she'd signed up for 100km, not 103km.

Managed to resist consuming either of the packets of energy gel Judith had kindly donated to me, along with various energy bars. Apparently when you're flagging in the later stages of a triathlon these are just the thing. The walk, although a slog, wasn't at any point strenuous enough that I felt I needed one of these - but I guess I'll keep them for possible future use.

Walk via the Stratfords and Deanshanger, 6.3 miles

7 May

Final walk of any length before the BHF trek, intended as a 'scaling down' before the main event. Returned to Wolverton early on the Sunday morning to sort out a few bits and pieces, including making a revision timetable for my impending exam for Essential mathematics 1, of which the least said the better. As it was a nice day, spent the morning on this walk instead.

Took the bus to Stony Stratford to avoid the dullish walk there from Wolverton, then walked the length of the high street and into the neighbouring village of Old Stratford. Turned left down Deanshanger Road and walked to the end to join the footpath running alongside the A422. Crossed the road at the footbridge and walked into Deanshanger.

Houses along London Road in Old Stratford	From Stratford Road looking back towards the footbridge
Puxley Road heading back towards the A422	View near Passenham

Did a clockwise circuit of the village and then joined the quite rural-feeling Puxley Road leading back towards the A422. Crossed the road and headed down the road leading through the pretty village of Passenham, which at a glance seems to consist entirely of Manors and Old Rectories. Walked through Passenham and turned left to join the bigger road leading back into Stony Stratford.

Walk, Reading to Newbury, 20.4 miles

30 April

This walk was meant to be the dress rehearsal for the actual BHF trek on 13 May (which was yesterday – more in a later post). I’d wanted to find a route that was about two-thirds of the actual event distance, as I’d been advised that was the thing to aim for beforehand in terms of distance covered. Ruth and I had intended to start from Newbury and walk back, but mis-timed the trains so in the end just set out from Reading. The walk improved once we were out of the initial rather tedious stretch through Katesgrove and the environs of the A33 (enlivened by Ruth calling an inattentive teenage cyclist an arsehole - we don't think he heard, thanks to earphones), though the canal-side gardens in Elgar Road always provide some attractive interest.

As on our boat trip with Ray from Reading to Newbury in 2012, we found it a disconcertingly long time before we passed under the M4 and felt as though we were getting out of Reading (about six and a half miles into the walk). We stopped for a snack near Burghfield Lock and observed some ducks. Although we'd taken some leftover pasta salad with us, planning to have that for lunch rather than go to a pub, we did in fact end up going to a pub, stopping for lunch at The Rowbarge at Woolhampton, about 13 miles into the walk. We sat in the garden - although it was a bit breezy - and I had an excellent steak sandwich (actual pink chunks of meat rather than thin brown slices). After lunch we trudged the remaining miles on into Newbury.

Somewhere near Sulhamstead, I think	Ruth in the garden of The Rowbarge
Woolhampton Swing Bridge being operated	One of the many locks on this stretch - Widmead, I think

This walk proved more of a slog than our 16-miler a few weeks earlier, even though it was over less hilly terrain. Could have been lack of as much attention to diet the previous week, or just one of those things. Also, the canal-side scenery, though pleasant, is a bit samey after a while. The elevation diagram shows the steady ascent between the two towns, explaining the relatively large number of locks along the route.

Map of the route is below – the endpoint indicated isn’t accurate as I forgot to stop the tracker until we were about two miles into the return train journey, so the last section of red line leading back out from Newbury can be ignored.

Winchester

Had a city break with Mum in Winchester a couple of weekends ago. Think our previous break was in Birmingham, which looking back at the blog was in 2014 - longer ago than I thought.

Mum caught an early train to Reading on the Saturday morning and I drove us down, having elected to drive given the location of Winchester’s Premier Inn not far off the M3 – though in the event it wasn’t quite as easy to locate as we’d expected, thanks to unclear signage from the motorway. We parked and walked down into the city centre, visited the tourist information place in the old Guildhall and then went to find somewhere for lunch, ending up at Bistro La Place close to the cathedral.

After lunch we did a short walk around the city courtesy of a leaflet we’d picked up at the tourist place. This started from King Alfred’s statue at the end of the High Street and set off towards the City Bridge, where we diverted to visit the City Mill thanks to our National Trust cards. Quite interesting, especially the lower level where you can cross over the millrace to look at the waterwheel. Nice little garden area out the back. After that we walked along the pretty River Itchen past the city walls, paused briefly to watch some charmingly polite prep school boys playing cricket (sporting shouts of “Oh, good fielding!” from one boy as one of his colleagues managed to stop a ball) and went to look at Wolvesey Castle, the ruined former bishops' palace.

Walked past the house where Jane Austen breathed her last and went to have a look at the darling little church of St Swithun-upon-Kingsgate, accessed by a staircase to one side of the medieval city gate. Briefly visited a secondhand book fair outside the Deanery before finishing the walk outside the cathedral. We spent some time looking round the cathedral, though Mum was disappointed that the full view down the nave wasn’t possible due to it being screened for some building work. Visited the crypt – I’m never sure whether Sound II is actually meant to be standing in water, or whether the crypt just floods intermittently – on the day we visited the floor appeared largely dry but with distinct damp patches. This says that the crypt does flood during rainy months.

On the Saturday evening we went for dinner at The Wykeham Arms, a pub that appeared from a bit of pre-trip research to have a decent reputation. Indeed it was very nice, with an atmospheric bar and cosy restaurant area, which was certainly packed out with diners. Ruth, who got her degree from what’s now the University of Winchester but was then King Alfred’s College, informs me that she had her family graduation dinner there, though that would have been some years back. Although this 'top 10 places to eat in Winchester' resource reckons it's a favourite of Colin Firth's, we didn't spot him.

King Alfred	Mum by the City Mill
The River Itchen	Wolvesey Castle

On the Sunday we had breakfast at the hotel before setting off to do a walk courtesy of a Ramblers’ Association '14 Walks in and around Winchester' booklet Mum had bought at the tourist information place the day before. I’m saying Ramblers’ Association, but in fact I’ve just noticed that the organisation appears to have renamed itself The Ramblers. Perhaps the word ‘association’ was considered to sound too earnest for the modern age.

The walk we chose was the 'Winchester - St Cross - St Catherine's Hill' walk of about 4 miles, though in fact for us it was about six miles due to the walk in from the hotel and back. Followed the 'Weirs' walkway from the City Bridge along the old City wall, then past some school buildings to follow a pretty path between the River Itchen and a mill stream, where we saw some adorable weeny ducklings. Further on we passed the stunning Hospital of St Cross, apparently the largest medieval almshouse in Britain. Later we moved into some interesting transport history, joining Five Bridges Road, now closed to traffic but apparently formerly the A333 - hard to believe now. One end of it met the former Winchester Bypass at the Hockley Interchange, an apparently notorious crossroads - the good chaps at SABRE have an article on the Winchester Bypass plus lots of pics of it at various stages of its life. It's now completely gone - seemingly as some sort of compensation to the locals for putting the M3 through Twyford Down.

Part of the old city wall	Water meadows
Hockley Viaduct	Mum descending St Catherine's Hill

Close to the old junction there's also the remains of a Victorian railway bridge and a path leading up onto the Hockley Viaduct, which once carried a railway line but is now a footpath. We went up onto the viaduct to have a brief look, before turning back towards Winchester along a path that follows the Itchen Navigation, a disused canal. Detoured off the path again when we got to St Catherine's Hill, as I fancied going up it - in fact we didn't go all the way up, but far enough to get good views of the surrounding area. After that we followed the Itchen Navigation back into the city and ate some M&S sandwiches sitting in the Abbey Gardens, before Mum walked back to the hotel and I looked around the shops briefly. In the evening we ate dinner at Prezzo.

Dinner at Prezzo

On the Monday morning we went for breakfast at the lovely Forte Kitchen, where Mum had Eggs Benedict and I had a stack of pancakes and bacon. We rounded off the stay with a walk through the Winnall Moors Nature Reserve. The link suggests quite a range of wildlife that one might see there, but we failed to see anything though were taunted by interesting-sounding bird calls from within the reeds. We also failed to spot a single water vole the entire weekend, despite lots of signs telling us there were voles aplenty in the area. Here's a photo of one on the Itchen Navigation.

Boardwalk at Winnall Moors Nature Reserve, where Mum didn't see a sedge warbler

Walk, Woodley to Twyford, 5.5 miles

21 April

A more modest little number this one, but still a bit of exercise. Took Reading Buses' 13 service from the station to The Drive stop on London Road. Walked up Shepherds Hill and crossed to the middle of the roundabout, where there are a few houses and a BP garage. Here's what the roundabout looked like in 1970, though I don't remember it then. Crossed and headed up Old Bath Road past a couple of snazzy bungalows that I wouldn't say no to, then turned right into Warren Road. Walked across the railway bridge over Sonning Cutting - I always find this bridge slightly unnerving, possibly because it's a quiet road and a partially open-sided bridge. Stopped by one of the Samaritans posters for a quick drink of water. Here's a Geograph photo of the bridge and the cutting in the snow.

Walked on through the northern part of Woodley, sitting down on a bench briefly in Woodford Park for Ruth to eat an energy ball, which seemed to revive her. Carried on to Waingels Road and turned right opposite the former Waingels Copse School onto an initially narrow footpath, opening out to run alongside a lake. Peaceful spot; we only saw a couple of anglers. Emerging from the footpath we carried on down Landsend Lane and went for a quick gander at Land's End ford, frequently in the local press after heavy rain with "D'oh, Another One's Done It" style headlines (and here's a piece in the Mail Online from 2010). There have been mutterings from locals, and possibly also the emergency services, that the next person who drives into it can just get themselves out.

Goods train seen from the Warren Road Bridge	In Woodford Park
Lake near Ashenbury Park	Land's End ford near Charvil

We crossed the Loddon at the footbridge not far from the ford and walked a short way down Whistley Mill Lane before turning left onto a footpath signposted to Twyford. Walked on under the railway and through the Loddon Nature Reserve, following a path along the Loddon to come out on the A3032 Old Bath Road in Twyford (the road used to be the main A4 before Twyford was bypassed in the 1920s). Turned right towards the town and popped into The Duke of Wellington for a reviving drink, before catching a train back to Reading.

Map of the route:

Walk, Marlow to Caversham, 16.2 miles

15 April

This walk was intended to be a serious test of my fitness for the upcoming trek distance. Again Ruth surprised me by offering to come, though she seems to be suffering from hip and knee pain after a certain number of miles, so I suggested that she dropped out halfway and went home if the distance was too much. Decided on a route along the Thames from Marlow to Henley, then across country via Harpsden and Binfield Heath back to Caversham (going the whole way back to Reading along the Thames Path would have taken the walk to 18 miles or so).

We took the Arriva 800 bus (an excellent service) at 0916, arriving in Marlow just before 10 am. Had only a brief wobble while walking down the high street to the river when Ruth tried to veer off into India Jane, but I managed to catch her in time before any shopping started. Set off westwards along the Thames Path, crossing the river at Temple Footbridge. At Hurley, the path crosses briefly back to an island in the middle of the river, where we stopped for a welcome cup of tea and ate the chipolatas and hard-boiled eggs we'd brought with us. Continued on past the lock and back across another bridge to the south (Berkshire) bank. Onwards past the collection of bungalows off Black Boy Lane - these form an interesting contrast with most of the properties along the river banks - and the posher houses at Frogmill.

A bit further on the path crossed in front of Culham Court and into trees before emerging on Aston Lane by The Flower Pot. Here we continued along Remenham Lane, rejoining the Thames Path at Remenham. Continued on into Henley, which was the halfway point, and sat on a bench by The Angel to eat some sandwiches. Ruth decided she was OK to continue, so after a visit to the public conveniences at Mill Meadows we turned away from the Thames Path and headed out of the town via Harpsden Road and Harpsden Way. Passed the gates of the 13th-century Harpsden Court, which appears to have been for sale last year. Puffed our way up Chalk Hill and then, after dodging traffic and golfers from Henley Golf Club, past Mays Green to Binfield Heath, passing The Bottle & Glass, which Ruth looked at wistfully.

Thames near Henley	Gates of Harpsden Court
Walking through Harpsden	Bluebells in woodland near Binfield Heath

We stopped briefly - our third and last stop - at a picnic table in Binfield Heath to have a drink and eat some sweet stuff, then tramped the last few miles via Dunsden Green and Kiln Road down into Caversham.

Map of the route:

Here's the elevation and pace graph. Chalk Hill is the steep climb at about time 3:45.

Feet a bit tired afterwards, and we did little that evening other than flop around and order a Thai takeaway, but on the whole few after effects. Am reasonably encouraged. It's still only half the bloody trek distance though.

Walk, Thames Path from Windsor to Maidenhead, 11.73 miles

8 April

Ruth surprised me by offering to come with me for this one. We took the train (well, two trains) around 9:30am from Reading to Windsor & Eton Central. On arrival, Ruth decided she was hungry and needed fortifying before we set off - this wasn't unexpected, but her sudden craving for a sausage roll was, meaning that we had to walk past lots of nice potential second breakfast spots in the 'Windsor Royal Shopping' arcade and ended up at a fairly terrible café on Thames Street called 'Lilebet's' - I can find no reference to it online which seems odd. To prove it exists, here's our receipt. The 'Misc Food' was two sausage rolls - I only had a couple of bites of mine as it was fairly dire. We agreed later to airbrush the incident out of history. Except that I've just recorded it here.

We crossed the pedestrianised Windsor Bridge into Eton and turned left to cross the Brocas, following bends in the river for a while, passing Royal Windsor Racecourse on the opposite bank, before we briefly detoured to look at the chapel of St Mary Magdalene, Boveney. Cute little church with a weatherboarded tower. It's apparently under the care of the Friends of Friendless Churches, which is nice. Very plain building but it looked well cared for.

The path passed close to one end of the huge Dorney Lake and its clubhouse, where we once held an event when I worked for Progress South Central. A while further on, more interestingly, we passed Oakley Court, a Victorian Gothic house that was briefly home to Hammer Films in the late 1940s/early 1950s. Hammer seem to have made a bit of a thing of shooting in country houses - prior to moving to Oakley, they apparently occupied another large house in Cookham Dean - variously referred to online as Dial Close and as Dial Place; I didn't manage to find a photo - before being asked to leave after locals complained about the noise. After leaving Oakley, they seem to have moved to a house in Essex and then back to the Thames again to Down Place, which became Bray Studios. The site unfortunately seems to be under threat - I guess the temptation to sell the prime Thames-side site for housing will be just too tempting. We did pass Down Place a short way on from Oakley Court, looking derelict. On a brighter note, Oakley Court is clearly thriving in its current guise as a luxury hotel - its lawns were covered in people sunning themselves when we passed.

Chapel of St Mary Magdalene, Boveney	Oakley Court
Sunny path	The former Bray Studios

At Summerleaze Footbridge we crossed to the Bray side of the river and took a rather longer than expected detour into the village to look for lunch. I had naively imagined it might have something like a café doing cheese toasties, but there's nothing there apart from high-end looking pubs and restaurants. We made for The Crown, which was the most accessible-looking one, though we soon realised it was fairly posh. The staff were lovely though and we had a very pleasant lunch in the sunny courtyard. I only discovered later that it's owned by Heston Blumenthal, who evidently owns several establishments in Bray. There's a complimentary review of The Crown here.

Map of the route

After lunch we retraced our steps to the footbridge - we'd hoped it might be possible to re-cross the Thames at Bray Lock, but it isn't (we established this from the helpful valet outside The Waterside Inn). We trundled on for the remaining couple of miles to Maidenhead Bridge and then the remaining mile through the town to the railway station.

Bray and The Waterside Inn from the opposite bank