Nordic Walking The Thames Path: Leg Seven
The Thames Path: Leg Seven
Wallingford to Pangbourne
When: Wednesday 10th September 2025
Miles Walked: 14.36
Steps Taken: 28,572
Moving Time: 4:51:27
Elevation Gain: 329 ft
Today is our 31st Wedding Anniversary, so we begin the day by walking across the bridge into Wallingford in search of a cooked breakfast! We end up at Mollie’s Café and have arrived just before they open, so take shelter from the rain whilst they put out the furniture! We eat a delicious breakfast (highly recommended!) and cuppa before heading out into the now dry weather, it’s still a bit gloomy. Leaving Steve to his morning I set off to find the Thames Path again.
The Thames Path leads me down the imaginatively named Thames Street passing St Peter’s Church whose spire I had spotted as we crossed the bridge. The original medieval church had been destroyed during the Civil War and so a new church was completed in 1769, the unusual spire was added in 1775, designed by famous architect Robert Taylor. It was the stained glass window that caught my eye as I passed! At the end of the street is another church, St Leonards the oldest of the three remaining churches in Wallingford, it is believed to be of Saxon origin. Turning left at the church the path leads down a narrow path.
Once out by the river again I pass by the Oxford University Boat Club (very smart looking) and many private pontoons and then the path leads to a shaded tree-lined footpath, cross a footbridge and come out into a field of cattle, thankfully they completely ignore me as they are too busy munching grass! This field leads to a road bridge where this apt grafitti adorns the opposite bank.
On this part of the path as well as more private pontoons I pass a garden littered with objects, one of which is this AquaScrubber from the River & Rowing Museum in Henley. The path continues close by the river on a narrow strip of land littered with leaves , twigs and other natural debris. The weather is scattered sunshine currently! I pass through another field which harbours another Pill Box.
I pass by Cholsey Marsh nature reserve, a scarce habitat these days due to farming practices. Apparently is provides a home to a wealth of plants, birds, insects and other wildlife that depend on the wet reed and sedge beds including a colony of rare Desmoulin whorl snail! They’ve cleared an area of willow trees by the river and created a dead hedge to my right, a sight I’ll see a few more times this morning. Continuing along the path I pass under a canopy of Damson trees (too big to be Sloes) and then across a boardwalk before heading under a railway bridge.
Beyond the railway bridge is a very narrow path with railway green fencing on one side and quite dense hedging on the other, in amongst the hedging I spot a dragonfly who stays still long enough for me to capture his/her beauty, I also spot a walnut tree and gather a few nuts to eat later. The path leads up a very claggy driveway between the sports fields of Moulsford Private School and onto the relatively busy main road. I stop to check my directions by an old school which still has its clock and bell (now a home). I pass the main Moulsford School and a row of old cottages before turning left down a small lane.
The lane has a gorgeous wall for quite some way down it and I reach The Beetle and Wedge Pub where I stop to get a stamp in my passport and for a cheeky comfort break. The Thames Path goes through the pub terrace and along where there are private moorings with some very interesting residences! Here they have made some great improvements to the path, but it doesn’t last long!
The path opens up onto a very wide floodplain and I pass through Cleeve Lock and weir, I must be getting close to Goring as I pass Goring Thames Sailing Club.. The path leads into a narrower tree-lined area and up and over a private cut. There are some expensive looking boathouses along this stretch, very elaborate! Not sure if they are mock Tudor or the real thing! More boardwalks lead to the back of St Mary’s Church where Lewis Carroll (Author of Alice in Wonderland) preached in 1864.
Reaching the High Street I walk along to the bridge over the Thames and spy Steve (my lunch date) waiting for me. We head to a café called Pierreponts and enjoy a delicious lunch (Coronation chicken baguettes) whilst the heavy laden clouds burst with a torrential downpour! Thankfully it isn’t sustained and afterwards I have a little wander into Goring to supplement my Anniversary gift for Steve!
Goring on Thames village hall has a stunning clock tower on the top of its village hall with some superior leadwork which was refurbished in 2016. Goring is also famous (apparently) for being where the late George Michael (Wham) lived and on the Thames Path beyond the bridge there is a fans memorial to him, reminds me a bit of Ianto’s Shrine (IYKYK). I’m now walking down the glistening tarmac on the riverside passing narrowboats and kicking up the carpet of Horse Chestnut Trees leaves this is a very pretty stretch! There is a very modern glass box jutting out over the water on the opposite bank.
Norbert finds a post to sit upon and demands his portrait be taken and the path continues quietly with the odd swan gracefully swimming by. I walk through a wider field which then leads me under a railway bridge which was one of Brunel’s Great Western masterpieces. Here the footpath narrows and runs between fences away from the river and weirdly this London Anglers Association symbol appears (not by the river!)
The path becomes more rural again and the scenery more undulating and there are wooded areas that are wonderfully providing great habitats for fungi! Dryads Saddle and Glistening Inkcaps (so delicate!) are the ones I spotted!
I head away from the river again and pass a sign for Hartleys Steps, which is weird because there are no steps, I carefully negotiate my way down the slope and then see the steps going steeply up away from me. Ugghhh. There are two men descending the steps and so I have to wait as the foliage is overgrowing the steps meaning it is single file currently and not easy to Nordic walk up either. The path levels out and leads to a very long driveway which passes Coombe Park and Rivendell Farm. It eventually leads to Whitchurch-on-Thames. The path leads along the road to the church.
Once around the church I come to the Toll Bridge, which is free for walkers , but cost Steve 60p I learnt later! I walk across the bridge and into a carpark where I spy Clara! I have had a good day collecting stamps for my passport!
