Ascot to Windsor, via Valley Garden, Windsor Great Park

April 30:  After cooking breakfast in our flat, we hustled to a local bus stop to catch a 20 minute ride to Ascot.  Our plan was to walk through Ascot, over to Virginia Water, visit Valley Garden and then walk back to Windsor and our flat.  We did it - just under 11 miles.

We joined a clutch of elderly women for the bus ride to Ascot, which worked well.  We got off at the train station and walked a quarter mile back to the High Street (there is one of these in every town) and the race course.  The track has a triangular layout with a couple of extensions heading off from the corners.  There is a very grand, multi-level stadium or stands - see photo.  You can imagine where the Queen and other Royalty have boxes.  Royal Ascot is in June so we will have to miss it - we don't have the proper clothes nor any "fascinators."

Two furlongs from the finish line

Betsy and I walked along the side of the track that parallels the stadium, going all the way out one of the track extensions.  The track actually passes over a rather busy road in this corner.  We walked down an broad, grass path to a very fancy, old iron gate.  We imagined it was the route used by the Queens, etc. to reach the stadium.  While the gate is not far from Windsor Great Park, there is still a ways to go before one gets onto what is now royal land.



We went directly to the north side of Virginia Water where a public garden, known as Valley Garden, is located.



We wandered around on various "colored" paths, admiring the many rhododendrons, azaleas and a few other trees/bushes that were blooming.  There is a large collection of trees from around the world, too;  all of the identification tags gave scientific names only.  While we knew Acer, Quercus, and Magnolia, we looked up a few others - Sorbus, Alnus, Betulus, and Davidia.  These are Mountain Ash, Alder, Hornbeam, and Handkerchief or Ghost, respectively.

We went back through a heather garden to exit toward the Guards Polo grounds.  We tried to look around some here but were shooed away since we weren't members.  Prince Philip is the president of the Board for the club.  There were to be 3 matches this afternoon on adjacent fields and while we could see horse vans and shelters, there was no other sign of activity.

We marched on across the great park along tracks to Snow Hill, the southern terminus of the Long Walk.

George III on Snow Hill (horse name unknown)

We have now done the Long Walk in both directions.

The Long Walk to Windsor Castle

Lots of families were out with their dogs.  We watched a dachshund scampering around sniffing the grass after repeatedly demanding his owner throw a ball.  His tail wagged at lightning speed and he must have covered 5 to 10 times the distance his humans walked.  The weather is still a bit chilly, especially when the sun is blocked by clouds and the wind is blowing.

Thames Path - Henley to Marlow to Windsor

April 27:  We got started early, caught a 9 am train from Windsor and were in Henley by 10:15 am.  The day was dry and mostly sunny.  We walked 10.5 miles.

We passed through the main downtown section of Henley, over an 1780 era bridge to the historic Leander Rowing Clubhouse.  We watched four gentlemen in their 70s launch a shell and set off for a morning row. We could imagine that they had been rowing together for fifty years.



Eight young, strapping men were putting their shell away as we walked by.  We saw a single women disembark and picked her shell out of the water.  The shells don't weight much, one guesses.

Just a few shells in storage at Leander

While the famous Henley Regatta isn't until July, setup of large tents and grandstands were underway.  We walked the "metalled surface" path (means "asphalt") to Temple Island, the straight racing course starting point.  Interestingly, they race upstream.

Betsy with Temple Island in the background

Using our new bird book,  we identified several new waterfowl species including a tufted duck and a great crested grebe.  We have also seen lots of mallards, red kites, wood pigeons and crows.  Later we tried to identify some smaller perching species.  We were practicing.

We passed several locks, small marinas, small villages and some amazing country estates. The most amazing was Culham Court, House and Farm - handsome buildings and expensive landscaping. It had an astonishing large herd of white deer and our path traversed their pasture.  We had a brief encounter with a small herd of cows who were blocking our path and showed no interest in moving aside.   We pushed through politely but firmly.

We detoured off the path at Hurley to have lunch at The Olde Bell.  It was a charming pub in a quaint village, built in the 12th century.  I bumped my head going to the upstairs toilets.  We had sandwiches with side salads and chips (fries for us Americans).

The Olde Belle of Hurley

We crossed the river and bumped our way into the pretty town of Marlow.  It is famous for an iron suspension bridge that resembles the Hammersmith Bridge in London and a bridge in Budapest.

An "iron bridge"

We had booked a room for the night on the ground floor of a modern row house, owned by Helen, a business coach.  After a long day of walking, we were grateful to have a predetermined place to sleep, even if it was a bit off the path.

Helen recommended her favorite pub, The Two Brewers, down by the river, where we had dinner.

Note, there is Betsy, again with her layers of warmth on

April 28:  We continued our walk today, leaving Marlow and going all the way to Windsor.  We are tired and footsore - we walked 15.5 miles today, for a  total 2-day walk of 26 miles.

The day started with DIY french toast in our flat (Helen does not do breakfast) and we embarked near 10:00 am.  We walked back to the river, passing the church, the famous bridge (which is narrow and a bit fragile, having been completed in 1832) and The Two Brewers, our dinner spot last night.  I took photos of these spots, see above.

We walked along the north bank (or left side, going downstream) to Bourne End, passing other walkers or joggers and dogs, numerous attractive riverside homes (or "piles" as I call them) and meadows.  The homes were representative of all styles ranging from classical revival, victorian to tudor; there was even a home built in the "castle" style.  These homes back up to Quarry Wood, which is believed to serve as model for author Kenneth Grahame's Wind in the Willows story.  At Bourne End, we crossed the river on a pedestrian-only bridge to the right bank.  The homes opposite got much grander, possibly why they moved the path to the other side.  We walked by Cock Marsh and on into Cookham.  This was the home of Kenneth Grahame and Sir Stanley Spencer, a 20th century painter of some note, who is buried in a local churchyard.

We next crossed some flat, marshy areas (3 ferries were needed to cross the river here) to a long straight stretch into Maidenhead.  We passed Cliveden Estate, high on hill and across the river.  This is a National Trust property and rates some mention as a tourist stop.  We arrived in Maidenhead and stopped for a snack in riverside cafe.  While there, we got talking with a man who is serious walker and traded stories.  He was off to do a part of the Pennine Way next week.  He also said it took him 10 years to complete the 600+ mile Southwest Coast Path.

After crossing the river again and for the last time until Windsor, we passed under the widest arch bridge at around 185 feet, made entirely of brick.  It was designed in 1839 for the Great Western Railway.

Two arches spanning the river

It was a long haul, past a couple more locks, several marinas, boat houses, swans and ducks, and lots of boats, to Eton, and across the river to Windsor.  One interesting note, we walked next to Dorney Lake, which is a long, rectangular, artificial body of water, inland from the river.  It was the site of the Olympic Rowing competitions.  It is nearly 1.4 miles long, though it seemed much longer when we were walking beside it.  There is a rowing regatta scheduled for this coming Sunday there that involves all manner of boats and age classes of rowers.  It lasts over 12 hours with a race about every 6 minutes.  There were lots of "fours" and "eights" out training on the river, and many more smaller boats using Dorney.

We padded into Eton, seeing Windsor Castle from yet another perspective.  The Queen is still here (note the banner).



We came home and collapsed.  The weather for our 2-day walkabout was dry, under partly cloudy skies, but cold.  The forecasters predict snow in the highlands of Scotland today, with a possibility of snow reaching the lowlands, too.  We are ready for a change in the other direction.

Thames Path - Windsor to Runnymede

April 26:  After a slow start (I think we are time adjusted), we were off for a walk on the Thames Path, a National Trail.  The path runs the length of the Thames from its source in the Cotswolds to the Thames Barrier, east of London.  We chose to walk from Windsor to Runnymede, downstream passing the Romney Lock, the Home Park (great views up to Windsor Castle), town of Datchet, town of Old Windsor (the first "windlass") and its lock, to Runnymede.

This lock and the next one is "Self Service" - the captain or crew get to operate the gates

 Just before Old Windsor, we diverted to a 13th century flint stone church.  The surrounding yard was quite colorful.

We next arrived to the outskirts of Runnymede, the site of the Magna Carta signing in 1215.

The site is a large, open field beside a busy highway.  We walked out to a sculpture that was commissioned to mark the 800th anniversary.  It is called the Jurors.  There are 12 chairs, with each chair front and back, sculpted with symbolic images reflecting the concepts of justice, human rights, and other social issues or events.

A loud-hailer belonging to Harvey Milk, the assassinated San Francisco Superintendent

One of two representations of Freedom of Speech (On-line)

The explanation for the chair panel above is "In 2014, Sir Tim Berners-Lee, inventor of the world wide web, called for an online Magna Carta to protect and enshrine the independence of the medium he created and the rights of its user worldwide."

"The destruction or redaction of evidence in a worldwide activity undertaken by states wishing to hide incriminating documentation of their activities."

 After The Jurors, we walked by a memorial to John F. Kennedy, which is on a small piece of American ground, given to the US in 1963 for this purpose.  Next door is the American Bar Association Memorial to the Magna Carta.

We walked back to our flat after a tea break, partially along busy roads.  We made it to the Long Walk and had this view of Windsor Castle.

Windsor Castle and Horse Racing

April 25:  It is getting colder, though we were outside a lot today moving slowly.  We were a few minutes late for the 11 am changing of the guard at Windsor Castle.

The Royal Band

The Round Tower (with one flat side) and dry Moat

Since we were there, we queued up for tickets to tour the castle.  We got two senior tickets which give us unlimited entry for a year (after signing up on our exit from the castle).

We first had a tour of the "Precincts" with a guide - an introduction to the grounds, the Round Tower, the Quadrangle (which the private quarters and State Rooms surround), the dry Moat, and the North Terrace (which overlooks the Thames and Eton College).

Norman Gate leading to Upper Quad

The south side of the Quad where foreign visitors stay; the Queen's Private Quarters are to the left in the corner (not shown)

We were left on our own (with lots of other tourists) to tour the State Rooms with an handheld audio guide.  We first saw Queen Mary's dollhouse and Shakespeare exhibit - we saw copies of the First, Second, Third Folios and various other old books collected by the early Kings for their libraries.  The State Rooms tour snakes through one side of the Upper Ward quadrangle building, which includes several guard rooms (lots of swords, rifles and pistols on the wall), the Waterloo Room (homage to the successful defeat of Napoleon), various King's and Queen's drawing, bed and other rooms, and the State Dining room (site of all grand dinners).  The route extended all the way to the northeast corner where the fire broke out in 1992.  The fire destroyed 1/5 of the castle but was completely repaired in five years at a cost of 36 million pounds, paid for by opening up Buckingham Palace for summer tours.  

We then finished the audio tour by going through St. George's Chapel.  It is famous for its "fan vaulting" or stone arches supporting the roof.  It is also where the current 28 Knights of the Garter have banners, headgear and half-drawn swords displayed over his/her assigned choir stall.  As one of the current Knights die, the Queen may select a new one.  She and Prince Charles are members of this group and 26 others who have done marvelous, heroic things for the country.  Prime ministers and the like are the usual members and once a year in June they all gather for a ceremony and induction, if any.  Note, you will have to imagine the castle's interiors for yourself since all photography is prohibited.

St George's Chapel, West End

We returned to our flat after buying a few groceries and "tea time" pastries.  We had tea in an attempt to warm up.

And we then went to the horse races.  We walked a brisk 2+ miles to the Windsor Racecourse for an evening of 6 flat races.  We arrived just as the first race ended, but watched the next 5.  We had a grand time experiencing British racing with the Pre-Parade Ring (horses warm up by walking without saddles with a "lad"), the Parade Ring (more walking with saddles on, owners, trainers and jockeys finalizing race strategies and mount up of jockeys), an odd figure 8 course (most of the race is 'way off in the distance'), the sprint to the finish line in front of the Club House, the Winner's Enclosure (where money and champagne is awarded) and the "punters" or book makers (umbrellas with electronic toot boards control by computers continually calculating the odds).  I placed a single bet (Betsy's beer money for the night) on a "middling" horse for an eight to one payout.  So sad, Betsy got no beer tonight - the horse came in in the middle of the field.  It is a very pretty site next to the Thames with green fields and a view east to Windsor Castle.  One race was disrupted by 2 swans on the race course.  We walked home in misting rain to get warm; we were chilled to the bone and the walk helped some to warm us up.  We picked up fish and chips (take away) for dinner. 

Off to the Starting Gates

The winner (Wettles) of the fourth race with owners, trainers, etc.

The Book Makers and view along the track from the Club Viewing Stands

Sunday in Windsor

April 24:  Brr.  The day was mostly overcast, breezy and chilly.  If the weather stays this cold, I will use up all my warm clothing far too soon.  At least it's good to know we can use the combination washer/dryer in our rental unit.  I never knew that anyone had invented a unit that can function as both a washer and a dryer (but our landlord says they typically hang their wet stuff over the radiators to dry rather than deal with the dryer process).

After a relaxed breakfast we wandered into the Windsor center, partly to continue scoping out the town and partly to accomplish a couple of errands.  Phil visited the O2 shop in search of a SIM chip for his iPhone.  The guy was very helpful and had nearly completed the transaction when it became apparent that somehow the phone, purchased specifically to be unlocked was still locked by AT&T.  Phil, to his credit, resisted a melt-down and started an on-line dialogue with AT&T after getting home later in the afternoon that should result in a usable phone, maybe by Tuesday.

The main shopping street of Windsor

We then visited the Waterstone Bookstore and came away with 2 guides to the Thames River Path  -one for the upper section, from Oxford to Hampton Court, and the other covering the route from Hampton Court past the Thames Barrier.  The guides describe the path, the local amenities, and the bus/train connections along the way.  We also bought a guide to European birds, which are mostly very different from our North American species, especially the little guys.  It's almost pointless to try to match guide book photos with little birds, since they never sit still long enough to be identified.  Still, it's good exercise to try.

We wandered through one of the two train stations in search of information about connections to London - it turns out the second station is the one that takes us closest to our next accommodations in London.  It's good to know we have choices.  The pedestrian shopping area and the station arcade were full of locals doing shopping and tourists trying to stay warm.  We then walked through quaint Windsor, across the Thames, into quaint Eton and past Eton College.  The school boys were out playing soccer,  practicing cricket, or heading for the golf course - preparing for life on the fields of Eton.

The famous quote is "The battle of Waterloo was won on the playing fields of Eton."

We followed back lanes and footpaths to the Thames River path, walking just a short segment before crossing back to Windsor.  We returned to our flat after picking up some pastries for tea.

Just before 5 pm, we walked up to Windsor Castle and the St. George Chapel to attend Evensong.  The service started with a Taverner introit, ended with Bach, and featured sung (rather than spoken)  liturgies, performed by a very high quality choir of men and boys.  We sat in the choir stalls and admired the elaborate Gothic architecture and the very ornamented insignia for the members of the Royal Order of the Garter, who are the main members of this building.

St. George's Chapel - Henry VIII and Jane Seymour buried here

The banner above the round tower signifies the Queen is in residency

Henry VIII Gate

 After Evensong, we retired to a warm Italian cafe for dinner.  We started with beautifully thin slices of zucchini and parmesan cheese and a plate of roasted vegetables.  Phil had ravioli stuffed with porcini mushrooms, and I had ravioli stuffed with ricotta cheese and drowning in butter.  There was a brief shower while we sat at the bay window table eating, but walked home in dry weather.

Windsor Great Park

April 23:  Today was a 'great' walk in and around Windsor Great Park, the extensive land holdings that are south of Windsor Castle and owned/managed by the royal family/government.  To get the statistics out of the way first, we walked 13.5 miles in just over 4 hours.

We had a partly cloudy day with some sun and no rain, but a bit cool, in the fifties.  It was a good day for walking.  We started out on the "Long Walk," a 2.3-mile straight promenade that runs between Windsor Castle and Snow Hill (The Copper Horse statue).  It is paved, used by lots of runners, walkers and strollers, with no bicycles allowed.  There was an occasional warden patrol car.

Long Walk Northward

Long Walk Southward

Looking back from Snow Hill to Windsor Castle

The Copper Horse

We then traversed to Savill Gardens, one of two gardens in the park.  Not much was blooming so we passed on going in, but looked through the gift shop and had a snack in the restaurant.  The building has a wave shaped roof that is framed in larch, all harvested from the park grounds.

Larch-framed roof

Virginia Water was next.  It is a man-made lake, first dammed in 1750s and re-built shortly after a flood washed out the first dam, by King George III (his "workers" one presumes).

The Cascades created by dam

We made it to the outskirts of Ascot, turned north along a Park access road to "The Village," bypassing the Jubilee Statue and then to Queen Anne's Ride, a 2-mile straight bridleway back to Windsor.  Prince Philip "planted the 1,000 trees along the bridleway in 1992."  The last mile of our walk was along King's Road directly to our cottage.

300-year old oak tree and perspective - that's a lot of board feet

We passed in and out of the park numerous times, thereby seeing the following gates - Doubles, Bishops, Cumberland, Blacknest, Ascot, Prince Consort's and Queen Anne's.  We saw large herds of deer, many pheasants, a couple of hawks, 2 green parrots, a hare and a variety of little birds.  There were lots of families, kids on scooters (2, 3 and 4-wheeled) and small dogs chasing each other and balls.