Ferry Lane

This week I'll take you to another part of the Thames Path at Cholsey Marsh, this is the other end of the place I showed a week or so ago. The Marsh has changed a lot over the years and is a far cry to what I remember as a kid.

This is Ferry lane of the end of it near the River Thames. Ferry lane used to be called Papist way

Looking over to the left you can see the Marsh, this has grown up over the years with trees and reeds. Cattle used to graze here and the places was cropped short then

The Thames Path Finger sign

Above the Thames Path that runs through the marsh



One of the information signs at the Marsh gate, there is another the opposite end

 The River Thames looking over towards Little Stoke

That is Ferry Lane on the Little stoke side. There was a ferry there that used to take people across. I heard storeys of my dad taking it across to a pub in South Stoke during the Second World War. The American forces also made a bridge across here before D Day no doubt as a practise for the real thing. If you click on the Link I put above you can see an old view taken in 1890 from the other side of the river

Left looking upstream from Ferry Lane

I'll leave you with this view of the Thames from Ferry Lane. I'll take you on a walk through the Mash another time.

Taking Part in Our World Tuesday

End of the Barns

Many years ago I took this photo of some old barns outside the village, they had become dilapidated and one had collapsed

Eventually the barn was removed and the others renovated and another built

One of the ones built is out of site over to the right of the photos but the looked better and they were used by some business or other

Then the other week I walked past and they were gone, all of them demolished

All you could see was the demolition machine and lots of tracks

This is looking at the site the other way towards the north the large area that is lighter was were one of the newer barns used to be. It's quite a big site so I assumed that it would be used for new business units but no, I looked up the planning and five blocks of housing is going in here three of them looking like barns. I await to see what the look like and cost.

Taking part in Our World Tuesday

Remembrance Sunday

Over the weekend we had Remembrance Sunday you may have seen the post I published. Cholsey commemorated the centenary of the ending of the First World War like other towns and villages through out the country. They all celebrated in their own way.

 During the week Cholsey Remembers 1914-1918 was fixed to the chains that surrounded the Forty

It was made up poppies knitted by the local people

 Sunday the number 100 was placed near the memorial, each poppy had a name of one of one of the fallen from Cholsey who gave their life. There were over 60 making the number up

 I could not tell you if they were placed in order

 But each poppy had a name

Every man who lost his life was remembered

 The Chestnut tree was decorated with poppies. The tree was probably  one of the last things the men saw of the village when they went off to war

The memorial was decorated with stones which were painted by the village primary school then placed in a box. People were asked to pick one and place around the memorial after the service

People were asked to place a stone in memory of someone they knew from the war

The walnut tree you can see in the distance was also decorated though with less poppies and a black ribbon I found out after that there are 100 poppies here which we given to the the organiser but as they were different to the ones being sold they were used in the display you see. The last post was played by a young girl from the school and added to the occasion. Personally I felt it was fitting remembrance of those men from the village who gave their lives in such a terrible war.

Taking Part in Our World Tuesday

1914-1918 We Will Remember

Cholsey Remembers

Meadow View Clouds

 I have been taking photos of the progress of this new housing estate near me and this occasion it was cloudy but I might add no rain was forthcoming on this occasion a few weeks ago

 I will return again for more in the furure

Happy Skywatch everyone

Countryside Sky

From Tuesdays Walk The sky over Lollingdon with the downs in the background

The bridleway lookingtowards Cholsey

The bridleway towards Lollingdon 

Happy Skywatch

A Little Walk

A few weeks ago my wife & I went for a short walk around where we live so here are a few photos of what we saw

Cows munching on hay in one of the small meadows



Right there is a footpath here through the field

The bridge here is at the end of the path behind where I took the photo

The brook runs past the village further along

Above this is further along across the field near the brook you saw. You look towards Aston Upthorp

Left this is a place we call the Bullshole and a place as children that we all used to play. Over the years it has become well overgrown as no cattle come to drink here now.

A little further along you cross the brook  and if you walk through the wood you find this plaque

Over the 18 years since it was planted the wood has grown and hides the old railway embankment you could see

When I was a child this was grazing land where cattle used to be the filed was given to the village to mark the Queens Jubilee and is called Jubilee field. Millennium wood is at the end and was planted for future generations.
Hope you enjoyed the walk

East End Farm

East end farm in Cholsey has been there as long as I can remember and no doubt longer before that. A few years ago planning went in for the land to be redeveloped and so ensued a battle to stop this happening.  To my mind it was only a matter of time before the developers moved in and after having planning turned down a couple of times it went to appeal with the government who upheld the appeal.That meant the place would be demolished and work on new housing could begin.

 This was the farm back in 2013 when it was still a riding stables it's farming days had ceased a while ago though they did still keep sheep on other parts of the farm still owned

 There were some large buildings around the farm some older than others

  A couple of weeks ago this hording went up prior to that the farm owners were still living there, then one weekend the went and the hoarding went up

 There little house looks like this now nearly demolished

The old farm buldings have gone and are just a memory. It will not belong before you see houses being built and when it does I will show you the photos.

Snowy Walk

After the Beast had struck I decided to go for a walk around the village to see how much snow we had. There did not appear to be much around being as most of it was blown about

 Church road going over Bunk Arch

The school kids were on a snow day

Bunk Arch is a bridge that goes over an old branch railway now a preserved line. The locals call it the bunk line hence the name of the bridge

 Last Wordless Wednesday I did showed some snowdrops. They look a little sorry now 

Along with the rest of the churchyard 

Not many people had been up here

 Agatha Christy's grave looked very lonely in the snow

I took some time to go to the Elms bridge

To get a photo of the station which you may be able to make out through the Gantry's. Last time I took one from this place in similar conditions you could see it clearly

 I headed back through some biting cold wind 

Past my old school now a retirement home

then past the village green to home, glad to be out of the cold. Next week I will show what it was like in Wales when I went down after the second winter storm we had

Taking Part in Our World Tuesday