Cake on a Windowsill

Flooded Thames

Friday I showed a little of the Thames at Cholsey Marsh so I though I would do a little bit about this as previously I was in Wallingford and went along to the Thames to get some photos of the flooding. Wallingford Bridge makes a good vantage point to look at the Thames. Check out the links as you read though to see how bad it has been.

Above we look upstream of the bridge. Back in Jan 2013 I took this photo of a narrow boat that had sunk in the floods because  the owner did not slacken the ropes.

I noticed another one inn the photo above only this one had floated into the adjoining meadow. I have not been back to see it they managed to move it back on the Thames now it has gone down

These are the river meadows beside the Thames over towards Crowmarsh.
Right the riverside park at Wallingford which as you can see is flooded. In the past the water is so high the car park is well under water. Not only that the houses out of photo to the right have had narrow escapes

The Boathouse which is now a restaurant and bar is in the clear here  but in the past it has not been so lucky as you can see in the link where the water came inside

The bridge has always been a marker point for me where I would go to see how high the level went 

This link shows how high it gets

The flood marks from the past make interesting reading, the 1894 one is the highest level

One mark has no date an I wonder if if some person scribed the line but did not put a date. Check out this link to see panoramic view's of how bad it has been. Lucky this year it was not so bad but who know how this will change in the future.

Taking Part in Our World Tuseday

St James the Great Radley

This week the Church Explorer visits Radley and St James the Great. A church which is near Radley College and  well worth the effort of visiting.

Skywatch a Year and a Day

The other night I was uploading photo's of a site I use and noticed the day, it was the 22nd February, I thought it would be neat to get some a year later but it was a little late being it was late evening so the next day I went off and took some new photos in the same spot more of less, you will see why.
PS this blog is a little longer than usual

The crocuses grow on the bank at the Pavilion

There are still blooming a year and a day later

 The end of Ferry lane  year ago the Thames flowing past smoothly

You will pass this sign if you walk along the path

Cholsey Marsh

Ferry Lane, used to be called Papist way but they made a ferry years ago and changed the name. My Dad used to use it  but after the war it fell into disuse and stopped operating

Managed to do a stitch of the marsh and Ferry Lane

So a year and a day later this is how it looked

The marsh is not a lot different

The lane has some big puddles in it there have been times I would have been up to my kneed in water here

And this is as near as I can get to the Thames. The signpost you saw is in the floods to the right, the Thames some where past the green outcrops

 A new pano of the marsh

 and one of the sky

I went back today & took this shot of the Thames, it had gone down even further. No doubt it will flood again

With my iPhone, today

The 23rd a few days ago

 Wallingford Bridge on the 20th, the water had gone down

Looking downstream from Wallingford Bridge, if you look over on the left you can see a narrow boat, it slopped it's mooring and is over on the bank, now sure where it is now but the river has gone down and unless they moved it it high & dry

I know someone who visits my blog who has had tea here a few years ago the water was over the top and in the place. If you want to see more photos of the weather then have a look at my other blog called the British Weather 
I have to feel for other parts of the country who are having some awful flooding and there places I travel to Wales where it is not passable because of flooding. That is not to say there are places around here that get like that but at the moment we are OK but there is more rain on the way so who can say what will happen

Happy Skywatch

Hedgehog Tunnel

Interesting Shops

Thought I would do something a little different this week on the back of a Wordless Wednesday Post a few weeks ago. While in Wallingford the other day I visited the shop because I found out it sold bread flower. Before I took the bus home I had a quick walk around to get some photos of some other interesting shops

 


I'll start at the Cookhouse Deli which is where I went to get bread flower which is made at a local mill not far away  in Wantage. I  wanted onion bread flower (flour with bits of onion in) which they had. On the top of this counter they had cheese to taste, the Stilton was top notch

The other display had various meats to purchase. They also sell fresh bread which people who have bought it are impressed with. I'll be going back here that is for sure

Along St Mary's street is Just Trading which sells  Fair Trade goods and organic food. I have been in here to get a present for my wife

Nearby if you look across the road you will see this entrance. Many years ago this was not here but made when the area to the left was redeveloped

Go though and you find Pettits, this used to dominate St Mary's & ST Martin's street  until it was bought out and redeveloped. The shop now operates out of these precesses

Not been in in this one but it looked interesting selling some nice little gifts

Opposite you will find this place the George Hotel
It a 16th century coaching in and I've spent many an evening here with my fiends when I was younger. It is also the place we had our wedding reception after we got married

I'll finish here. The Old Post Office this was built in 1936 and is one of the very few places you will find a coat of alms for Edward VIII he was king for that year the abdicated. The post office some the building and moved to a trading estate outside the town. The took the Roll Of Honour that  used to hang on the wall and I used to look at when I went in. It is now a restaurant

Never been here maybe one day

Taking Part in Our World Tuesday 

St Swithun Kennington

This week the Church Explorer visits St Swithun Kennington, a 1950's church that replaced it's older counterpart that is still in use as the Church Hall

The old an new St Swithun's church