Shepperton to Richmond on Thames - Day 10

Today we were anticipating a much easier day than yesterday, 14 miles instead of 25.  Last night we couldn't believe we'd ever walk on those feet again . . . but amazingly enough, we could!  Nothing like good drink, good dinner and a great sleep to revive your legs, feet and attitude.

Before we started, we had a bet on which route to the Thames Path would be quicker, back to the river and over the Ferry, or over the alternate route through Shepperton.   The girls took the Ferry and the boys took the alternate route and guess who won?   Of course the girls won!!!

The girls out of the starting gate and on the trail bright and early.

A little view of suburban Shepperton

The ever present rowers out for a morning row with their coach tagging along.

A few beautiful houses along the way towards Molsey.  The weather is obviously mild enough here that even some palm trees can survive.

 A team of 8 rowers, obviously novices, getting instruction from a coach in the back.

 A strange looking little goose family on the river bank.

By noon we were making very good time and had already reached Hampton Court, the palace of King Henry VIII, you remember, the guy who liked to behead everyone.  Here are a few pics of his Crib.

Rock Star Cover Album at Hampton Court!  Cool hikers, eh?

Layout of the palace.

Back gates of the palace grounds.

A swan family just past Hampton Court, with the little, grey Cygnets swimming with Mom & Dad.

The riverside is now starting to take on the character of a city instead of a small collection of villages and towns.  This picture was taken as we were approaching Kingston, the next large destination before our destination today, Richmond.  We stopped in a small pub in Kingston for a quick lunch and then headed back out to the trail.

Strange looking boat architecture parked in Kingston.

Cool tile mosaic embedded in the brick on an office building in Kingston.

Our Thames Path morale booster along the trail.

Don's typical light lunch in Kingston.

Teppington Lock.  From here on the Thames should become tidal.

First glimpse of Richmond from afar.

Marble Hill House, built in the 1720's for the mistress of King of George II.

Approach shot of our hotel as we walked into Richmond.  We are staying in the small white one below, not the big historic one up top.

We arrived at our hotel in record time today at 2:30 pm.  Time for a quick pint, then off to Richmond to buy food and drink for the open air concert we are attending nearby tonight.

Ever wonder where all those poppies are made for Remembrance Day?  In Richmond!

To night the gang attended an outdoor concert at the famed Kew Gardens.  The Kew is said to possess every plant variety on earth in it's seed library.  The head liner was Jools Holland, Jamie Lawson and Adam Double.  It was a fantastic evening of music and what a crowd.  We were joined by friends and former colleagues of Pete's, one of which now is in the business of making party foods.  Needless to say we had a picnic feast.  Have a look at some of the photos of the concert.

Maidenhead to Shepperton - Day 9

Today was a mammoth day!  We walked a whopping 25.2 miles (37.4km's)  to reach Shepperton...

From our hotel just outside Maidenhead, we stopped to pick up a "to go" breakfast at a small grocery store, then stopped along the river to eat breakfast.  We then set out in direction Eton and Windsor, our first destinations for the day.  With so much to see in Eton and Windsor, we knew we we would have a long march to reach Shepperton this afternoon so we kept a quick pace today and only one pub stop. 

Below is a picture of the royal barge Gloriana which we saw on the way to Eton, parked at a small island in the river.  She was privately commissioned as a tribute to the Queen for her Diamond Jubilee and was the lead vessel in the Thames River Jubilee Pageant.

A small castle like building across the river on the way to Eton which we weren't able to identify.  Could be a school, hotel . . . ?   Was impressive looking in any case.

As we arrived at the outskirts of Eton, the impressive rowing facilities were evident everywhere, especially around the prestigious Eton College rowing school.  Below, we saw four obviously experienced rowers being put through their paces by their coach.

A little further down the road we came across the official Eton College rowing facilities on the Dorney lakes which was the venue for all the Olympic rowing and kayaking events at the London Olympics.

Our ever present Thames Path directional markers along the path.

Cool street art under a bridge on the way into Eton.

As we emerged from the woods after seeing the rowing facilities, we caught our first glimpse of Windsor castle towering over the town of Windsor on the other side of the Thames and the town of Eton on our side of the river.  The sheer size of it and how it dominated the surrounding landscape was impressive!

Closer up pic of the Windsor castle.

We took a detour from our path to walk along the High Street of the old town of Eton, seeing lots of old shops and eventually the prestigious Eton College boys school in the middle of town (which was under construction).

Cathy, recharging her wallet from  Coutt's, the Queen's bank.

The next 4 pics are of Eton College.

Church in Eton.

House along the High Street in Eton.

Picture of Windsor castle from the other side on our way out of Windsor.

Along the way today, we were constantly reminded of our proximity to Heathrow.  The sky was full of planes and you could not escape the ever present roar of jet engines.  I can't imagine how people can live in this area with the constant noise.

After leaving Eton and Windsor behind we continued our hike along the Thames.  We eventually passed through the borough of Runnymede, where the Magna Carta was signed.

Another monument below celebrating the Magna Carta.

A statue of Queen Elizabeth II, erected for her jubilee.

The walk is obviously shrinking us!

The London bankers exerting their influence, even on the grafitti crowd.

Our first pub stop today at around 2:00.

Below is a picture of the statue erected to commemorate the annual Royal Swan Upping. This is a traditional ceremony dating back to the 12'th century, which takes place every July. During the week of Swan Upping, the mute swans on the River Thames are collected, tagged and then released back to the river.  The Queen officially still owns all the swans along this part of the Thames.

The bridge as we were heading towards our final destination.

The final march to our destination in Shepperton seemed like it would never end, but we finally made it to our hotel.  Having set out at 8:00 this morning, we arrived at our hotel shortly before 6:00, and thankful to have our longest day behind us.

We had a good dinner tonight at a little wine bar in the small square where our hotel was located and headed back for some much needed rest.