On Sunday 25th November we had a joint walk led by the Loddon Valley group, which had a turn-out of 28 people! These were a fairly even mix of Loddon Valley members and Berkshire Weekend Walkers with a sprinkling of people from the Chilterns group and one or two people new to the Ramblers. The morning was cold but fine, in contrast to the previous week of rainy days, which had left some roads and paths flooded.
The walk was themed around historic modes of transport in the area of Woolhampton, Midgham and Brimpton. Items of interest included an old coaching inn on the Great Western Road from Bath to London, now the A4. It also included the Kennet and Avon Canal, which was built between 1794 and 1810 to connect Bristol to Reading, forming an important trade route until its use was gradually eclipsed by the Great Western Railway, which first came into use in 1838.
The walk was quite wet under-foot in places due to the recent weather but further rain held off until after the walk finished. At only five miles, we were finished by lunch time and many of us stopped off at the Rowbarge pub in Woolhampton for a pleasant drink and a few of us also stayed for Sunday lunch. See our route on Google Maps.
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