SWC 242: Cholsey to Goring (or Pangbourne) via Wallingford
Train: Take the 9:37AM Didcot bound train from London Paddington, arriving Cholsey at 10:41. Return trains are roughly 15 and 45 minutes past the hour from Goring (a couple of minutes later from Pangbourne) -- check exact timings! Buy a Cholsey return.
Distance: 12.7 miles or 20.4km -- add about 4 miles or 7km to finish in Pangbourne
Difficulty: 3 out of 10
This walk starts with a stretch through the village of Cholsey to reach the riverside Thames path where you turn left and continue all the way to the s bustling market town of Wallingford. After lunch you leave the river Thames and take paths around the gently rolling Oxfordshire countryside with some fine and expansive views before visiting the attractive village of South Stoke. From South Stoke the short, last leg of the walk is along the Ridgeway and Thames Path to Goring. For more information on the walk and the walk notes/gpx, click here.
This walk can easily be extended by following the Thames Path to Pangbourne.
Lunch: Plenty of options in Wallingford, recommended is The Boat House (Greene King) (6.5 km/4.0 mi, food all day).
Tea: Perch & Pike in South Stoke (open all day), and plenty of options in Goring and in Whitchurch/Pangbourne.
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1 comment:
#4 on this walk, in #bright_sunshine that felt warmer than the recorded 4C, on ground that was icy in places, sticky in others.
All ate at the Boat House in Wallingford, which Greene King has done its best to give a charisma bypass: from blackboards at the entrance displaying buy one get one free offers on burgers, so long as it's a Tuesday, through Sky Sports screens and gaming machines on every wall, to menus with overcomplicated special deals on particular combinations of food and drink that the landlord felt the need to explain, all at odds with its attractive riverside position. Service was good, the food edible and the prices reasonable. Even so, we'd try some of the several other places we passed next time.
Three took a shortcut back to Chorley via the Ridgeway and the bridge carrying the A4130 over the Thames, saving about 2.5 miles, in time for the 1613 train home. Impressively, the one who followed the prescribed route had made it to the platform in time to catch that same train as it reached Goring and Streatley, one stop down the line.
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