Sunday Walk - The Thames Path from Reading to Shiplake

SWC Walk 61a – Reading to Shiplake

Length: 13.2 km (8.2 miles). Toughness: 1/10

Take a non-stop GWR train from Paddington to Reading no later than the 10:50 to Oxford, arriving Reading at 11:13. There are slightly earlier fast trains to Paignton and Swansea, but I'm guessing these two might be more crowded. Another possibility is a semi-fast Didcot train leaving at 10:38 which gets in just two minutes later at 11:15.

Freedom Pass holders can of course take advantage of free travel on the Elizabeth line service from Abbey Wood (Liverpool Street 10:02…Paddington 10:15, Ealing Broadway 10:26 etc), arriving Reading at 11:10.

As there are a multitude of trains arriving on different platforms I suggest meeting on the overhead concourse, near the escalator leading to the northern exit.

Trains back from Shiplake are half-hourly at xx:04 & xx:34, but only the xx:34 connects at Twyford with a GWR service to Paddington. On both there's a 20-minute wait for an Elizabeth line train.

If you need to buy a ticket from London the best option is a return to Shiplake via Reading (or to Henley-on-Thames: same fare), which covers both the outward and return journeys. If you have an Oyster 60+ or Travelcard it's cheaper to buy a return from Boundary Zone 6 to Reading, then use contactless for the short hop from Shiplake to Twyford. Freedom Pass holders will also need to pay this small extra fare, and wait at Twyford for the Elizabeth line train.

Each Saturday The Times features “a good walk” and on June 6^th it picked out the Thames Path from Reading to Shiplake. This reminded me of the rather neglected SWC Walk 61, which tends to get an occasional winter posting followed by tales of woe from walkers encountering excessively muddy or flooded stretches. There was no hint of any such calamity in the newspaper article so let's hope that the weather gods are in a better mood for this summer outing.

The two walks start differently: Walk 61 goes straight to the Thames from the station's northern exit, whereas the article describes a route from the southern exit via Forbury Gardens, the Abbey ruins and the River Kennet (will any map-reader be tempted to try this?). The routes merge at the confluence of the two rivers and a stretch on the southern bank of the Thames leads to Sonning, where you can choose between the popular Bull Inn and Coppa Club “an all-day restaurant and social hub” for lunch.

The Thames Path then switches to the ‘quieter and more remote’ northern bank. When you reach Shiplake Lock you can either continue on the Thames Path around a loop of the river or take a short cut across farmland to Shiplake. The full version of Walk 61 carries on to Henley-on-Thames but regular walkers will know all too well that a vital footbridge on the approach to Henley has been closed since 2022. There's a published diversion via Harpsden but it takes you a long way from the river, so unless you have a strong craving for tea'n'cake at one of the town's fine tearooms I suggest using the Baskerville Arms as a watering-hole and returning from the station at Shiplake.

Please bring the directions from the L=swc.61.a page. #2026-06-28T11:15