Walking along The River Thames on The Thames Path between Abingdon and Oxford.

The River Thames has it's source in Kemble and travels 215 miles to The Thames Estuary and the North Sea passing through some really beautiful English countryside as it does so.

Below are items about walking along and enjoying several sections of The River Thames using The Thames Path - including visiting a variety of our old English towns and cities such as Oxford and Abingdon. It should be noted that unlike many of our English canal towpaths the Thames Path has not been surfaced to accommodate cyclists i.e. the path is often quite narrow and can be extremely muddy not only from when the weather is wet but also because the river frequently passes through water meadows and boggy areas. The Thames Path is meant to be for the use of walkers rather than cyclists in other words. One of the things about The River Thames is the lack of crossing points sometimes for quite a few miles so walking the route is often best acheived by making the walk one way rather than circular. Our topics are split into town to town walks and where possible there is an indication about where public transport i.e. buses can be used to make such one way trips however we do have some examples where circulars can be created without having to walk huge distances.

Which direction to take?. Chosing in which direction to walk along The River Thames can make quite a difference in how enjoyable it all is especially during the Winter bearing in mind that the River basically runs across England from the West to the East (although The Thames does enjoy some magnificent bends in the process - take a look at a map of Abingdon for instance and see the loop there). On some sections if you are walking in the Autum or Winter and start out during the morning then the sun will be very low and will be on your back if heading towards the East so no problem with glare. However walking in this direction and with a strong north to north east wind (which can be quite normal at that time of the year) means you are walking right into the wind - warm gear needed in other words.

Abingdon to Oxford - around 10 miles. Buses: X2, X3 and service 35 numbered buses run from Oxford St Aldgate to Abingdon (Xs go to Didcot) and back every 10 minutes or so, There is car parking next to the River Thames near to Abingdon Town Bridge but you do have to pay sadly. If walking in the morning during the Autumn or Winter towards Oxford the sun will be behind you but any north or east wind will be straight into you so lots of wind chill.
This stretch of the Thames is through really beautiful countryside where the river is often lined with lovely old willow and other trees - however the path is very narrow and just a small amount of rain makes it very difficult to walk without slipping all the time on the muddy surface. This is particularly the case from start of this section from Abingdon Lock and Weir for the first couple of miles - where incidentally you are not actually that near to the river for a little while. From Abingdon's High Street head down along the A415 soon reaching The Thames, cross over Abingdon Town Bridge and down onto the river bank. Go under the bridge and along The Thames to the lock and weir by the lock-keeper's cottage, cross the Thames again and shortly go right over a wooden bridge which crosses the River Ock and follow the "Thames Path" signs to eventually reach the river bank - thereafter the path goes alongside the river into the heart of Oxford City.

Culham to Abingdon - 2.5 miles. Culham is reachable by bus on the Abingdon to Oxford route - these run hourly during the week and are numbers 114 and 116. The railway station at Culham is quite some distance from Culham Lock so probably not a particularly good option - trains run about every 80 minutes during the week from Oxford. However at Culham Lock there is a fairly large car park which has always been free to park - as of October 2010 this remains the case. This short stretch of the Thames might be best enjoyed by walking a somewhat longer and we think very nice circular walk (please see two options we have described on our Culham Walks topic). The Thames Path from Culham to Abingdon is in fairly good condition for walking along as it's mostly grass and quite wide - it's bordered by fields and the farmers have left a wide strip unploughed. One of the features along this short route has to be Culham Bridge which is where the original navigational route of The Thames i.e. Swift Ditch re-joins the now main river. Culham Bridge is built of stone and was erected in the 1420s - the bridge is the site of a skirmish (the Battle of Culham Bridge) on the 11th January 1644 during the English Civil War between the Royalists and the Parliamentarians. The bridge is not clearly visible from the Thames Path - as you reach the first house since leaving Culham Lock you have to turn left and cross over Swift Ditch on a footbridge - however if you instead walk ahead past the house's garden you come out on Culham Road - turn left and a few metres past the house's entrance you can get onto Culham Bridge. Alternatively go across Swift Ditch and then over on the right there is a brocken wire fence and you can get to the bridge that way.
Abingdon's stone arched Town Bridge is a pretty beautiful sight too - the bridge is actually made up of three bridges with Abingdon Bridge itself being on the built up side of the town, Burford Bridge actually crosses the Thames main stream and Hales Bridge which was built to cover flooding on the ajdacent marshland. Just a little way along the A415 past the lefthand side carpark there is a raised causeway (still used as a pavement) which will take you out to Culham Bridge and Swift Ditch.

We have picked out a few Books about England - Churches, Canals and Rivers as well as walks in England and English Nature. The Nicholsons Waterways Guides are a "must take" for anyone going on a Canal Barge or Narrowboat holiday (as well as anyone visiting the canals) as they are packed with really useful information.
If the development and history of our Canals is of particular interest consider the Anatomy of Canals series - really good reading!. (The relevant Nicholoson Guide covering The River Thames into London is BOOK 7.)