Pete's Walks - Goring, Cray's Pond, Hartslock (page 4 of 4)
If you are considering walking this route yourself, please see my disclaimer. You may also like to see these notes about the maps and GPX files.
I followed this 'other public route' gently downhill for several hundred yards to reach a gate at the entrance to the Hartslock Nature Reserve on my left. Through the gate I followed a path uphill to a bench, where I stopped to eat my packed lunch, with a magnificent view over the Thames Valley near Goring in front of me. After exploring the nature reserve and seeing a Lady Orchid, a few Monkey Orchids and several hybrids of the two, I continued on my way, dropping downhill from the bench where I'd had lunch to another gate, where I turned right along a bridleway (part of the route of The Thames Path).
The byway leading down to the Hartslock nature reserve
The byway leading down to the Hartslock nature reserve
The byway leading down to the Hartslock nature reserve
The byway leading down to the Hartslock nature reserve
The entrance to the Hartslock nature reserve
View over the Thames Valley, from the seat where I had my lunch
The path down from the Hartslock nature reserve
I followed the bridleway for a few hundred yards to the reach the cottages around Gatehampton Manor. Here I turned left onto a footpath that went down a drive towards a farm then turned right. After a quarter of a mile the path went under a railway line, after which it immediately turned right for a short way before turning left and even more quickly turning right. It was then just a few hundred more yards before the path brought me back to where I'd parked at the end of Manor Road.
The path to Gatehampton Manor
The path to Gatehampton Manor
Path at Gatehampton Manor
The path from Gatehampton Manor to Goring (just after going under the railway bridge)
The path from Gatehampton Manor to Goring
The path from Gatehampton Manor to Goring
It had been a lovely morning and early afternoon for a walk, warm with mainly clear blue skies. This is the fourth time I've combined this walk with a visit to see the orchids at Hartslock, but the first time I've done it clockwise. It was interesting doing it this way round for a change, but I have to say that several times I found myself looking back to admire a view, so I think anti-clockwise is the best choice of direction for this route.