Double Bridge

Although I am very happy when I am in my study, playing music, writing and reading, doing stuff on my computer, I have to admit that being out and about opens up all sorts of experiences that cannot happen first hand in one's home.

This afternoon when I parked at Reybridge to embark on my search for another section of the old Wilts and Berks Canal by walking along a footpath I had never been on before, I immediately encountered a charming young lady, who seeing my cameras pointed out a heron she had just seen in the reeds of the Avon. I saw the same heron in a field a little later on from the footpath, where I had another chat with another young lady who had been cycling along the path. I heard a pair of buzzards calling to one another, saw one take off from a fence post and then saw both wheeling around in the sky, at speed, still calling. All of these pleasures were incidental bonuses to the pleasure of the walk itself.

I found the section of the canal which had recently been restored to the point that it has been refilled with water, just below Double Bridge (pictured), and seen here in close-up. Already it has reeds and bullrushes springing up, but no coots, moorhens or ducks yet to be seen, at least today.

This section was opened by the Duchess of Cornwall in May this year. I imagine this is what Pewsham Top Lock will look like when it too has been restored.

There are more details about Double Bridge here, and about the canal here.