left along Station Road (200 metres each way); 200 metres to the left is the Butt Inn (0118 971 3309, accommodation).
Aldermaston Wharf dates from the 1720s, when the River Kennet between Reading and Newbury was made navigable (the Kennet Navigation). Aldermaston Lock was once known as Brewhouse Lock because the Aldermaston Brewery – later called Strange’s Brewery – was established just to the south of the lock; the buildings were demolished in the 1950s.
The picturesque village of Aldermaston (visited in Walk 2) lies to the south-west (2.3km using the cycleway that follows the A340) and is home to the Hind’s Head pub (0118 971 2194, accommodation) and shop. Just south of the village is the Atomic Weapons Establishment (AWE), which became the focus of the ‘Ban the Bomb’ marches in the 1950s and 60s.
Cross the canal via the road bridge and continue along the south side for 1.3km passing the scalloped-sided Aldermaston Lock (95). Cross the canal at Frouds Bridge (29) and after passing a meandering section, where the River Kennet rejoins the canal, cross back over via a footbridge (30). Then keep ahead to the swing bridge (31) at Woolhampton beside the Rowbarge pub (0118 971 2213), named after the 19th-century passenger boats that operated on the canal hereabouts. To the right is Midgham station (150 metres); further on at the A4 are village shop/tea room, post office, the Angel Inn (0118 971 3827) and bus services to Reading and Newbury.
WOOLHAMPTON
Woolhampton is in two distinct parts, with the main village, formerly a stopping-off point on the coaching route between London and Bath, strung along the A4 or Great Bath Road. On the right, where Station Road meets the A4, is a listed Victorian drinking fountain (not working) built to commemorate Queen Victoria’s Diamond Jubilee (1897). To the north is Upper Woolhampton, home to the visually striking Benedictine Douai Abbey. Construction of the abbey started in 1929 in a Gothic revival style; however, work was stopped in 1933 and it was not until 1993 that the abbey was finally completed, following a much more modern style.
STAGE 2
Woolhampton to Hungerford
| Start | Woolhampton Bridge (SU 572 665) |
| Finish | Hungerford A338 bridge (SU 338 687) |
| Distance | 24.9km (15½ miles); cumulative 45.6km (28¼ miles) |
| Total ascent | 180m |
| Time | 6½hr |
| Map | OS Explorer 158; Heron Maps: Kennet & Avon Canal |
| Refreshments | Woolhampton, Midgham (A4), Thatcham, Newbury, Marsh Benham, Kintbury, Hungerford |
| Public transport | Railway stations at Woolhampton (Midgham station), Thatcham, Newbury, Kintbury, Hungerford; bus services at Woolhampton, Midgham (A4), Thatcham, Newbury, Kintbury, Hungerford |
| Accommodation | Midgham (A4), Thatcham, Newbury, Kintbury, Hungerford |
| Splitting the stage | The stage may be split after 10.6km (6¾ miles) at Newbury (SU 472 672), where there is a full range of facilities including a railway station. |
From Woolhampton, the route continues along the Kennet Valley, meeting up with the River Kennet on several occasions and passing Thatcham – a detour gives access to the Nature Discovery Centre – to arrive at Newbury. Greenham Common, once synonymous with the Cold War, lies to the south. After passing under the A34, the route becomes more rural, passing Hamstead Park and the ideally located Dundas Arms pub overlooking the canal at picturesque Kintbury. The final stretch continues parallel with the River Kennet to end at Hungerford, close to Berkshire’s western border. Along the length of the stage, the towpath passes a number of former World War II pillboxes.
From the south side of the swing bridge (31) at Woolhampton, head west between the canal and the Rowbarge pub (0118 971 2213), soon passing Woolhampton Lock (94). Cross over at the swing bridge (33), pass a lock (93) and cross back again at the next swing bridge (35).
Continue along the south side for 3.3km, passing under the minor road at Midgham Bridge (36). The A4 and the Coach and Horses pub (0118 971 3384) are 500 metres to the north; the Berkshire Arms (0118 971 4114, accommodation) is 400 metres west along the A4. After passing Midgham Lock (92), keep ahead to pass a bridge, then a row of houses and then Colthrop Lock (91) to reach the road bridge (42) at Thatcham. To the right is Thatcham railway station, with the Swan pub (01635 862084, accommodation) 75 metres further on.
The Rowbarge pub at Woolhampton marks the end of Stage 1 and the start of Stage 2
Thatcham, which offers a full range of services, has a long history stretching back several millennia and it was here that the Roman road between Calleva Atrebatum (Silchester) and Corinium (Cirencester) crossed the River Kennet. Just to the east of the town, on the north side of the canal, was the location of Colthrop Mill (closed in 2000), where paper had been produced for over 200 years.
Cross the canal at the bridge and continue along the north side past Monkey Marsh Lock (90); this is the second of only two turf-sided locks on the canal (the first – Garston Lock – was passed in Stage 1) and dates from the opening of the Kennet Navigation around 1720. Continue along the north side of the canal for 3.9km, passing Widmead Lock (89).
The path to the right, just after the lock, leads across the railway (care required) to the Nature Discovery Centre. The wildlife centre, managed by Berks, Bucks & Oxon Wildlife Trust (BBOWT), consists of several flooded gravel pits that provide a habitat for a wide variety of wildlife including damselflies, dragonflies, common terns, and plants such as purple loosestrife and yellow flag iris; the area is also a good place to see a range of wintering wildfowl. The adjacent Thatcham Reedbeds reserve, one of the largest areas of inland reedbed in southern England, is home to warblers (reed, sedge and Cetti’s) and the diminutive Desmoulin’s snail. The centre has a café and toilets (800 metres each way).
Head under a railway bridge and then past Bull’s Lock (88) and a swing bridge to reach Ham Bridge (B3421). Cross to the south side of the canal and continue past Ham Lock (87) before crossing back to the north side at bridge 53. Continue over a footbridge at the boatyard (marina) entrance and then pass a lock (86). Keep ahead past a footbridge and soon, across the canal on the left, is Newbury Marina.
Pass under the A339 and continue, with Victoria Park on the right; the next bridge (59) gives access to Newbury Wharf and Newbury town centre (full range of facilities).
The Teashop by the Canal and restored wharfside crane at Newbury
NEWBURY
To access the town centre, bear right just before the bridge (59), then turn sharp left to head south across the canal to an area that used to be Newbury Wharf; over to the left is a small stone building housing the Teashop by the Canal (01635 522609), while to the right are toilets. Newbury Wharf marked the terminus of the Kennet Navigation until the Kennet and Avon Canal was completed.
Keep ahead for 75 metres and turn right along Wharf Street alongside the 17th-century Granary (former grain store) and Cloth Hall, which now houses the West Berkshire Museum
