Tue 22nd May - Henley to Reading

We are almost halfway through our Thames Path walk and have almost reached half distance. As I was walking along today I started considering the walk so far. I've not had any blisters which has been a real bonus. My boots are tried and tested and have seen me through a number of walking holidays. But even so, I had wondered how I would get on walking in them day after day. My feet and legs have ached after a day's walking (and sometimes after just a couple of hours!) but on the whole they seem to recover overnight ready for the next day. I am developing a 'farmers tan' where the brown skin stops at collar level and where the arms of my walking shirt end. I'm even managing to develop some comedy tan lines where the strap of my walking pole goes across the back of my hand :) So on the whole, I think things are going well. Before we left the Henley b&b the owner was telling us about a local millionaire polo enthusiast who has a narrow-gauge railway in his landscaped grounds. We saw this later on as we made our way through Shiplake. Before that we had walked through meadows after leaving Henley and we had crossed and re-crossed the river at Marsh Lock. We had followed a few diversions away from the river at places where the riverside properties did not like the idea of walkers wandering through their grounds - can't think why! As we made our way through Shiplake I spotted a couple of jays in a tree by the river - I was quite pleased to see them as they are not easy to spot. We had a break by the river before setting off again and making our way to Sonning Lock where we met my friend Alice and had a cold drink and tried to cool off. It was so hot day today that by the time we were covering the last few miles into Reading I was feeling the effects. My feet were becoming sore and I was pleased to be in the shade for parts of the walk. So I was glad when we finally reached Caversham Bridge where we are staying tonight. However, after an ice-cream in the park, a long cold drink at the nearby Toby carvery and a cool shower I was feeling much better.  Tonight for a change we did not have to seek out a local pub or restaurant. Margaret's friend Pauline very kindly came to meet us and took us to her house where we had a delicious meal.  Tomorrow is the middle day of our walk and somewhere between here and Goring we will pass the midway point. I would say it should be all downhill from here on but obviously its actually uphill all the way!