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Diary – 2017 August
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All my diary pages going back to 2009
DRAWING & PAINTING:
3 August
Here I am putting together yet another garden storage box. This is the
piston that lifts the big lid and keeps it up. Brown Teddy is checking
over the instructions of where to put in the screws.
4 August
Today we are going back to Kingston for another river walk. This is the work
going on at Waterloo Station to make the platforms bigger. In Kingston I think
this is my favourite road name.
The Kingston coat of arms is three fishes. This is the rail bridge seen from the
road bridge.
The rail bridge is a lot bigger when you are underneath and the train is
thundering over the top. I think our train home later on may be going over it.
We met some swans but did not have any bread spare for them, but I am sure they
get lots from visitors and residents.
I am glad when towns keep their bandstands. Here are the three Kingston fishes
again.
One of the boating clubhouses, and lots of youngsters having safe fun on the
water.
This is the tree that replaced the ancient 500-year-old elm called Half Mile
Tree, which was taken down in 1951. It has a circular wooden seat underneath. We
sat nearby for our snack.
I like this side "road" in the canal, what fun to come down this in your boat to
do the shopping in town. Blue Parrot enjoyed his day out with us but we did not
let him fly over the river.
This is the set of weirs just before Teddington Lock. Below the weir the waters
are tidal.
This is on the bridge just past the weirs. Finally we got to Teddington Lock
which is several locks and a canoe pass.
It being our favourite named place, we had to have some selfies in front of the
name boards.
Next to the lock office building they have this beautiful piece of garden. I
like this sundial but by the time we got to it, the sun had gone in.
6 August
Today we went to see the miniature railway at Thames Ditton.
This double arch for the real railway looks promising, one old bit and one clean
new bit.
It is a big area with a double outer track and a
single inner track. We went up the bridge to get more photos.
It soon began filling up with people.
We waited in the central picnic field for trains to come
past. There were more grownups than children.
More and more people kept arriving all afternoon. They have
lots of trains on the go, to keep everyone happy. What had a really great day
and we all want to go back again.
9 August
Lots of heavy rain, but the goldfish like it and it is keeping my plants looking
good.
11 August
Today we took Dino and Blue Parrot on our day out to Sydenham Hill Woods.
There is an old train route valley through the woods and
this is the bridge over it. then there is a climbing path up to the top of the
woods. Brown Teddy wondered how many steps there would be, as it looked a lot.
But we all decided it would be worth going up.
All the steps are held up by these sleepers, with lots of
metal cleats hammered in to provide a firm grip for shoes. All along the paths
the spare wood and plant material has been woven into hurdles, to keep people
from wandering over the edges.
We came across a very large open space in the middle, which
we called a dinosaur playground. Dino agreed immediately. He said dinosaurs
would probably eat the ferns as well. I am glad to say he did not eat any ferns
though.
Blue Parrot thought under the roots of this upturned tree
trunk would make a good nest hole. Then he changed his mind when he saw the bird
boxes on high.
This is a folly of false ruins. We had to come back for our
photos, as children passing like to stay a while and climb.
Dino liked this pond in a hollow, covered in duckweed. We
all imagined big dinosaurs coming here for a drink and leaving with green
covered mouths. This log has a bit cut out, too low down for a seat, so perhaps
it was so people can step over, although the trunk was quite small anyway. A bit
of a mystery. Perhaps they used the piece of wood for something else they were
making.
This is the old train tunnel, blocked by a doorway and
grilles. It is painted with wildlife and trees.
14 August
This is the pier at Erith. The tide was out. The
mudflats are huge and deep.
It is more interesting when the tide is in because
you feel you are at sea. The weather was mild and sunny.
We walked the whole length of the pier. The seagulls did
not sink in the mud, but I am sure a person would.
Here is the end of the pier, with a turntable and
railway buffers. The tide was now coming in. Maybe another day the tide will be
in when we arrive.
18 August
We went to Richmond. We walked down by the
riverside. All these rowing boats look like a logjam. You can hire one and mess
about on the river for a bit.
The rain came sooner than we thought. We found a
seat under the big trees. The river got very grey and covered in rain plops and
circles. It even dripped off the trees onto us and our sandwiches. We sat under
our umbrellas. Fortunately it was not cold rain.
The rain stopped and the sun came out. We walked
back towards Richmond Bridge and then past that on to Richmond Railway Bridge
and Twickenham Bridge just beyond it.
We walked further on to Richmond Lock and went up
on walkway to cross over. Here is one of the lock gates, held up on high and on
its side. When it goes down, it tilts back to vertical and goes down into the
water.
This is looking downriver at Richmond Lock. The
rainclouds look threatening but it stayed dry. We walk back to Richmond and back
across the bridge. We had a good day despite the little bit of rain.
19 August
We visited Upminster Tithe Barn Museum of Nostalgia. It is very old and
is packed with things from the past, there is hardly room for it all,
but that makes it all the more interesting to look around and spot
unusual items.
This section is items from kitchens from the past. These are old corn
dollies.
Shoe making and mending stuff, and old farm implements. We had a
wonderful time, and different people recognised different things from
their past.
25 August
We visited friends in Hassocks in Sussex. Afterwards we went up the
Downs to see the Jack and Jill Windmills.
We could see everything below from up on high. There were sheep munching
the grass and making tearing sounds as they chewed it. There were no
other sounds at all. Around the water trough were lumps of wool.
27 August
Today we continued our River Thames walk from Teddington Lock to
Richmond. The sun was out so I got another photo of the sundial actually
showing the time. Last time it was cloudy.
At some places along the path we could go down to the river's edge.
This part of the path was higher up and went over a little bridge. This
is getting near Richmond.
We finally arrived in Richmond and went up Richmond Hill for the view.
It was very hot and the river was sparkling. Then we went down into the
terraced gardens for our sandwiches.
29 August
We went to the Olympic Park in Stratford. This is the shopping mall with
flags of the world. The canals here are big and wide.
A new set of locks was being opened so there was a festival to celebrate
it. The bridge on the left of the second photo is made of mirrors on the
underside and it is very strange to look up at it and see the grass and
sometimes yourself!
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