Walking beside the Medway

What is surprising about walking beside the Medway above Maidstone is that although you pass through country which is basically similar the on foot variety of the river traffic, views of same on the water create for you a small temporary community. Apart from a few hoons who want to race up the river drinking beer and generally being stupid people are friendly and laid back. The laid back people realise that to navigate the Medway there are locks to negotiate, boats to give way to and fishermen to respect. They also learn that the only way to enjoy the river is to take your time and simply go 'messing about in boats'. There are no slip roads to use to avoid jams, no diversions to avoid roadworks and certain hold ups when you negotiate the locks so it makes sense to let time stroll along and go at the pace of the river.

Wateringbury is a great place to start from providing you can find parking for the car. The picture above is of the bridge at Wateringbury but pay the place a visit and take some time to walk around - as we wrote in an earlier blog - there are some pretty places in Wateringbury.

At walking pace the river is interesting and as we draw near to the end of summer and into autumn the changes are seen in the farmlands alongside, the trees overhanging the river and this time of the year that wonderful suspended animation of summer that suggest the autumn's arrival. It can be found in the ripening fruit on the trees, the blackberries as they die down and give up their last fruits, the suggestion that chestnuts are bulging ready for the fall and wild life feeding on the last abundance of the summer. The river looks full but does not yet have that angry appearance of heavy rains washing down debris.

I took the two pictures of the river and the gubbins on the side (river bank) to catch that end of summer color when trees are past their peak of freshness and it is obvious that the leaves will soon be turning. The dog roses are finished and the rose hips are reading for the birds to eat, or if you like them for you to tuck in as well but don't eat the seeds as they itch.

During the last few weeks we have tested the waters by walking from Teston to Barming and a trip to East Peckham and this week we walked from Wateringbury to Yalding. On the way we chatted with two venerable water wanderers and enjoyed a lunch at the Hampstead Lock watching boat owners negotiating the lock. They worked together opening and shutting the lock to allow each other to take a turn at passing through.

Boats and birds more or less mix.

The ducks and swans did their own thing, which was nice.