Refresh for The Bakehouse

When I took a photograph of The Bakehouse on Petersham Road back in February I commented that it needed some TLC and it is good to see that it has now had some.

Approaching Petersham Nurseries

Petersham Nurseries is easily approachable on foot with many footpaths crossing nearby but if you want to get there by car then the only way is along a narrow track off the narrowest part of Petersham Road. This sign shows that you are heading the right way despite first appearances.

Old logs

These old logs in the midst of Petersham Lodge Woods are rotting slowly and providing a good home to some fungi while doing so.

In memory of Andrew Hines

It is good to see a new bench on the tow path, this one is by Petersham Lodge Woods, as there are far too few and many of them are in terrible condition. However, it is sad that they are normally in memory of somebody who has died and even sadder when that person was as young as Andrew Hines 1970 - 2007.

Old gate

While some people seem determined to make Ham Lands as well ordered as the gardens at Versaiiles I prefer to see battered old gates like this one that give evidence to a more rural past.

Brilliant Autumn

This autumn was exceptionally colourful (something to do with a brief frost in September apparently) but this is probably my last photograph of brilliant leaves as the cold and the wind have turned almost all of the them brown and scattered them on the ground.

Water under the bridge

The new bridge was built on the path by Ham House to the tow path so that people could still use the path at high tide, but I still think that it is an ugly monstrosity and I would much rather that the path was unusable for a few hours (at most) a month. There are other paths and what is the point of getting to the tow path at high tide as most of that is flooded anyway.

Ormeley Lodge through the trees

Ormeley Lodge, on Ham Gate Avenue, looks more enticing and mysterious when viewed from behind the live of trees on the other side of the road.

High tide by Ham House

There is (sadly) much less flooding in the area in front of Ham House now that a sluice gate has been installed on the channel to the river, but sometimes the tide is high enough for long enough for the river to reclaim familiar territory.