spade oak – The Beyonder

Wander down by the waterside

Posted on July 27, 2024July 27, 2024 by andrew in Nature and Wildlife

THERE are times of the year when the Thames Path between Bourne End becomes a bit of a mudbath.

But when it dries out, it’s the perfect place for an evening stroll, watching the world go by on the river.

Winston Churchill once described the Thames to the Queen as the “silver thread which runs through the history of Britain”.

The year was 1954 and she recalled sailing up the “dirty commercial river” at the conclusion of her six-month Australasia Commonwealth tour to be greeted by her prime minister.

“He saw things in a very romantic and glittering way,” the monarch later recalled.

She was perhaps being a little too self-deprecating. Both she and Churchill were only too well aware of the extraordinary history of Britain’s most iconic river, its banks lined by cultural landmarks and historic towns.

Today, the Thames Path is a long-distance walking trail tracing the route of England’s best-known river for 185 miles as it meanders from its source in the Cotswolds through several rural counties into the heart of London.

But the short section between Bourne End and Marlow provides a welcome chance to savour the river away from the hustle and bustle of the city.

Easily accessed from a free car park in Coldmoorholme Lane, this is a picturesque part of the river that runs alongside the railway line to Marlow.

Flat and undemanding, it’s an appealing stroll for families and suitable for all ages, with the Marlow Mums singling it out as a great choice for little legs.

With feathered families out on the water in the spring, there’s plenty to hold the attention too, ducks and geese out in force alongside the walkers, sailors and rowers.

In the spring, the hawthorn blossoms are in full bloom, the goslings are learning to swim and, a couple of fields away, the baby bunnies are out playing too as dusk falls.

During the summer months, locals drowse on their verandas on the opposite bank as the shadows lengthen and pleasure craft chug to and fro.

Popular circular walking routes here include a detour to study the wildfowl on Spade Oak Quarry, or there’s always the option of letting the train take the strain if you fancy a jar or two in one of the welcoming hostelries along the way, or a restaurant meal in Marlow, Bourne End or Cookham.

The branch line to Marlow is a single-track seven-mile line via Bourne End to Maidenhead, and very picturesque it is too. Passenger services are operated by the Great Western Railway using two-coach diesel multiple unit trains, normally every half hour, but hourly after 9pm.

Back in steam days the train used to be known as The Marlow Donkey, normally taking the form of a one-coach train powered by a small pannier tank. Although the exact derivation of the term is unclear, a pub near the station in Marlow is named after it.

But if you’re happy to just watch the train clattering off towards Marlow or Bourne End, a pint or a bite is close at hand at the nearby Spade Oak, a popular upmarket country pub with a wide-ranging menu.

Quarry lake teems with life

Posted on October 24, 2018July 8, 2023 by andrew in Nature and Wildlife

THERE’S a lovely autumnal chill in the air as we return to Spade Oak quarry for the first time in a few months.

This time we leave the car at Little Marlow and cut across the fields to the top edge of the quarry before circling round the gravel pit to the railway line and back up the other side of the water.

The sun’s out but the temperature’s dropping as evening approaches. Although we only find out later, this is a good slice of Walk 16 of the Chilterns AONB website, which takes walkers on a three-mile level ramble from Bourne End station to Little Marlow and back, savouring the picturesque village and nature reserve on the way, along with a very pleasant stretch of the Thames Path.

Our circuit of the lake is uneventful and a little on the chilly side; the last time we were here, the rabbits were lolloping around in the evening sunshine and the lake was busy with all kinds of birds, from cormorants to moorhens.

There’s a lot less going on today, it seems – at least that’s how it appears on the surface. But with a little help from the Buckinghamshire Bird Club it’s possible to piece together a more detailed picture of what you might be able to see here, especially if you come armed with binoculars and know what to look for.

At this time of year, gull and cormorant numbers are beginning to build up and just before winter gets under way redwings and fieldfare start to appear in the hedgerows, particularly along the railway bank. Lucky photographers may even catch a glimpse of a hungry kingfisher.

**WATCHFUL EYE:** a kingfisher ponders its next meal *PICTURE: Glynn Walsh*

Winter is one of the more interesting times to visit for bird enthusiasts, it seems, with good numbers of the commoner ducks including wigeon, teal, gadwall and shoveler.

The biggest concentrations of birds can be found around the large sand spit, best viewed from the west bank, with better views of the main island from along the south bank by the railway line.

The list goes on, with buzzards and red kites over the fields and woods to the north of the lake. while the riverside meadows may attract geese, pipits, wagtails, various migrant passerines and sometimes waders.

**HUNGRY LOOK:** a kestrel at Spade Oak *PICTURE: Glynn Walsh*

Having made a mental note to return with binoculars, we nod our way past the anglers who are taking advantage of a similar amount of life under the surface of the lake.

This is one of nine venues frequented by members of the Marlow Angling Club on the look-out for carp, pike, tench, bream, rudd, roach and perch. Busy place, this quarry.

The waft from the sewage treatment works is a little riper than usual as we round the south side of the quarry, but the smaller gulls love the place amd sometimes there can be thousands of black-headed gulls gathering on the lake during the last hour or two before dusk.

Back in Little Marlow, the 12th century St John the Baptist Church has provided a picturesque backdrop for the antics of such famous fictional detectives as Poirot, Miss Marple and Lewis.

Even here you can never be too sure what wildlife you might stumble across, like this playful fox captured by Glynn Walsh.

**PLAYING FETCH?:** a cheeky fox *PICTURE: Glynn Walsh*

It also provides the focal point for a conservation area that incorporates the 16th century manor house and a score of other listed buildings: not to mention a couple of welcoming pubs for thirsty ramblers eager to take the weight of their feet.

Lakeside path comes into bloom

Posted on April 21, 2018July 27, 2024 by andrew in Nature and Wildlife

**NATURE RESERVE:** spring sunshine transforms the quarry

WHEN spring finally arrives at the Spade Oak Lake in Little Marlow, the old quarry suddenly comes into its own.

So often in winter the path round the border of the former gravel pit turns into a mudbath, deterring all but the hardiest of anglers and birdwatchers.

**SPRING IN THE AIR:** the old quarry at Spade Oak

Torrential downpours make it hard for the shaded path to dry out, and with the nearby Thames towpath often flooded too, only those in wellies will be able to squelch very far in wetter winter weather.

**WATERLOGGED:** flooding beside the Thames

Roll on spring, when the welcome rise in temperatures transforms the landscape and the old quarry starts to look more like a nature reserve again.

It was here during the 1960s that aggregate was extracted that would be used for the M40 and M4 motorways.

**MAKING A SPLASH:** a swan on the water

But the restoration of the site saw the creation of a remarkable haven for wildfowl comprising the lake and surrounding woodland.

Much of the restoration work focused on encouraging birds to use the site as a breeding sanctuary, and breeding birds include little ringed plovers, kingfishers, reed warblers, great crested grebes and terns.

**DEEP WATERS:** the lake is a sanctuary for water fowl

Alongside these are the ducks, gulls and geese who provide a cacophony of background sound on a still evening as the bats come out to flit and flicker around in the gloaming on the permissive path which runs around much of the lakeside perimeter.

This is one of nine fishing venues operated by Marlow Angling Club and is said to host carp, tench, bream, pike, perch, roach, rudd and eels.

**GONE FISHING:** anglers fish around the lake

It was back in 1966 that the Folley Brothers began to dig the former farmland in Coldmoorholme Lane to extract the valuable flood plain gravel that was in great demand for the motorway building program.

**MOTORWAY BUILDING:** gravel was in great demand

Gravel is no longer dug from Spade Oak but the area is used by the current owners, Lafarge, as a depository for gravel dug elsewhere.

In 1999, Little Marlow Parish Council and Lafarge began discussing a permissive path around the lake to celebrate the millennium, and the official opening took place in 2002.

**IN FULL BLOOM:** the path towards the Spade Oak pub

And a very pleasant waterside ramble it is on a spring or summer’s evening, with the gulls and geese shrieking in dismay at some temporary disturbance and the gentle clank of the two-coach train lazily meandering its way from Bourne End to Marlow alongside the lake path.

**WATCHFUL EYE:** a muntjac poses for photographs PICTURE: Glynn Walsh

Ah, bliss! Nature has been quick to reclaim the former quarry, and the millennium project has proved a wonderful resource, not just for the villagers of Little Marlow but for all those tempted to take a waterside ramble on a warm evening.

Popular circular walking routes around here start from the free car park in Coldmoorholme Lane and offer appealing strolls for all ages, as the Marlow Mums confirm.

**RIVERBANK RAMBLE:** walking alongside the Thames

With feathered families out on the water in the spring, there’s plenty to hold the attention too, ducks and geese out in force alongside the walkers, sailors and rowers.

Train buffs can take a trip on the single-track branch line to Bourne End or Marlow, but if you’re happy to just watch the train clattering by, a pint or a bite is close at hand at the nearby Spade Oak, a popular upmarket country pub with a wide-ranging menu.