The Buchans 2013: March in Denham

Rickmansworth is just up the road from Denham so we went there a couple of times because the walking was reasonably flat and mud free. Here we are in the Rose Garden close to the centre of ‘Ricky’. The lion statue used to be part of the war memorial for ‘The Great War’ it was moved here in 1978. Sue waiting for me to finish off a geocache.

It was rather chilly whilst in Denham and on one of the evenings we had forgotten to bring the washing in. It doesn’t show up very well, but the shirts are frozen solid.

There are a lot of watery features around Rickmansworth in the way lakes, rivers and a canal.

This photo shows me dipping my toes into Ruislip Lido (I wasn’t going to take my wellies off!).

Sue standing next to a lock on the Grand Union Canal.

The Grand Union Canal

Ham House, south of Richmond is a Stuart mansion by the banks of the Thames. It has remained virtually unchanged for 400 years and is recognised for its superb collection of textiles, furniture and art which have remained in the house for centuries. Largely the vision of Elizabeth Murray, Countess of Dysart, who was deeply embroiled in the politics of the English Civil War and subsequent restoration of the monarchy. Ham House and garden is an unusually complete survival of the 17th century. It is reputed to be one of the most haunted houses in Britain.

Ham House – the front

First floor interior

Parts of the house were used in the filming of Anna Karenina starring Kiera Knightley.

The formal gardens

Ham House – rear garden

Sue in the formal garden

After our visit to Ham House we went for a walk along the Thames into Richmond. It was quite a muddy walk as there had been no sunshine to dry the towpath out. It was a Saturday afternoon so Richmond was very busy. We had a short walk around and Sue did a little window shopping from the inside. We went to an art gallery which was part of the Council Offices. We were very impressed with the variety of work on display.

Richmond Bridge

Art work

On our last day on site we had a visit from Pam (Sue’s sister) and Richard. As you can see it was very, very chilly. We had lunch at the caravan and then walked to the nearby café at Denham Aerodrome for coffee and cake.