Eye on London - Going Totally Thames
- Monday August 14th 2017
- Sports
London from the inside Monday 14th - Sunday 20th August 2017
215 miles long, with 47 locks and 75 bridges (29 on the tidal part that starts at Teddington). It has around 120 different species of fish and marine animals including otters, voles and even dolphins. Life (or the Eastenders logo) just wouldn’t be the same without our beloved Thames. Explore it on our beautiful South Bank and beyond.
TOTALLY THAMES
Kicking off on 1st September, Totally Thames is a month long celebration, on, beside and beneath the river. There’s over 150 events including film screenings, installations, walks and a wild swim! The full programme has just been announced so start filling up your diary. The festival’s Thames Lens photography competition is now open for entries until 30th September.
WALK THE WHOLE THAMES
The Thames is walkable for 184 of it’s 215 miles, along the Thames Path. The Thames Path starts (or finishes, depending on which way you go) from its source in the Cotswolds and finishes at the Thames Barrier in Woolwich, a few miles before the river reaches the sea. The start is near Cirencester where you’ll find a stone marking the source that reads The Conservators of the River Thames 1857 - 1974. To do the whole walk in one go, National Trails advise that this might take the average person a couple of weeks (allowing for a couple of days rest). If you don’t have two weeks to spare, try doing it in chunks over a few weekends or exploring any part of the tidal or nontidal paths.
- Trail maps are available here.
- You can get a completion certificate if you walk all (or most) of the Path here!
EXPLORE THE THAMES IN OTHER WAYS
- Blue Chip SUPer Club meet for stand up paddle boarding every Wednesday near Kingston and also run beginners sessions.
- The London Eye River Cruise embarks from next to the London Eye for a 40-minute circular sightseeing tour. Book online for just £11.95 per person or £31 for London Eye and River Cruise ticket.
- More than 1000 people live on the tidal Thames. Rent a houseboat to get a taste of river life or hire a barge (the Thames is navigable by barge for 191 miles from Lechlade).
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