Jess Robinson, Author at Born Again Swindonian

The River Ray Parkway Part 2

by Jess Robinson | Aug 9, 2019 | Arts/Culture/Heritage, Guest Bloggers, Jess Robinson, Public art-sculpture, Walks and cycle paths

You may (or may not) remember that Angela and I walked half of the River Ray Parkway last year in the River Ray Parkway Part 1. That took us from Moulden Hill to John Lewis.

This summer (2019) we finally got around to walking the second half, John Lewis to Coate Water in our tour of the River Ray Parkway part 2.

We went out the back of the Mannington Retail Park, looking for the old green signs that show the way. We found the first one on the edge of a field used by dog walkers, pointing us towards the Old Town Rail Path, following Sustrans Route 45.

NB: This stretch of this walk is approx 5 miles

River Ray signpost near Mannington Retail Park

Blagrove Fitness Trail
Lydiard Country Park
Old Town Rail Path
Coate Water Country Park
Blue Route 45 signs – Old Town 2 miles, Wroughton 2 miles

Discovered a new thing already, anyone have a clue what “Blagrove Fitness Trail” is (or was!) ?

The Parkway walk continues

The Parkway continues along the Old Town Rail Path, which is the former route of the Midland and South Western Junction Railway, closed in 1970. Along this path we rediscovered the 5 Wheel Sculptures, previously visited by Angela in 2013, looking a little worse for wear.

One of five stone wheels on the Railway Path

The first wheel, “conceive”, grafftied but still readable, says:

“Stepping out of character, you interrogate a chaos of bearings. Where is the unknown journeyman, with his bag of fives, his measuring rod and chisel”

A bit more on the wheel sculptures

There are five wheels, from the Old Town direction towards the railway and Wootton Bassett Road. They are Earth, Air, Fire, Water and Conceive.

Each wheel has two parts, a small wheel showing the Element, and a large wheel with a short piece of poetry.

In addition, there is a length of wood crossing the path between each of the wheel pairs. Each of these lengths of wood has two words written on them.

AIR: On hot places behind your knees On high downs a ghost is growing. Depth & disquiet.

EARTH: Our wheels relinquish and seize, relinquish and seize….Curious tenderness..second word obscured

Fire: Pistons swell and shine, days are like face, Steam pumps the sky, this one this…Extinguished – the second word is hidden

WATER: The stream fills a cut, Swills and wave, A new start, gravel and laughter, tick tock on the rim – the two words on the sleeper are not visible

CONCEIVE: Stepping out, out of character, You interrogate, A chaos of bearings, Where is the unknown journeyman with his bag of fives, his measuring rod and chisel? Hand & Eye

See also: https://swindonian.me/2013/07/25/wheel-sculpture-old-town-west-swindon-cycle-path/

The route took us past all the wheels, and some fantastic views out over the south edge of Swindon.

Nearing the end

Near the end of the Rail Path, the cutting gets deeper, and passes under Westlecot Road. This end is designated a Site of Special Scientific Interest by Natural England, as it shows all the layers of rock that Swindon is sitting on. Shortly afterwards we passed under another bridge, with Devizes Road and The Plough Inn on top of it, out of the cutting into the sunshine again.

The route now follows the road through the Signal Way industrial estate, sneaks out at the end of Berenger Close (which we almost didn’t find), and over the top of Evelyn Street, still following the old Rail Line.

Next to the Piper’s Way roundabout we discovered another sign.

Great Copse
Lydiard Country Park
Coate Water Country Park
Old Town Rail Path
Moulden Hill

From the sign we headed south along Piper’s Way, crossing over to take the off-road path around the allotments on the east side. Just after the allotments a further sign pointed us off road, onto a track that leads all around the edge of the Broome Manor Golf Complex.

A ‘discovery’

Here we were excited to discover a stone marker, planted in memory of Cassandra Clunies-Ross, carved by Sarah Chanin in 1992. The work is carved in Sarsen stone and was commissioned by Thamesdown Borough Council’s, Great Western Community Forest Team. The stone marks an area of what was then new woodland.

The inscription reads:

Casso’s Wood – planted January 1992 by friends, in fond memory of Cassandra Clunes Rosss, ecologist-forester. 1965-1991. That her work to conserve woodland here and abroad is not forgotten.

The last part of the trail had us squeezing past nettles and wondering if we were going the right way, before suddenly finding Broome Manor Lane, and the familiar sight of the Coate Water Park.