Geo-Trips :: West of Heathrow
Datchet
A drive from Ashford, Sun, 2 Nov 2014 by David Howard
Although the clocks had gone back you know each day how long you have, and being Sunday the roads were clear enough to cover a green patch just west of London I and many other people hadn't visited, as the roads all led to the Thames so didn't actually go anywhere except Datchet where it crossed the river. Therefore the entire area is literally a backwater where traffic only goes to get there as there is absolutely no through traffic unless someone is going from Staines to Slough. It was an easy run there and through the roads, except for a few miles which they'd made into a 20mph zone (it was a major road with no bends, so no idea what for) with serious humps, but this seems to apply to anywhere and everywhere with more than a few houses nowadays as the councils appear to be working from a single sheet I have traced to something called ICLEI in case anyone wants to learn more, they are UN rules adopted in 2000 and explain the similarity between conditions nowadays wherever you go.
The weather was unseasonally mild, and was easily able to stop and wander around whenever I wanted to, and also checked out a few private roads you wouldn't have been able to view online otherwise. I used the OS grid but missed one or two squares on the border as there were simply so many they got overlooked, but that tends to happen on every trip especially when they are not in a line.
Click the blue circles to see a photograph taken from that spot and read further information about the location. The blue lines indicate the direction of view. There is also a slideshow of this trip. ( )
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Old Ferry Drive, Wraysbury
Being a private road you will not see this on Streetview
The entrance to Liquid Leisure
On Horton Road, Sunnymeads
Pumping station on Horton Road, Datchet
Horton Road at the junction of Mill Place, Datchet
Terrace on Colnbrook High Street
The High Street says access only for traffic but it's the only road through going... more
Flats on Crown Meadow, Colnbrook
Road narrowing on Bath Road, Poyle
You are far more likely to have an accident avoiding oncoming traffic moving into... more
The Punch Bowl, Poyle
The corner of Bath Road and Poyle Road
Poyle Road
On the large industrial estate by Heathrow Airport
Stanwell Road at the junction of Coppermill Road
Foundry Lane at the junction of Stanwell Road
Anckerwycke Farm, Wraysbury
A National Trust property and walk.
Roundabout on Wraysbury Road, Hythe End
Wraysbury Road going under the M25 and A30
Houses on Wraysbury Road, Hythe End
Colne Brook, Hythe End
At the end of Mafeking Road
Colne Brook, Hythe End
At the end of Mafeking Road
High Street Wraysbury
The Perseverance pub
Shops on Station Road, Wraysbury
New block at Ashford Hospital
They have only just finished these blocks, around 2014
Stanwell Road at the junction with Gordon Road
Church Road at the junction of Fordbridge Road
Old School Close at the junction of Staines Road
Roundabout on Wraysbury Road, Hythe End
The old part of Wraysbury Road, Hythe End
This short stretch was bypassed to create the roundabout junction to the right. It... more
Staines Road, Wraysbury
Entering the village centre
The Green at the junction of Windsor Road
Banking by Horton Road
Normally these grass walls conceal a reservoir but that is on the other side of... more
The entrance to Datchet Sailing Club
Cedars Guest House on Colnbrook High Street
Colnbrook High Street at the junction of Crown Meadow
Looking towards the Queen Anne pub
Houses on Coppermill Road, Wraysbury
Entrance to sailing club on Datchet Road, Horton
Colnbrook High Street
Traditional old buildings which are actually the age they look rather than more... more
Roundabout on Poyle Road at the junction of Blackthorne Road
On the trading estate
Roundabout on Poyle Road at the junction of Blackthorne Road
On the trading estate
Unusual lamp post on Stanwell Road, Poyle
Stanwell Road, Horton
The Wraysbury Reservoir is on the left
Phone box and shops on Coppermill Road, Wraysbury
Roundabout sign on Welley Road, Sunnymeads
This uses the 1960s style roundabout symbol which was not used for very long and... more
Memorial on Wraysbury Road, Hythe End
Wraysbury Road at the Staines border
The sign says Welcome to Spelthorne, leaving Hythe End, Berkshire for Surrey,... more
All images © David Howard and available under a Creative Commons licence .