The plan was to visit Hampton Court Gardens on one of the days where there is free entrance. However, by the time we got there the gardens were already closed which I thought a pity as these are long June days when daylight spreads until 9pm. No problem. We alighted at a riverside entrance to the nearby Bushy Park and decided to walk across to its northern gates near Teddington.

Our walk in the late afternoon under the auburn rays of the summer sun was most pleasant. After crossing an area of wild meadows we entered a woodland walk of absolute calm and beauty.

The variety of trees and the necklace of ponds, lakes and streams was enchanting and the fauna ranged from the standard grey squirrels (which are unfortunately considered as pests in the UK since they have taken over from red squirrels in so many areas and can also damage trees) to a panoply of water fowls and even a smattering of baby rabbits. The park, originally set up as Henry VIII’s hunting ground, contains a herd of deer but we were unlucky in not coming across any of the finely antlered beasts.

We eventually reached Chestnut avenue which is the ceremonial way to Hampton Court palace. It is quite majestic in scale and was laid out by Wren as Charles II’s answer to Versailles’s own grand avenues.

We must return for more walks in Bushy Park. It’s the second largest of the Royal Parks (the largest is, of course, Richmond) and contains a Diana fountain (dedicated to the goddess and not the Princess though some would suggest they are the same).

By way of buses (the best way to get a feel for London’s vast extent – forget tubes…if one has time) we reached home at a late hour…and it was still light!