Downstream

houseboats and a sign
warning ‘Private Property’.
Between the boats and the
road there is a beach of sorts,
its surface a slimy green; a
group of ducks huddle on a
pile of twigs, bottles and
plastic bags. I’m heading to
Cremorne Gardens where one
of the first recorded
swimming races on the
Thames was held, between
pupils of the recently formed
National Swimming Society