Mapledurham House

Mapledurham House Review

This section of the Thames inspired Kenneth Grahame's 1908 The Wind in the Willows, which began as a bedtime story for Grahame's son Alastair while the family lived at Pangbourne. Some of E.F. Shepard's illustrations are of specific sites along the river—none more fabled than this Elizabethan mansion, bristling with tall chimneys, mullioned windows, and battlements. It became the inspiration for Shepard's vision of Toad Hall. Family portraits, magnificent oak staircases, and Tudor plasterwork ceilings abound. There's also a 15th-century working grain mill on the river. The house is 10 mi southwest of Henley-on-Thames.

On summer weekends you can reach the house by a Thames River Cruise boat from Caversham Promenade in Reading. Departures are at 2 pm, and travel time is 45 minutes. Henley. 0118/948-1088. www.thamesrivercruise.co.uk.