East Burnham Park
51 Meters
167 feet
24th February 2026
A Short Diversion and another Low High
The highest point in the Unitary Authority of Slough, at 51 meters is, along with the Isles of Scilly, the fifth lowest high point in the County Top challenge (Peakbagger). Which implies that as a group of islands, the Scilly’s must be much lower than I had assumed and at serious risk. If I ever get there, I’ll double check.
I’d spent the night in an hotel room in Newbury (having reached the top of Walbury Hill in West Berkshire the day before) and was heading back to South London to recommence duties. Sleep had been illusive after the phenomenally annoying drunken behaviour of the guys staying in the rooms either side of mine, which only finally tailed off around 3am. Once upon a time I might have made a fuss but frankly I chose to avoid confrontation.
Reaching East Burnham Park, the highest point in Slough (and being frank again, don’t get excited), would complete the County Tops in the Thames Valley. I drove east on the M4 and turned left towards Sloughs suburbs at junction 7. Turning left again at the first roundabout and onto the Bath Road I caught a glimpse of a road sign directing motorists towards Dorney, Taplow and Dorney, named, obviously after three of the four stand out twenty storey tower blocks on Adelaide Road in north London. The one missing from the sign, which would have completed the set, was Bray, where our son was born in 1986 (on the 14th floor to be precise!).
North through Burnham and onto the Farnham Lane, which seemed to define where the surrounding country met urban Slough. I pulled over on a slip road of Farnham Lane opposite Crown Lane, a small road heading north towards Burnham Beeches. *
From what I had read the highest point was just beyond a hedge and fence where Crown Lane met Farnham Lane. I stepped out of the car and walked across an open area of grass, planted in places with young trees. A small sign explained that the land formed part of the Slough Digital Urban Forest. Some of what followed made a lot of sense, “biodiversity”, “Carbon Capture” etc, but it had been the use of the word “digital” that immediately closed my brain functions and left me scratching my head in disinterest.
A digital forest?!
What did catch my eye was a lonely litter bin sited near the road (see photo), but without any connection, from what I could see, to any potential meaningful interaction with intended clients. Maybe it was part of Slough’s Digital Waste Space initiative.
I looked across the road and to the junction with Crown Lane. The high point marked on the Peakbagger map sat just back from the road and in the trees. I don’t know why I didn’t bother to cross over the road for completion’s sake, maybe there was a low fence or something, but I concluded I had seen enough, and indeed a later check suggested that where I stood was the same height (51 meters).
The big tree on the left probably marked the spot
County Top number 50. Tick.
I drove back towards the M4 the way I had come, until I realised, I was somewhere I hadn’t been before. Ten minutes later and I was slap bang in the midst of a huge industrial/retail park sitting to the west of the town centre. It all appeared to be modernistic and high tech. Back in 1937 John Betjeman (who at the time lived in the rather quaint village of Uffington some miles to the west) wrote poetic lines on Slough, famously starting with “Come, friendly bombs, and fall on Slough..”
I had always known this opening line but wasn’t sure I had ever read the entire poem. Whoa! It’s excruciating. He must have been going through his Morrissey phase. Just as well he was never on social media. Between the wars a vast new trading/factory estate had been constructed in Slough. His poem railed against these developments. From what I could see there were no mid-Century buildings left or dirty smoke billowing up. All very clean and tidy now, though it’s still called Slough Trading Estate. It can only be a matter of time before a “Digital” finds its way into the name, “Trading” is replaced by “Enterprise” and “Estate” by “Park”. But will they keep “Slough”? I wonder!
* Burnham Beeches rang a bell for me. Famous for something, but only later did I discover that a whole slew of famous films had been shot there (not least Goldfinger). Perhaps I should have crossed the road.
If you know your history of Slough, you’ll appreciate the musical choice. Before Rod went in another direction! Other artists are available
El Colmado 57 