2022

Sunday Dec 11, Brick Lane street art. We shall meet at Charlton Station on Platform 1 to get the 10.34 train to London Bridge – where we can meet others at about 10.50 near Greggs – before taking the Northern Line to Old Street.  This walk introduces a look at street art in the Brick Lane area of east London – and guess who it starts with? Yes, a Banksy! Along with the cafes there’s an opportunity to visit the old Truman Brewery where, this weekend, there is a Design and Craft Fair; although entrance is free it will be necessary to book a ticket.

Sunday Nov 13 – Bow Street Police Museum We’ll meet at Charlton Station at 10.30 and, as there are no trains on this line next Sunday, we’ll take the bus to the Jubilee Line at North Greenwich then to Waterloo where we’ll walk through some interesting Victorian housing, cross Waterloo Bridge and then on towards Bow Street where we find The Police Museum. (https://bowstreetpolicemuseum.org.uk/).

Sunday Oct 9: a circular walk around the City taking in a new pocket park at St Paul’s, and a rising view of it from a nearby shopping mall. A visit to Guildhall Heritage Gallery {https://www.cityoflondon.gov.uk/things-to-do/attractions-museums-entertainment/heritage-gallery) gave us time to take a rare look at William the Conquer’s Charter of 1067, along with displays about the City’s regulations on making and selling Bread and a celebration of George Peabody and the founding of his Housing Group. A stroll through the City is always pleasant at the weekend when it’s quiet and familiar places like the Mansion House, the Livery Halls, Monument, etc (and the you can tell the Old Lady of Threadneedle Street just how you’re feeling about her just now) they can all be seen in detail and without hassle. Although not now looking so resplendent, the flowers in the moat at the Tower will give the impression of how lovely they were – and will be in future as, I believe, it is planned to keep the annual display.

Sunday Sep 11: Richmond. This circular walk of nearly 4 miles takes in the town, the river and the park – so much variety to enjoy. There is one hill: Richmond Hill, but the magnificent views from the top and in the park are well worth the effort. There are some seats on the way up and we can take our time. The town has lots of historic Tudor connections to look out for and the river walk is especially delightful. There are a number of toilets and cafes en route.

Sunday Aug 14: Theydon Bois. The walk takes in some (very dry) open fields, the ancient Epping Forest and a delightful village, no real hills just a few inclines. The walk is about 4.5 miles with a very nice pub (The Forest Gate) half way round. The terrain can be rather uneven in the forest.

Sunday, July 10: St Albans. The order of visiting places of interest will be to start at St Albans Museum, which has a cafe and plenty of toilets (including those in the cells!). Nearby is the Clock Tower which you can climb for a great view of the city and the Market Place below. A walk down the hill passing The Fighting Cocks – reputably the oldest licensed inhabited inn in England – and on to the Verulamium Park, the Roman Wall, Mosaic and Hypocaust and finally ending at the Cathedral where there is a nice cafe (good butternut squash soup today!), toilets and places to sit and rest and others to investigate but if you want to take a guided tour you must book in advance. The Verulamium Museum and Theatre are options once inside the Park and there is a combined entrance fee for them.

Sunday, June 12: Brockley Three Peaks Walk. As the name suggests, there are 3 areas of higher ground offering splendid views across London and a variety of green, wooded or open spaces, these are joined up with other green areas (of flat ground) to make a circular walk of around 5 miles. The 3 ‘peaks’ are Hilly Fields, One Tree Hill (where you can see the Oak of Honor*) and Blythe Hill Fields whilst the lower areas include a couple of cemeteries and the route of the Ravensbourne River through Ladywell Fields. This walk includes a couple of steep inclines and is slightly longer than some of our walks but it is a really amazing and enjoyable one, as a result we will make good use of the many pleasant stopping places – view points, cafes, benches, etc and we are never far from a bus route back towards central Lewisham.

Sunday May 8: Eynsford. This walk has some glorious views towards the Weald and onto the Greensand Ridge or over the magnificent viaduct and the slopes of the Downs. We start the walk by entering the village and crossing a 16th century bridge next to a ford through the Darent; as we turn off the road there is a very short but steep incline which takes us up to the more gently sloping fields above the river. There are, shortly, two stiles over the railway line to negotiate, one of which has a steep step down; if this might be a difficulty for you there is the option of taking the road route under the viaduct and meeting up with the rest of the group at Lullingstone Roman Villa. From here we will walk on to Lullingstone Castle and then to the Country Park Visitors Centre where we can get refreshments. In all the walk is approximately 3.5 miles. I haven’t estimated the distance if you are taking the road route under the viaduct, but it is possibly shorter.

Sunday, April 10: Hackney. Starting at Stoke Newington,  a walk to Abney Park Cemetery (https://abneypark.org/history), one of the ‘Magnificent Seven’ Victorian cemeteries which, as originally laid out as an arboretum, has some wonderful trees. From there  to Clissold Park (https://hidden-london.com/gazetteer/clissold-park/) a pleasant park with a nice but busy cafe and public conveniences! Here you’ll find gardens, animals enclosures and part of the New River – not a natural river but a waterway built in 1613 to provide fresh water to London from the River Lea. We now have the option of a short walk, passing the Castle Climbing Centre (that we won’t be trying out – but it does have a vegetarian cafe) to a reservoir with outdoor swimming and boating (just taking a look here too, I’m afraid!) and a great view. The 141 bus will take us back to London Bridge and then the train home.

Sunday March 13: Lewisham. From Lewisham Station, a walk around the more pleasant routes and finding some surprises around Lewisham – including a beautiful Temple! The route includes residential streets, some tiny, green areas and larger parkland with one, short incline that can be muddy after rain, ending the walk in Ladywell Fields where there is a pleasant cafe with a good range of food.

Sunday, February 13: Battersea. Starting at one of the newest tube stations in London – Battersea Power Station on the Northern Line, named after the old Power Station which still looms large over the whole area with lots of new residential and commercial buildings as well as a small Heritage and Learning Hub. But for a good introduction to the area we’ll visit the famous park with its lake, sculptures, old trees, etc. following a route through it along mostly flat, made-up paths. There’s a popular cafe in the park with loos where we can get refreshments. Before returning home we can visit the Light Festival in the Circus area of the development which will not look as effective as it does in the dark but it’s on the route back to the tube station. There is an alternative route home for walkers who have their sea-legs as the Uber Clipper stops nearby at Battersea Pier and the boats go to all stops to North Greenwich (they run about every half hour taking 65 minutes and if you have a Freedom Pass you can get a half price ticket).

2021

Sunday December 12: Riverside Markets. A walk along the Thames from Potters Fields near Tower Bridge towards Charing Cross, where there are many Christmas lights to enjoy – but we also have a couple of options for seeing more which includ the Trafalgar Square Christmas tree and the one near the Duke of Your’s statue in Pall Mall which, I’m told, has many more pine needles! We will decide on a stop for lunch and to warm up as we feel the need and then head off to Charing Cross and home but some of you may wish to go on to Regents/Oxford Street for more lights although they are unchanged from those of the past few years.

Sunday October 10: Hampstead Pergola. A walk up the hill through Hampstead Village, with the occasional detour to look at some quaint back streets, will bring us onto the Heath – it’s then down hill to the Pergola. After our visit we’ll head towards Golders Hill Park where there is a really good park cafe with plenty of seats inside and out with lunches and lite-bites to chose from. This is quite a special park in its own right having a large acreage, bird and animal enclosures, gardens and much more. From here it is a short distance to Golders Green tube station and home. https://thegardenstrust.blog/2020/06/06/the-pergola-hampstead/

Sunday September 12: Brookmill Park. We’ll head off to Greenwich Station where we’ll get the DLR to Elverson Road and take a walk through Brookmill Park – a 5 acre park with a wealth of wildlife including a couple of 300 year old London plane trees. We then follow the lower course of the Ravensbourne River as it becomes tidal, but not always in sight, to the point where it enters the Thames at Deptford Creek. After a stop in Greenwich for a lunch break we can either return to Charlton on the bus or train or walk back along the Thames riverside path.

Sunday August 8: Wooded Eltham walk. The walk highlights the wooded aspects of Eltham and one which ends on Shooters Hill so a bit of an uphill route towards the end. It starts on the flat along Gravel Pit Lane which comes out into Riefield Road. With Falconwood Station over on the right a left turn takes you into Shepherdleas Woods, a little known but lovely wooded area which brings you out onto Welling / Rochester Way and then a view of the splendid Oxleas Woods Cafe. After a necessary break here, you have a number of choices:
– to stay with Joanne who will take you on an alternative return route to Bexley Road via Eltham Park North and then return to IKEA on the 132 bus.
– to walk along the lane by the side of the car park to Shooters Hill and take the 486 bus home;
– to walk through Jack Woods passing Severndroog Castle and then Castle Woods to the junction of Academy Road and Shooters Hill Road, cross Woolwich Common via the path a short way down Academy Road on the left; from here cross the Common towards Queen Elizabeth Hospital and either take the 486 bus home or walk through Charlton Park

Sunday June 13: Historic Houses. A local walk which took in Woodlands House, Greenwich Park and Enderby House. The walk was linked to two recent pieces in Grapevine, about the Angerstein (Woodlands House) and Enderby families.

The articles from Grapevine by Jill Austen about Woodlands House and Enderby House are on the local history section of our projects page

2020

Our first walk since lockdown – Sunday September 13 – a walk to explore Woolwich Common, Severndroog Castle and Oxleas Woods

On a fine autumn day, we walked up Charlton Church Lane to Charlton House, across Charlton Park and on to Queen Elizabeth Hospital, then across the Common to the crossroads. We continued the walk uphill to Severndroog Castle on Shooters Hill and took a stroll round Castle Woods where we stopped for refreshments at the Oxleas Cafe before returning home.

Sunday 6 Jan – We were pleased to have a bright sunny morning to set out to Canary Wharf and it stayed dry, if increasingly cloudy all day. We headed off from the tube station through Jubilee Park to the Crossrail Place Roof Garden to find trees and shrubs originating from many of the countries visited by the West India Dock Company and brought back to that site over 200 years ago. There was also available to printout a story lasting one, three or five minutes to take home for bedtime reading! We moved on to the Museum of Docklands for a browse through this fascinating museum – an offshoot of the Museum of London – on all aspects of dock life over the centuries, eventually ending up at the pub next door (with the most luxurious ladies’ loos!). Some walkers then decided to make their way home whilst others of us took a diversion to East Greenwich Pleasaunce for the Wassail festival

2019

Sunday 8 Dec – by Thameslink train to Blackfriars for a stroll through The Inner and Middle Temple and out into the Strand.  Passing the Royal Courts of Justice and St Clement Danes church we make our way to Covent Garden to take in the Christmas decorations, browse the stalls and sample some of the seasonal wares.  From here we walk the short distance to Seven Dials to see their decorations or wander down to Trafalgar Square to see the tree, ending at St Martins in the Fields Cafe in the Crypt.

Sunday 8 SeptTotally Thames Festival.  Between Tate Modern and the National Theatre via the OXO building are displays including the ‘Ship of Tolerance’ moored on the river at Tate Modern;  ‘My Story of Water’ – a children’s arts education project; and ‘A River Runs Through It’ – the Thames as seen by 5 London artists at the OXO building and wharf. Then on to the National Theatre for ‘Mudlark’ an exhibition of finds from the foreshore; and then ‘The Barking Stink’ – an exhibition of 200 years of Thames smells! Finally, the option of a Clipper boat trip back to Greenwich.

Sunday 14 July – Beckenham Place Park: a short walk on paths to the lake, flower gardens and mansion with an optional stop for refreshments whilst others go off for a longer walk around the grounds of the park which includes some ancient woodland.  There is a new cafe in the planning of the stable block but the old one at the mansion is still serving simple refreshments; there are also toilets in the mansion.

Sunday 14th Aprilin the City but ending at an oasis of green!  Train to Blackfriars, walk across the Millennium Bridge to St Paul’s and into Cheapside to see the Cathedral from Number One New Change.  From there a walk round to Guildhall (there are toilets here) and then onto the Barbican where, only on Sundays, its Conservatory opens to the public – the oasis amidst the concrete!

Sunday, 10th March – Walthamstow Wetlands. This is a particularly good time of year to visit this amazing wildlife site as it is the middle of the bird migration period.  Peregrine falcons, kingfishers and gulls are regularly seen throughout the year but we can expect to see wading birds and possibly the start of the tern migration.  It is a Site of Special Scientific Interest and has only been open to the public since 2017 after Heritage Lottery Funding helped with renovation and conservation.  Two important buildings included in this were the Victorian Engine House now an Information Centre and (very good) cafe and the Coppermill.

Sunday, 9th December – a walk through three of London’s parks: St James’, Green and Hyde Parks; then an option to visit Winter Wonderland, or else walk on to see the decorations in Oxford Street, Regents Street and Carnaby Street.

Sunday, 11th November – a significant historical date, so we spent the 2 minutes of rememberance at 11 o’clock at the Charlton War Memorial outside St Luke’s Church before taking the bus to Blackheath and walking through Greenwich Park down to the National Maritime Museum to view their newly opened galleries (well worth a visit if you haven’t seen them!) and stop for refreshments in the cafe.

back to main Walking Group page