I decided some time ago that I’d not go back to finish this walk. The loss of momentum caused by the pandemic made me re-evaluate the worth of doing it compared with something a bit more rural and/or remote.
And so nearly 4 years has passed, in which time I’ve accumulated several bits of uncompleted walks, and the time has come when this year’s to do list basically becomes finishing off all of the incomplete ones before I let myself start something new. First up, the “easy” matter of a largely urban walk, ideal for doing in winter.
With 24km (15 miles) on my map to do, that said it could be done in a day, but that doesn’t include the walk to/from the station at each end, and inevitably a bit of extra distance simply because it always work out more than mapped.
So I set off ready to do it all, but quite happy to call it at some point if the need arises.
Into London, and a short walk from Fenchurch Street to Tower Bridge where I left off last time.
Today’s walk has the advantage that I’ve walked the first part of it several times before.
I pick up the first marker set into the ground just after dropping off Tower Bridge to the riverside by the old City Hall. Here there are some animals out for a bike ride – I’ll see several of these characters throughout the walk this morning.
Along past HMS Belfast…
I cross over London Bridge rather than take the slight detour underneath. Past Southwark Cathedral then I’m rounding the corner where the replica Golden Hinde lays.
Soon I’m properly back out on the riverbank, and passing the replica Globe.
All the way along to County Hall and the London Eye.
Once passed under Westminster Bridge I come across the National Covid Memorial Wall, which obviously wasn’t here last time I walked a bit of the Jubilee Greenway, nor for that matter the last time I walked this far down west. So many hearts written on, and it isn’t until I get to the very far end that there is a significant amount of space remaining.
I cross Lambeth Bridge and look back north along the river.
A short leg through Victoria Tower Gardens, before emerging in the tourist hotspot outside parliament and Westminster Abbey. At this point I’m following the waymarkers, as the route is a little vague. I know though that I need to get to the bottom right hand corner of St James’s Park and walk up that side to join the Mall.
As I walk up the Mall, the police are dashing around on bikes shooing people onto the pavement. It becomes clear why soon after. These guys are obviously popping down to St James’s Palace to prepare for the changing of the guard.
The police stopping people crossing the road seem a little unsure as to whether they can now let people across – you’d have thought they’d know the drill by now. I don’t wait for this though, as technically the Greenway goes up to the left of the Victoria Memorial, crosses the road and passes right along the front of Buckingham Palace.
…which is a bit of a chore as it’s already getting quite crowded, and takes a while to weave my way through.
A short walk through Green Park brings me to the Wellington Arch, which I’ve never actually walked under. So I do.
A long stretch through Hyde Park to the back of Kensington Palace, and I manage to completely miss the markers a few times – not by much, just enough to know that the path I’m on isn’t heading the right way.
A more serious problem comes after I emerge onto Bayswater Road at Queensway. Here a marker points north towards God knows where rather than east towards Paddington as I expect. I follow it though as this is the trickiest bit of navigation today (or so I think).
It turns out to be completely wrong, so rather than retrace my steps I attempt to recover the route my map shows by cutting east to intercept it. Which I do just before Paddington. Here there are more of the animals.
Down the north east side of the station to join the Grand Union Canal to Little Venice.
Then a right turn onto the Regent’s Canal. So it should all be easy from here as all I have to do is follow this to Victoria Park.
I take a detour down the Edgeware Road to grab some lunch then return to do battle with the Regent’s Canal. At Lisson Grove I lose the towpath to a gated private section, and the other path is closed off at the footbridge. I resign myself to a long trek south east along the railway to cross over, but a local passer by persuades me to go back as there’s an archway that will put me back on the canal. I’m sceptical, but do it.
Back at the road, that archway turns out to contain a locked gate, as I suspected. So I end up walking through a nearby industrial estate to pick the path up again just before Regent’s Park itself.
Now all is plain sailing navigationally. The path is busy and requires a fair amount of dodging around puddles, but takes me inexorably to Camden, passing some rather swish gaffs, and the lemur enclosure at the zoo.
Camden Lock throws me a bit as progress is broken up with bridges and markets and people in the way. I find myself crossing the canal a couple of times to get back to where I want to be.
By now my feet are smarting a bit, and the soles of my shoes are feeling pretty thin. I decide that the 6km still to do to Victoria Park (let alone the 3km to a station I can get home from) can wait another day, and so I get to the back of King’s Cross station and call it a day.
With all the detours, plus the unmapped distance at the start, I’ve still done over 24km, and not sure I could have done another 9km. Later in the year those distances will be easy, but it’s too soon after the festive period. I bail out and head home, knowing that I’ve got just an easy half day left of this walk to do.
