Author Topic: TR Complete London LOOP  (Read 11381 times)

Ridge

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TR Complete London LOOP
« on: 09:23:14, 24/07/13 »
It has taken 12 walks spread over 18 months but I've finally finished the London Loop and so I've decided to put all my trip reports together here.

I've walked the Loop (London Outer Orbital Path) in sun, rain and snow, through ancient woods, across parkland and over downs as well as along dual carriageways, through post-industrial wastelands and, my own least favourite terrain, across golf courses.
 
There are parts of the route that I would love to try to get back to in the future and other bits I will happily never see again.
Details of the route with downloadable maps and directions can be found here http://www.walklondon.org.uk/route.asp?R=5
« Last Edit: 10:05:14, 24/07/13 by Ridge »

Ridge

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Re: TR Complete London LOOP
« Reply #1 on: 09:23:26, 24/07/13 »
02/02/12
 
SECTION 1 - Erith to Bexley
8.5 miles
 
A fine but bitterly cold day in South London. As I set off I thought I should take a photo of the beginning of the walk, unfortunately the camera batteries were flat but this isn't the Highlands and a quick stop at Happy Shopper rectified the problem.
 
The first part of this walk is quite desolate.
 

 
The mud flats here are eroding as more and more flood defences on the rest of the river make the tides higher and run faster.
 
The QE bridge
 

 
To be honest it is not the most picturesque area I have ever walked.
 
If you do walk this section do not miss Hall Place built in 1537. It is free to look round and has a nice cafe. It also has very nice toilets which, on a walk that is never very far from civilisation, can be worth knowing. http://www.hallplace.org.uk/
 

 

 
The Gardens are also worth a look for their topiary.
 

« Last Edit: 09:27:37, 24/07/13 by Ridge »

Ridge

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Re: TR Complete London LOOP
« Reply #2 on: 09:23:35, 24/07/13 »
10/2/12
 
SECTION 2 - Bexley to Petts Wood
7 miles with Sprout and Flowerpot.
 
I did wonder yesterday evening as the snow was bucketing down if I would make it to South London (an area I have heard of but seldom been) but as it turned out there were no transport problems and I met up with Sprout and Flowerpot on time at Bexley station.
 
A lovely walk today, much more of a country feel than the last section, with some really secluded woodland areas before crossing numerous rail tracks to Petts Wood and mugs of tea.
 
I failed even more with the camera today than last time, with only one successful photo.
 

 
All that making you pose under the snowy trees for nothing.
 
A great, short walk on a crisp snowy day.
 
Thank you Sprout and Flowerpot for joining me, it was very nice to meet you both.
« Last Edit: 09:28:57, 24/07/13 by Ridge »

Ridge

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Re: TR Complete London LOOP
« Reply #3 on: 09:23:46, 24/07/13 »
22/2/12
 
SECTION 3 - Petts Wood to Hayes
9 miles with Sprout
 
The saga continues. An overcast day with quite a cool breeze at times, we just made it to a mug of tea in a cafe in Hayes before the forcast rain really set in.
 
The countryside is getting better and better, this section had woods, parkland, and fields. According to the walk details there are pyramidal orchids to be see at the right time of year but not in February.
 
Sprout outside the church of St. Giles the Abbot in Farnborough, Kent.

 
An Eaton Fives court built at High Elms House, now a country park, in 1840.


 
« Last Edit: 10:08:00, 24/07/13 by Ridge »

Ridge

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Re: TR Complete London LOOP
« Reply #4 on: 09:23:55, 24/07/13 »
1/3/12
 
SECTION 4 - Hayes (Kent) to Hams Green
SECTION 5 - Hams Green to Jolson South
10 miles and 6 miles, 16 miles in total
 
What a stunning day, great walk and great weather.
My first shorts and T-shirt walk of the year. A warm, sunny day with the low sun casting long shadows all day, as it does at this time of year, as if it is always early morning.
 
SECTION 4
 
A marker showing the line of the Greenwich Meridian

 

The last of the early morning mist lifting over the church.

 

Much of today's route was through ancient woodland. It will not be long before they are full of the blue haze of bluebells.


 

SECTION 5
 
Kenley Observatory. You do come across some strange things on this walk.

 

Happy Valley, I know it sounds like a children's TV show but that is what it is called.

 

A herd of these guys are the lawnmowers on Farthing Down.

 

One very happy walker.

« Last Edit: 09:32:04, 24/07/13 by Ridge »

Ridge

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Re: TR Complete London LOOP
« Reply #5 on: 09:24:04, 24/07/13 »
9/3/12
 
SECTION 6 - Coulsdon South to Banstead
SECTION 7 - Banstead to Bourne Hall Park, Ewell
SECTION 8 - Bourne Hall Park, Ewell to Kingston Bridge
4.5 miles, 3.5 miles and 7.3 miles, 15.3 miles in total
 
Not as good a walk as last week but it would have been hard to compete with the North Downs in glorious sunshine. Today's walk was dry but overcast with some quite long sections of pavement walking, there's a limit to the number of mock Tudor houses I want to see, my feet ached by the end.
Though I probably met less people today than on any of the walks so far it was rare that it was possible to forget you were on the edge of a city.
 
 
lavender field

 
 
The ghost roads, these roads were laid in the late 1930's in preparation for the whole area being used for housing. When WW2 came along building work stopped and before it could be resumed after the war the area was made part of London's green belt.

 
 
The remains of the banqueting house in the grounds of Henry VIIIs Nonsuch Palace. So called because it was so extravagant there was to be 'none such as this in the whole world.'

 
 
I don't know if this photo shows what is happening but the walkway is built on stilts in the stream to allow them to go together through a tunnel in the railway embankment.

 
 
My first sight of the Thames since the first part of the walk in Erith.

 

 
A major milestone was reached today. So far all my walks have involved getting the train from and to London Bridge station but today I came back in to Waterloo.
« Last Edit: 09:33:33, 24/07/13 by Ridge »

Ridge

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Re: TR Complete London LOOP
« Reply #6 on: 09:24:12, 24/07/13 »
14/3/12
 
SECTION 9 - Kingston Bridge to Hatton Cross
SECTION 10 - Hatton Cross to Hayes & Harlington
SECTION 11 - Hayes & Harlington to Uxbridge
8.5 miles, 3.5 miles and 7.5 miles, 19.5 miles in total
 
Another day that started off misty and then blossomed in to glorious sunshine. There was a lot of riverside and canalside walking on these sections.
 
Bushy Deer Park, I did see some deer but too far away to photograph.

 
Spring is now in full swing

 
Much of the first section follows the River Crane which, in the past, was obviously a hive of industry. All that is left now are wears, sluices and the occasional bit a brickwork and this impressive shot tower.

 
The old manor house stables and St. Dunstain's church tower at Cranford Park, a subway under the M4 is a few hundred feet away to my left.

 
Just in case I wax too lyrical here is the view of the towpath on the Grand Union Canal. It was near here on a very narrow bit of the towpath that I had to make my way past 3 youths wearing the regulation hoodies and baseball caps and accompanied by BMX bikes and a pitbull. They were some of the few people who stopped me to exchange greetings and chat about the weather all day.

 
The thing about the London Loop is the contrasts, so here is a photo taken minutes after the last one.

 
and here is the canal going over a small aquaduct.

 
This will be my last report for some time. As some of you know I started walking the London Loop when I was made redundant and I now have 2 lots of work which will mean I'm rushed off my feet until mid July.
« Last Edit: 09:35:33, 24/07/13 by Ridge »

Ridge

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Re: TR Complete London LOOP
« Reply #7 on: 09:24:22, 24/07/13 »
16/7/12


Section 12 - Uxbridge to Harefield West
Section 13 - Harefield West to Moor Park
Section 14 - Moor Park to Hatch End


4.5 miles, 5 miles, 3.8 miles. 13.3 miles in total
Walking with Sprout.


After a long gap I managed to get back to walking the London Loop yesterday.
Not the sunniest day I've had while walking the LOOP, it was a day a drizzle interspersed with rain and underfoot it was very muddy. Very few pictures, even by my standards, as the camera stayed in the dry.


Section 12 is almost all alongside the Grand Union Canal with pretty bridges and canal side cottages. We walked right past this fellow standing on the edge of the tow path.





Section 13 has a mixture of woods and fields with the paths getting more and more muddy.





As the rain was really becoming depressing we passed the Rose and Crown pub, well when I say passed we went in for lunch. Tea and sandwiches later and we were ready to face the element.


Sprout left me at the end of Section 13 and I carried on to do Section 14 alone. It was very much more of the same with a number of places so waterlogged that there was no alternative but to carry on through the middle and hope it didn't come over your boots. During this section I had both the best and worst weather of the day. I had moments of sun, when I actually took my jacket off, and then the wind got up and started blowing rain squalls at me.
« Last Edit: 09:37:33, 24/07/13 by Ridge »

Ridge

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Re: TR Complete London LOOP
« Reply #8 on: 09:24:35, 24/07/13 »
22/2/2013


Section 15 - Hatch End to Elstree


10 miles
Walking with Ridgeson (15) and Ridgedaughter (11)
 
Just over a year after I started the London Loop and more than 6 months since I walked the last section I convinced the children to come with me for a day. It's hard to sell a walk to the family that is exactly like our regular walking from home but you have to drive for nearly an hour to get there.
 
It was a very cold and grey day and the terrain was muddy woody, muddy heath and muddy fields.
 

 
The temperature was OK when we were walking but so cold when we stopped to eat that we just kept on going with a sandwhich in hand.
 

 
A great day out with the children.
 

 
If you are planning to walk this section then cross the road early and climb the fence to get in to Aldenham Country Park early, as we did, rather than walking all along the road.
« Last Edit: 09:39:12, 24/07/13 by Ridge »

Ridge

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Re: TR Complete London LOOP
« Reply #9 on: 09:24:46, 24/07/13 »
11/6/13
 
Section 16
Elstree to Cockfosters
10 miles
 
Slowly onwards round the London Loop. On a pleasantly warm day I walked the longest single section on the Loop. Once I was off the roads, of which there are quite a few, I hardly saw another person. This section includes possibly the worst stretch of the whole Loop where you have to walk down one side of the A1, cross it via a smelly underpass and then walk back up the other side to exactly opposite where you started.
 
This little chap was very unafraid and hopped along the path in front of me for quite a way.

 
The fields which once provided fodder for London's horses have been given over to wild flowers

 
The home of Dr. Livingstone in High Barnet, after he was found in Africa.

 
The site of the battle of Barnet where, in the civil war, the Royalists got confused in the fog and managed to defeat themselves with a bit of help from the Parliamentarians.

 
The section of the Loop between Cockfosters and High Barnet is a regular walk for us as a family if we have just a couple of spare hours as we can walk it, get coffee and cake and the get the bus back.

« Last Edit: 09:40:41, 24/07/13 by Ridge »

Ridge

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Re: TR Complete London LOOP
« Reply #10 on: 09:24:55, 24/07/13 »
10/7/13

Section 17 - Cockfosters to Enfield Lock
Section 18 - Enfield Lock to Chingford
Section 19 - Chingford to Chigwell
 
9.5 miles, 4 miles and 4 miles
total 17.5 miles
 
I know I'm not the best person at remembering to take photos but I failed spectacularly here. Having forgotten to take the camera with me I did take a few photos on my phone just to have something to post in a trip report. 3 days later, and before I had downloaded them, my phone completely died taking with it my photos and lots of my phone numbers, even those saved to the sim. So a brief written report.
 
It was a very hot day and the suncream was liberally applied before I set off. With this section of the Loop starting only 10 minutes from my door I was on my way by 8.10. Section 17 starts in Trent Park where I have walked, cycled and helped Cubs learn to map read so I know it quite well and it was strange to have to check the map just to be sure I wasn't following my favourite path but was actually doing the official route.
 
For about half the walk I followed a thin trickle of water called Turkey Brook which led me through fields and parks as well as along concrete paths behind rows of houses. Section 18 passed Gilwell Park, the headquarters of the Scouts where they were getting ready for the arrival of my son and 4999 others that weekend.
 
Section 19 included going through a field where I remember once 'discussing' with someone that they could not charge me to walk along the public footpath just because it went through their carboot sale. There are some very pleasant miles through Epping Forest in this section. The end of section 19 is a long drag by the side of a busy road.
 
Having finished the walk in 6 hours it then took 2 hours by public transport to get back to the start.
« Last Edit: 09:42:29, 24/07/13 by Ridge »

Ridge

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Re: TR Complete London LOOP
« Reply #11 on: 09:25:07, 24/07/13 »
17/7/13
 
Section 20 - Chigwell to Havering-atte-Bower
Section 21 - Havering-atte-Bower to Harold Wood
Section 22 - Harold Wood to Upminster Bridge
 
6 miles, 4.3 miles and 4 miles
total 14.3 miles
 
A very, very hot day, even with all the water I carried with me I still stopped off to buy more to ensure I didn't run out.
One of the problems with the Loop is finding somewhere to go for a pee as, while I often saw no one for a long time, it never feels completely safe just to nip behind a tree. With it being so hot today this was never a problem however much I drank.
 
Section 20
With all the rain earlier in the year and now the sun the nettles and brambles have run riot. This is a national trail but here was the path at the start of todays section.

 
It is not only the weeds that are doing well, the crops look like they are catching up too.

 
Towards the end of this section I walked for a while with the first person I've met who was also doing the Loop. He started in April as training for the Coast to Coast in August. It was nice to chat for a while and then we went our separate ways.
 
Section 21
This is called the round house and, though it looks like an old water tower, I think it was built to be a home.

 
These iron gateposts are all that is left of Pyrgo House where Henry VIIIs daughters, Mary and Elizabeth, grew up together.

 
At the end of this section there is a choice of either throwing yourself over the dual carriage way or walking 0.5 km to a crossing and then 0.5 km back up the other side of the road. I lived to complete the walk!
 
Section 22
This section goes through Pages Wood which is an entirely new wood of 100,000 trees planted in 2001. I suppose with time it will look more natural but at the moment it is like a wall of trees with very wide paths round them.

 
There was quite a lot of road walking in the middle of this section but it is amazing the number of times the Loop takes you down a tiny path between 2 suburban houses and you end up in woodland.

« Last Edit: 09:44:06, 24/07/13 by Ridge »

Ridge

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Re: TR Complete London LOOP
« Reply #12 on: 09:25:22, 24/07/13 »
23/7/13
 
Section 23 - Upminster Bridge to Rainham
Section 24 - Rainham to Purfleet
4 miles and 5 miles
total 9 miles
 
Another warm day though fresher after the thunderstorms of the night before which fortunately, though they were forecast to return during the day, did not put in an appearance.
 
Section 23
A short detour at the start of this section takes in Rainham windmill

 
After the heavy rains of the night before the river I was following had burst its bank in places leading to quite a damp path here.

 
Much of this section is in Hornchurch Country Park which was created in the 1980s from waste land, a rubbish tip, an old quarry and parts of a WW2 airfield hence the pillbox in this photo.

 
 
Section 24
In this section you are back to the industrial Thames. This was probably the worst section for lack of signs on the whole route.
 
My first sight of the Thames on the Loop since Kingston.

 
Concrete barges used in the D-Day landings

 
Here is another photo of the QE bridge, as there is in my first report on the Loop, but this time from the north bank

 
I celebrated my completion of the walk with tea and very sticky rhubarb and orange cake at the RSPB centre overlooking Rainham Marshes.

 
Then it was a final bit of road walking to the anti-climax of the end of the route at Purfleet where there is not even a sign to indicate that the walk exists.
« Last Edit: 10:04:24, 24/07/13 by Ridge »

April

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Re: TR Complete London LOOP
« Reply #13 on: 12:14:13, 24/07/13 »
Great pics and report Ridge and good to see it altogether  O0  I love the shot of the tree in the mist at Bushy Deer Park  :)  I've never had rhubarb and orange together before. Is it an acquired taste?  ;D  You southerners and your posh food, eh  ;)
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yorksgal

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Re: TR Complete London LOOP
« Reply #14 on: 12:19:55, 24/07/13 »
Lovely photos Ridge.  Great report too.  O0   Loving the topiary  O0   Gives a great contrast in walking in different seasons and loving the deer park photo O0


Thanks for sharing  O0

 

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