LOOP footpath 10 – Hatch End to Borehamwood

Walking the London Outer Orbital Path from Hatch End to Borehamwood – Section 15 – on 27 October 2019. An okay but not especially exciting section of the route. Guides to the path talk up passing Bentley Priory, but you can barely see it behind the fence. The leg under the motorway then alongside a road is not great.

Autumn is now very much here, with the path being a bit muddy in places.

LOOP footpath 9 – Uxbridge to Hatch End

Walking the London Outer Orbital Path from Uxbridge to Hatch End on 7 July 2019. Sections 12, 13 and 14 are each relatively short and so can be done in one long-ish day. These sections start by more or less following the canal, then turn off through some countryside and into the woods and through a golf course. The Rose & Crown is a nice pub in Hertfordshire, and there was old US military lorry in a field, a fox on the path and then some horses as Wembley stadium and London came into view.

LOOP footpath 7 – Kingston to Hayes

Walking the London Outer Orbital Path from Kingston to Hayes – sections 9 and 10 – on 25 May 2019. Bushy Park is very nice. The environs of Heathrow airport… less so.

A ride on a new Woolwich ferry

A trip on the Woolwich free ferry in London.

Two new boats built by Polish company Remontowa at cost of £20m the pair replaced the old fleet in early 2019 as part of an upgrade of the ferry service. This one is named Ben Woollacott. It has a capacity of 150 passengers (there were about 10 foot passengers on my trip), with 210 metres for vehicles across four lanes as well as dedicated cycle spaces. It is suprisingly quiet in operation.

Thames Path – Putney to Richmond

A walk along the section of the Thames Path National Trail, heading upstream from Putney to Richmond, on 11 March 2018.

Thames Path - Putney to Richmond

It turned out that the annual Head of The River Race rowing competition was underway, so there were lots of boats on the river, and hundreds of spectators on the path between Putney and Mortlake.

Thames Path - Putney to Richmond

My only experince of rowing is watching the Boat Race, so it was quite strange to see so many people who were out on the banks of the River Thames for the actual sport rather than just for the beer…

Thames Path - Putney to Richmond

Apparently the race was a dead heat.

Thames Path - Putney to Richmond

This section of the Thames Path path follows the river bank all the way, with no diversions around blocks of flats, building sites or gravel handling facilities.

Thames Path - Putney to Richmond

There is the option to follow either either bank of the river, but the general consensus in the guide books seemed to be that the south side is the better choice, so that is the one I went for. It is also not insignficantly shorter, thanks both to the curvature of the river and following the bank more closely.

Thames Path - Putney to Richmond

There is little risk of geting lost on this section of the Thames Path, even without signposting.

Thames Path - Putney to Richmond

Not far before Kew Bridge is a pair of sound mirrors. They are not quite as impressive as the listening ears at Dungeness in Kent.

Sound mirrors - Kew

Passing the Royal Botanical Gardens at Kew.

Thames Path - Putney to Richmond

A view to Syon House on the opposite bank of the river.

Thames Path - Putney to Richmond

Much of the route is lined with trees, although aircraft heading for Heathrow airport are rarely out of earshot.

Thames Path - Putney to Richmond
A pink building on a grey day.

Thames Path - Putney to Richmond

Richmond comes into view.

Thames Path - Putney to Richmond

That’s a more stylish way to travel. Lilian is a motor yacht built 1916 by Pettersson in Stockholm.

Thames Path - Putney to Richmond

Richmond is reached. I had planned to keep going on along the river to Kingston, but this seemed far enough for one day.

Thames Path - Putney to Richmond