There have been a number of writers who have written about their experiences of walking the streets of London, including Charles Dickens, in his essay "Night Walks", Henry James, in "London", and Virginia Woolf in "Street Haunting: A London Adventure" (1930).
Another novelist, E. M. Forster wrote about walking in London in his essay "London is a Muddle". Here Forster comments that he "I used to loathe London when I was young". However, according to Anthony Lake, by 1937, when he wrote this essay, "he had found a way of liking it, and he had done that by walking around it". However, it was "idyllic corners of parks and spots of green within the metropolis" that were important for him, where "the rural world has re-asserted itself".[1]
London Living Streets is a charity "dedicated to making London one of the world's best cities for walking and enjoying streets and public spaces – a city that is genuinely inclusive of all its residents, workers and visitors and not just designed for car users".[2] It has created Footways, a network of quiet and interesting streets for walking in central London.
Guided walks
Inner Temple garden. The Inns of Court and their gardens are a quiet, attractive historic area that are open to the public to some extent.
Several companies provide guided walking tours around parts of London. These walks are aimed primarily at tourists and the guide will often be an expert in a particular area. Such walk often are around a theme, such as 'Haunted London' or 'London of Jack the Ripper'.[3] It is also possible to download a tourist guide of London onto an MP3 player or use mobile phone-based services.[4]
To protect the existing rights of way in London the Ramblers launched their "Putting London on the Map" in 2010 with the aim of getting "the same legal protection for paths in the capital as already exists for footpaths elsewhere in England and Wales. Currently, legislation allows the Inner London boroughs to choose to produce definitive maps if they wish, but none do so".[6]
The launch event of "Putting London on the Map" took place at the British Library, and since then 'the Inner London Area of the Ramblers has been working with Ramblers Central Office staff to try to persuade each of the Inner London boroughs on the desirability of producing definitive maps of rights of way".[7]
In 2011 Lambeth Council passed a resolution to work towards creating a definitive map for the borough, but this does not yet exist.[8] The City of London has produced a Public Access Map.[9] Definitive maps exists for the Outer London boroughs.
Urban footpath: the alley
Sir, if you wish to have a just notion of the magnitude of this city, you must not be satisfied with seeing its great streets and squares, but must survey the innumerable little lanes and courts. It is not in the showy evolutions of buildings, but in the multiplicity of human habitations which are crowded together, that the wonderful immensity of London consists. Samuel Johnson, quoted (September 20, 1777) in The Life of Samuel Johnson, LL.D. (1791) by James Boswell[10]
One of the most common rights of way in Inner London is the alley. These urban footpaths generally have a long history and are also found in Outer London. One example, in an old neighbourhood of the City of London, Exchange Alley or Change Alley' is a narrow alleyway connecting shops and coffeehouses.[11] It served as a convenient shortcut from the Royal Exchange on Cornhill to the Post Office on Lombard Street and remains as one of a number of alleys linking the two streets. The coffeehouses[12] of Exchange Alley, especially Jonathan's and Garraway's, became an early venue for the lively trading of shares and commodities. These activities were the progenitor of the modern London Stock Exchange.
West of the City there are a number of alleys just north of Trafalgar Square, including Brydges Place, which is situated right next to the Coliseum Theatre and just 15 inches wide at its narrowest point, only one person can walk down it at a time. It is the narrowest alley in London and runs for 200 yards (180 m), connecting St Martin's Lane with Bedfordbury in Covent Garden.[13]
An alley in London can also be called a passage, court, place, lane, and less commonly path, arcade, walk, steps, yard, terrace, and close.[14][15] While both a court and close are usually defined as blind alleys, or cul-de-sacs, several in London are throughways, for example Cavendish Court, a narrow passage leading from Houndsditch into Devonshire Square, and Angel Court, which links King Street and Pall Mall.[15] Bartholomew Close is a narrow winding lane which can be called an alley by virtue of its narrowness, and because through-access requires the use of passages and courts between Little Britain, and Long Lane and Aldersgate Street.[14] While both a court and close are usually defined as blind alleys, or cul-de-sacs, several in London are throughways, for example Cavendish Court, a narrow passage leading from Houndsditch into Devonshire Square, and Angel Court, which links King Street and Pall Mall.[16] Bartholomew Close is a narrow winding lane which can be called an alley by virtue of its narrowness, and because through-access requires the use of passages and courts between Little Britain, and Long Lane and Aldersgate Street.[17]
A 75 miles (121 km) circular route with 15 sections and a radius of approximately 4–8 miles (6.4–12.9 km) from Charing Cross, that passes through green areas of urban and suburban London. The route forms a complete circuit, crossing the River Thames twice and with a notional starting point of Woolwich.
Local authorities are responsible for route signage.
A 150-mile (240 km) circular signed walk, in 24 sections, along public footpaths, and through parks, woods and fields around the edge of Outer London. The route does not form a complete circle because the Thames cannot be a crossed between Purfleet and Erith.
A walking and cycle path has been created on the land above the eastern end of the Northern Outfall Sewer, from Hackney Wick to Beckton, Poplar,
running some 4.5 miles (7.2 km), with access points along its length. Walk 14 of the Capital Ring follows the Greenway for most of its distance.
Completed in 1613, the water supplyaqueduct supplies water from Hertfordshire to North London. Since 1992, Thames Water, with the co-operation of local people and partners and at the cost of over £2 million, have created the path.
The walk can be split into the following three sections.
Hertfordshire: 14 miles (23 km). The path begins at New Gauge House, near Ware.
London: (1) 11 miles (18 km). After passing under the M25 the path passes through a range of different scenery from built-up urban area corridor to more open aspects and through four London boroughs; Enfield, Haringey, Hackney and Islington.
London: (2) (Heritage section) 3 miles (4.8 km). The path runs through open spaces and inner-city streets and follows the now truncated route of the river to its culmination at New River Head, near Clerkenwell, Islington.
Waterlink Way
The Waterlink Way is a cycling and walking route in south-east London, following the River Ravensbourne (Deptford Creek) eight miles (13 km)[30] through Greenwich, Lewisham and Bromley boroughs. It is part of Sustrans' National Cycle Network (NCN21). Signs are marked with a 'WW' symbol.
Shuttle Riverway
A waymarked walk in south-east London, following the River Shuttle "for its entire length of five miles (about 8 km)" from Avery Park in Greenwich through Bexley to Hall Place Gardens.[31]
London's open spaces
London's parks, heaths, and commons are crossed by numerous footpaths, both paved and unpaved, that provide walks of various lengths. There are often adjacent walking routes, whether in another park, along a canal towpath, or along the River Thames Path.
With increasing urbanisation of London, some of these were preserved as freely accessible open space and became public parks with the introduction of the Crown Lands Act 1851. There are today eight parks formally described by this name and they cover almost 2,000 hectares (4,900 acres) of land in Greater London. Hampton Court Park is also a Royal Park, but because it is the site of a Palace, this park is managed by the Historic Royal Palaces.[32]
Hyde Park is one of the largest parks in London. It is divided in two by the Serpentine and the Long Water. The park is contiguous with Kensington Gardens; although often still assumed to be part of Hyde Park, Kensington Gardens has been technically separate since 1728, when Queen Caroline made a division between the two. Hyde Park covers 142 hectares (350 acres)[34] and Kensington Gardens covers 111 hectares (270 acres),[35] giving an overall area of 253 hectares (630 acres).
Kensington Gardens are generally regarded as being the western extent of the neighbouring Hyde Park from which they were originally taken, with West Carriage Drive (The Ring) and the Serpentine Bridge forming the boundary between them. The Gardens are fenced and more formal than Hyde Park. Kensington Gardens are open only during the hours of daylight, whereas Hyde Park is open from 5 am until midnight all year round.
The park covers an area of 111 hectares (270 acres).[36] The open spaces of Kensington Gardens, Hyde Park, Green Park and St James's Park together form an almost continuous "green lung" in the heart of London between Kensington and Westminster.
There are various trails that are suitable for walking, including the Tamsin Trail, a 7.35 miles (11.83 kilometres) long perimeter track around the Park.[40] The park is adjacent to the River Thames Path, and close to other open spaces, like Bushy Park and Hampton Court Park. Walk 6 of the Capital Ring leads from Wimbledon Common to Richmond Park.
Blackheath is one of the largest areas of common land in Greater London, with 85.58 hectares (211.5 acres) of protected commons.[53] The heath is jointly managed by Lewisham and Greenwich Borough Councils.[54] Highlights on the Greenwich side include the Long Pond (also known as Folly Pond), located close to the entrance of Greenwich Park.[55] On the Lewisham side, there are three ponds, with Hare and Billet pond considered to be the most natural and probably the best wildlife habitat.[56][57]
It is a walled deer park of around 280 hectares (690 acres) in area and has been open to the public since 1894. The A308 road and River Thames form its boundaries. North of the A308 is Bushy Park. It is also close to Richmond Park, across the Thames. One of the main features of the park is the Long Water, which runs roughly eastward from the back of Hampton Court Palace.
Wimbledon Common is a large open space in Wimbledon, south-west London, totalling 460 hectares (1,100 acres).[58] There are a number of footpaths, along with a variety of walks, including the 5 miles (8.0 kilometres) Wimbledon Path.[59] Walk 6 of the Capital Ring crosses the Common and continues on to Richmond Park.
Wimbledon Common is managed, along with Putney Heath, and Putney Lower Common, under the Wimbledon and Putney Commons Act of 1871. Putney Lower Common is separated from the rest of the Common by about 1.5 miles (2.4 kilometres). The three commons are protected by the Act from being enclosed or built upon. The Wimbledon Common is for the benefit of the general public for informal recreation, and for the preservation of natural flora and fauna. It is the largest expanse of heathland in the London area. There is an area of bog, and the western slopes, which lie on London Clay, support mature, mixed woodland. Most of the Common is a Site of Special Scientific Interest,[60][61] and a Special Area of Conservation[62] under the EC Habitats Directive.[63]
Hampstead Heath
Hampstead Heath, a large, ancient London park, covering 320 hectares (790 acres),[64] has numerous footpaths, and "feels a million miles away – despite being approximately four miles" (7 km) from the City of London. North from Hampstead Heath the Dollis Valley Greenwalk (or Green Walk) is a link between the Heath and the Moat Mount Nature Reserve in Mill Hill in the London Borough of Barnet, connecting various green spaces along the way.[19] This 10 miles (16 km) long route acts as a link between the Capital Ring, which runs just north of the Heath through Highgate, and the London Loop.[18]
The Heath is a grassy public space that sits astride a sandy ridge, which is one of the highest points in London, reaching 134 metres (440 ft).[65] Running from Hampstead to Highgate, this ridge rests on a band of London Clay,[66] that embraces ponds, meadows, recent and ancient woodlands, a lido, playgrounds, and a training track, and it adjoins the stately home of Kenwood House and its grounds. The Heath is "a wonderful place for a ramble, especially to the top of Parliament Hill Fields, which offers expansive views across the city and is one of the most popular places in London to fly a kite."[67] The hill is 98.1 metres (322 ft) high. Running along the Heath's eastern perimeter are a chain of ponds – including three open-air public swimming pools – which were originally reservoirs for drinking water from the River Fleet.
Epping Forest is crossed by many public rights of way and orienteering and rambling are popular. There are numerous guidebooks offering shorter walks for the casual visitor. The most important event in the rambler's calendar in the area is the traditional Epping Forest Centenary Walk, an all-day event commemorating the saving of Epping Forest as a public space, which takes place annually on the third Sunday in September.[69] There is also a long-distance challenge walk that runs 21 miles (34 km), with views over Essex, Hertfordshire and London: a route "across dragonfly meadows, over small hills, past places associated with Queen Boadicea, through beech and oak forest where deer and fox roam".[19] The start and finish are "at the historic Waltham Abbey where King Harold is reputedly buried".[70]
Epping Forest covers 2,476 hectares (6,120 acres),[71][72] which makes it one of London's largest open spaces. It contains areas of woodland, grassland, heath, rivers, bogs and ponds and is a Site of Special Scientific Interest.[73][74] Stretching between Forest Gate in the south and Epping in the north, Epping Forest is approximately 19 kilometres (12 mi) long in the north–south direction, but no more than 4 kilometres (2.5 mi) from east to west at its widest point, and in most places considerably narrower. The forest lies on a ridge between the valleys of the rivers Lea and Roding; its elevation and thin gravelly soil (the result of glaciation) historically made it unsuitable for agriculture.[75][76]
See also
Flâneur someone who saunters around observing society
^"Waterlink Way". Lewisham Council. 22 January 2023. Retrieved 29 December 2023.
^"River Shuttle | Bexley Wildlife". Retrieved 2 January 2023. A walk called the Shuttle Riverway follows the river for its entire length of five miles (about 8 km).
^Colin A. Baker; Paul A. Moxey; Patricia M. Oxford (1978). ""Woodland continuity and change in Epping Forest""(PDF). www.field-studies-council.org. Retrieved 29 December 2023. Only with the middle Saxon settlement did the Forest ridge become used in any organized way and, by the thirteenth century, historical records show that large areas were being systematically cleared of trees" (Colin A. Baker, Paul A. Moxey, Patricia M. Oxford, "Woodland continuity and change in Epping Forest
