Trying to sort my photos, but also trying to sort my 'My Tracks' application, which Google are dumping at the end of April, I have detected a pattern. Late March, through to June, there's a lot of activity, and then it peters out. I think partly because there were at least 4 outings in August that were purely to the seaside, purely to lie on beaches, but I fear there are deeper reasons. In Spring, it only has to be mild and bright, but come the height of summer, you're demanding high summer weather. Even though that is relatively rare, and, also, not great for much other than lying on beaches.
If you want detailed instructions on this - or 26 other walks near London - just click here
This is the actual route I walked, and, unusually, managed to follow the instructions fairly precisely.
The walk was just shy of 4 miles, and I'm surprised I didn't take more photos than I did. Perhaps it was the sheer joy of being out on a gloriously sunny day, striding through rural London, enjoying the fresh air and the exercise, which was far from strenuous.
And again, once we had cleared the immediate area near the car park, we barely saw a soul until the final stretch through Jubilee Park. I know I'm really labouring this point, but once again, I saw clearly conscientious parents doing the right thing and taking their kids out - into a bland, tended field of grass, rather then into the woods , clearings and back paths. We saw no weirdos lurking nor any wild animals bigger than a squirrel. Perfectly safe for children, especially when accompanied by an adult, and brilliant for their intellect and mental and physical health.
No great merit to these photos but I took them just to say "Look! This is London! This is not how you imagine London to be!"
I took this photo as we approached the car park, having completed the circular ramble. The metal gate was constructed with the sole purpose of stopping bikes being ridden through. The metal and the labour probably come to a few hundred pounds. Utterly pointless expenditure, as proven by a couple of small kids with their Dad who, unsurprisingly, biked through the open gaps to the right! But hey, it probably deters disabled people on trikes or in wheelchairs, and parents with double buggies, so Job Done.
