Greenwich Walk on Saturday 6th October

On a bright sunny Saturday in early October, itself a highlight in this funny Autumn weather, a group of Effogers ventured down to Greenwich for a local history walk.  The Cutty Sark - newly refurbished after the fire in 2007 - provided a picturesque backdrop while we waited to get started.  Much of the hull is now obscured from the outside but inside the walls visitors are able to go underneath the ship and see just what made her such a fast clipper on the tea runs.

Once walk leaders Amina and Madeleine had arrived we set off, bypassing the market, to Crooms Road.  On the way up the hill we passed the Greenwich Theatre, home of our more recent pantomime outings and the Fan Museum, home of, well, fans!  Along the way we saw the home of Benjamin Waugh, founder of the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children.  We also heard the story of the local residents fight to have the park walls made lower so that they could have a view of the trees rather than of bricks; they won the fight, with the bricks being replaced by railings and a lovely view.  Near the top of the hill was the delightfully named Convent of Our Ladye of the Seas, and at the top of the hill the home of the hero of the siege of Quebec, General James Wolfe, whose statue overlooks the Naval College.

After all of this elevation it was time for a break, and where better than the local tea hut on Blackheath.  Familiar in design to those of us who get out and about in the Forest, this particular tea hut is under threat of closure from road widening proposals.  We dutifully all lent some support in the form of drinks and huge squares of cake, all of which went down very well.

Suitably refreshed, we renegotiated Blackheath Road and headed back into Greenwich Park.  A particularly handsome chestnut tree caught the group's collective eye and they decided on a spontaneous hug, followed by dancing round the tree.  Luckily no-one else thought this strange, though the deer in the compound may have got wind of the hugging as they were nowhere to be seen!

After lunch we stopped to welcome some runners who were finishing 10 marathons in 10 days, then admired the views over London.  The panorama covers Canary Wharf to the London Eye and all the way through to the Olympic Stadium in Stratford.  We also got to see the same view the audience must have had of the Naval College and the Queen's House during the equestrian events, the stands for which were still in situ.

Across the park we stopped at the house of Sir John Vanbrugh and admired it for quite some time while assistance was called for an injured seagull, then it was down the hill to visit the college and the chapel before heading back to the station for the journey home.

Sue U.

The Fleet on Foot Walk - 21^st October 2012

The weather dawned wet and gloomy as intrepid efoggers gathered at Blackfriars Station for a walk to follow the course of the River Fleet from the Thames across London to its source on Hampstead Heath. This was a virtual river walk, as the Fleet now flows for almost all of its length under the streets of London.

Eleven walkers gathered in good spirit and proceeded to lean over the Embankment to peer at the gated exit of the river Fleet into the Thames. Surprised onlookers were taken aback but fortunately no one fell in!

We then stepped lively through back alleys of Blackfriars and Holborn to admire several churches and the house of Dr Johnson, he who never grew tired of all the gin joints in all of London until he died. Shouts of ‘lead me to a coffee shop’ were politely ignored by our walk leader Pamela who jollied the group towards the British Museum.

We arrived ahead of schedule and a coffee break was taken in a nearby Italian cafe; very good it was too, and some enjoyed a late breakfast. Upon paying the bill some consternation was aroused in a couple of effoggers who thought they'd enjoyed a small coffee whereas it had been cafe grande.....a swift comparison of coffee cups allayed fears of over-charging.

The group explored the interior of the British Museum and met up at the rear entrance to proceed onwards to Kings Cross and then to Camden Lock where crowds were enjoying exotic nosh along the Regents Canal. We avoided temptation and shouldered them aside to reach the top of Primrose Hill for a lunch break. Here we were entertained by a chap with a false moustache on a Barclays hire bike about to ride down the hill which he eventually did at walking pace. Bradley Wiggens you have nothing to fear!

After lunch we pressed on to Hampstead and then tramped across the heath to view the source of the Fleet in the middle of a wooded area. It was a mere dribble, but the drinking-water fountain above was most refreshing. After enjoying the magnificent views across the heath we made our way to Gospel Oak station and took the overground train to Stratford. A very enjoyable walk was enjoyed by all and special thanks to Pam ably supported by Paul Ferris.

 Dave Townsend

A Refreshing Day on the Downs

Saturday 13th October:

05:25 - Woken by alarm - silenced it!

05:35 - Remembered that the neighbour had knocked last night whilst I was out and wanted to speak to me.

This was something I just didn’t need. The previous three days had seen delays with the scaffolding for my loft extension. They had arrived at 12:10 on Friday and were still working when I left at 3pm for voluntary work at my evening lunch club. It had been a difficult evening and I had not got to sleep till 01.00. But I knew the work that had gone into organising today's walk, and I didn’t want to miss out.

08:22 - Great relief at meeting up with Bernie (who got there at 08:00) and Sue. I was amazed at being early. The tube is magnificent.

08:30 - Ken, Trevor and Tina were soon joined by Fritz; the team all assembled on time. Got my Latté and settled down. Got a welcome ten minutes nap.

WHAT WAS I DOING HERE! my head screamed. I was already exhausted. It was going to rain. I would be sure to slip in the copious mud which overlay the chalk. I would be slower than the others and hold them back. All we would hear would be the drone of the M25. Whinge, whine and moan.

Contemplative lunch breakWell I was wrong. It was a great walk. The scenery was so varied and very different to the South Downs. I kept pace (well at least until the last two miles, when I really struggled). The fresh air was such a tonic for a struggling body and head. We met varied and cheerful walkers along the way. There were so many small local features as well as wide vistas.

The drink at the end was very welcome. The journey home was remarkably swift and comfortable. A relaxing bath, and - thanks to the exercise and fresh air - I enjoyed a great night’s sleep  that unhealthy tiredness had denied me the previous night.

The group was such good company, and were very understanding when my new boots slowed me down to a near limp at the end of the walk. Watching Fritz, who though 23 years my senior strode on with such confidence and was such an accomplished walker, meant that I did feel a bit inadequate though.

Joy sometimes comes from unexpected places.

Clive

A Roding Valley Walk - Saturday 8^th September 2012

Saturday's walk was arranged and led by Jill V. and Sue S. – relatively newer members of our group who took on what can be quite a daunting undertaking. They were road (or maybe footpath?) testing the new 'Tips for Walk leaders', recently produced by Committee member Pam, to see if they were helpful.

Fifteen of the Group met at Roding Valley Station, a venue and station that was new to me, and left promptly at 10am to walk up the road to Knighton Wood. This wood is part of Epping Forest, though separated from the bulk of it. It is a remnant of ancient woodland – which in Britain is woodland which has been used continuously since 1600 or before. I hadn't done my revision homework before the walk, so questions put to me about the history and ecology were embarrassing! I remembered the fact that the wood contains a substantial number of Wild Service trees - an ancient-woodland indicator species - and remembered that the rocks by the lake were man-made. I hadn't remembered the details, though: that they were made by Pulham & Son, a family of Victorian and Edwardian landscape artists who specialised in the construction of picturesque rock gardens and the like. Knighton Wood was enclosed in the 18th Century and remained in private ownership until 1930, when it was returned to the Forest and became a public open space. So, as well as the ancient trees, the wood – especially around the pond - still has some exotic plant species such as Royal Fern.

We crossed the ancient trackway of Monkhams Lane – which was the Anglo-Saxon boundary between the Manors of Chigwell and Woodford - into Lord's Bushes and took some toe-tripping animal tracks through the wood to emerge near Buckhurst Hill Station. It is a short walk through streets to reach the River Roding at Roding Lane, and from there a variety of footpaths and wide open spaces is available for walking or other recreation.

Some of the walkers enjoying a snack-breakThe day was particularly warm, with the sun beating down, and thankfully Jill and Sue had chosen to cross to the east bank of the Roding and walk alongside it in the shelter of trees. This area is part of the Roding Valley Nature Reserve, but is adjacent to the Roding Valley Recreation Ground and contiguous with the Roding Valley Park, which serves as a green corridor running from Redbridge Roundabout to Debden. After a short snack break by the side of a tree-sheltered pond, we continued our walk along the river. Nearing Debden, we crossed to the west bank by means of Charlie Moule's Bridge. During the 1950s Councillor Charles Moules lead a campaign to have this bridge built into the meadows that had recently been given to the council.

The walk back towards Buckhurst Hill was more exposed to the sun and some members may have been flagging; the group – by now joined by another two members - was extremely well spread out by the time we got back to Roding Lane! Again we had to pass through streets – albeit nice enough ones - to regain the Roding, and some of the group elected to leave us at this point. The remainder walked south along the river until we reached Ray Park at Woodford Bridge. This is a London Borough of Redbridge open space, with a convenient cafe in which – not surprisingly – those that had remained to complete the walk partook of refreshments.

After something of an energy intake and cool-down we made our various ways back home, some by way of Roding Valley Way Station, others by way of Woodford Station and maybe one or two by car.

The walk – in my case completed at Woodford Station – was just over 7 miles, somewhat over the estimated 4.5, but then we had elected to do an extension towards Debden earlier on. The weather had been lovely, albeit hot sunshine, but I'm not complaining about that. It had also been well planned and pre-walked by Jill and Sue, and competently led too, keeping the timing (if not quite the distance!) well in order.

Paul Ferris, 10 September 2012