Rotherhithe Walk, 21st January 2012
A goodly crowd of 18 EFOGers met at Canada Water to walk around the once hectic dock-filled area of Rotherhithe. The object was to look for reminders of the area’s history in a very modern, urban landscape. We found the lives of the dockers and seafarers celebrated in shopping centre murals, information displays, statues, building and street names but, perhaps most effectively, in the seafaring paraphernalia embedded in the streets: cobbles, chains, capstans, parts of hydraulic machinery, swing bridges, cranes and metal tracks.
Walking by Greenland DockWe walked by Greenland Dock (still there) which was once one of the largest docks in the world and twice the size it is now. Before going on to Surrey Dock we passed The Moby Dick pub with its echoes of a time when industries which produced lighting, soap, corsets and umbrellas were supported by whaling.
We lunched in Surrey Dock Farm where there was a demonstration of a blacksmith’s skills as well as goats, pigs and turkeys. No one bought a ferret (but they could have done). Katie was allowed in on a lead and was her usual well behaved self. The food was a bit pricey but good. I still wish I’d succumbed to the temptation of the lemon cake! Peter stop gloating!
After lunch we carried on, passing more former shipyards, dock areas and warehouses, including one at Kings and Queens Wharf, built by French prisoners during the Napoleonic Wars. We saw a tiny looking fire station, once one of London’s busiest (built 1903 and closed in 1965). Like most of the original “restored” buildings in the area, this has been converted into urban residential accommodation, set in a cityscape bordering The Thames.
We went on to explore the outside of the Pump House Museum and its nature reserve (one of quite a few on the walk). The Museum would be worth a visit, but has limited opening times. The nature reserves were good to see but would be more attractive perhaps when the warmer weather returns.
Most of us had walked the “other side” of the river so we experienced different views of places we already knew such as The Prospect of Whitby (or Devil’s Tavern), the Captain Kidd and, in Maz’s case, an area in which she worked.
Size MattersUnfortunately, the seal (Sophie?) I had seen on one of my planning trips did not appear but we did see cormorants and other birds - more than you might think. Apparently, although there are few nesting sites, there are a lot of visitors.
We took another break at The Brunel Museum which told the story of what was once hailed as “The 8th Wonder of the World”, the first tunnel under a navigable stretch of water. In the first 15 weeks after opening (in 1843) more than a million people paid 1 penny to walk through it to the other side (I didn’t find out whether that was single or return). This was at a time when the estimated population of London was 2 million. It took 18 years to build instead of the planned 3 and cost a lot more than expected – some things don’t change.
After looking round the museum we carried on to St. Mary’s Church where three of the owners of The Mayflower are buried as well as Prince Lee Boo, from the Pacific Island of Palau. He came here to learn about engineering but sadly died of smallpox after only 5 months.
Within the grounds of the churchyard was a playground. Some of us followed Amina’s lead in sneaking a go on the slide, big kids all. But, there were only two men with such courage and sense of fun. Can you guess who? Who was taking pictures?
Slides MatterOpposite the church is The Mayflower Pub, standing on the site where The Mayflower was kitted out before taking the Pilgrim Fathers to America in 1620, and where it was broken up at the end of its life. Nearby is the building that was St. Mary’s Free School, founded in 1613 to educate the sons of local seafarers.
The walk ended with a tour of King’s Stair Garden where we looked at the ruins of a 16th Century Manor House. Nearby was a bench on which a statue of Doctor Alfred Salter had sat before it was stolen. Ken had had his picture taken sat next to it on a previous EFOG walk. Finally, we looked at The Angel pub where Turner is said to have painted The Fighting Temeraire on her way to be dismantled. A brisk walk through Southwark Park brought us back to Canada Water.
Lessons. This was the first real-sized walk I have led and it took a lot of courage to attempt it, having so little sense of direction. I did learn some lessons, however, which others with similar concerns about leading might find useful. Next time I will lead “from the front” (I think this might have improved the pace of the walk). I think it would be good to have a named “rounder upper” to stop me worrying if everyone was still with us. It was essential to do the pre-walk planning trips but next time I will try harder to do this in a timely fashion so that I can have a pal to share this with me! Overall, it was fun though, and great to spend time with such a nice bunch of people. I would encourage others to give it a go – it’s nowhere near as scary as it might seem. Thanks to all those who helped and encouraged me.
Pam, February 2012