The Green London Way. Part 1 - Sunday 23rd February
In 1991 I bought the newly-published book by Bob Gilbert – indeed my copy is signed by him, although I can't remember how that came about. I'd seen that it had recently been revised and re-published – many changes have taken place in London since that time.
The Green London Way is a long-distance footpath around London; it was first long-distance footpath around London and one of the very first entirely urban long-distance footpaths in the country. It proposed to be a new way of looking at London, at its culture and history but perhaps more than anything at its natural history.
The Group leaving StratfordI told Pam about this book, as I fancied re-walking it myself, having completed much of it back in the 1990's. Pam bought the book, and began the first section on Sunday 23rd February – the first of a possible series of walks for the Group.
Eight of us set out from Stratford Station to walk Section 1 of the route - “From the Lea to the Levels”. In fact, Pam had advertised it as from Stratford to Cyprus, as Cyprus (in Beckton) was to be our return point, rather than the Woolwich Ferry. After passing through Stratford itself – the original part, not E20 - the route follows a section of The Greenway, the promenade along Bazalgette's sewer embankment. That never sounds very pleasant (and occasional whiffs act as a reminder) but in fact is an open, breezy and easy walk passing such wonders as “The Cathedral of Sewage” and “Beckton Alps”.
The Cathedral of Sewage
Eventually, coming off the Greenway and crossing the A13 by way of a footbridge, Beckton District Park is entered, complete with crocuses, a lake and ducks, gulls and swans – but no toilets. The Victorian 'Cyprus' estate – which was named originally to commemorate the British capture of Cyprus - was rebuilt in the 1980s and to my mind is an example of how housing estates could be planned, with lots of parks, open spaces and green connecting ways for pedestrians and cyclists. If in places there was an undue amount of litter and other disturbance around, that perhaps reflects inhabitants rather than design?
Wasting good walking time!The day had been dry, but a little cloudy and as much of our walk had been on the Greenway and exposed to a somewhat chill wind, we were pleased to find a snack bar in the local superstore. After, we walked a relatively short distance more to return by the DLR. It was interesting to note that not only were we in Cyprus, but we probably would have been just about in Kent, too – except that that certain boundaries that brought Kent north of the river have since been re-drawn!
Leader and participants: Pam, Cliff, Fred, Fozie, Lynne, Marilyn, Paul, Sue S.
Distance: 5.5 miles
Paul Ferris, March 2014