Dagenham East to Upminster Walk

With winter and the darker evenings approaching I decided the next walk I did would be a bit nearer home (well my home anyway), and perhaps discover some of the lesser known gems of East London. So, on Saturday December 3rd, arriving at Dagenham East station, Jill V was already there and we were soon joined by Lynne, Fozi, Cathy and Richard.

We left the station and crossed over the road to enter Beam Country Park following the track between the railway track and Badass Lake (well that may not be its actual name but it’s owned by Barking and Dagenham Angling Society, so that’ll do for me). To the right of the track were hidden a number of anti-tank defences. After a gentle climb the track turned right with views over the park and the River Beam, after which the park in named. Approaching the bridge on the River Beam (one of the lesser well known war films) there was a marker post, which it turned out was made from part of the old Woolwich ferry mooring piers, which were demolished a few years ago in a project I worked on.

Crossing the Beam we turned right along the track to another lake, which we walked alongside watching the wildlife, before climbing a small hill to a patch of grassland with horses from a nearby stable grazing. Whilst most of them were tethered, one had managed to slip his (or her) tether and was having a fine time visiting its horsey friends. We turned right to exit the park and crossed the road before walking past houses and into Hornchurch Country Park.

Entering Hornchurch Country Park we turned left and followed the undulating track to the recently created Covid Remembrance Field. We continued on the track past a large lake and after a mile or so reached the cafe/ visitor centre for the lunch break. Suitably refreshed and having bought a considerable quantity of jams and chutneys from the visitor centre, we continued onwards, alongside the River Ingrebourne, until we reached Upminster, spotting a Little Egret on route.

We’d walked about 5.5 and it had been a pleasant leisurely walk and had been surprisingly scenic despite being in East London.

Trev (pathfinder) Eley   14th December 2022