Day 14 Banstead to Berrylands - the LOOP is complete

Banstead station doesn't even pretend to have trains on a Sunday so bus to Sutton and bus to Banstead M&S it was, which worked well. Back to the golf course and we were off. Epsom & Ewell is definitely a *nice* borough but then I think a  few of my friends could tell me that anyway.

Away from the golfers, it wasn't long before I was on familiar territory, firstly passing scenes of school sports days on Northey Avenue and then recollections of umpteen running events in Nonsuch Park.

Nonsuch Mansion complete with wedding party waiting to burst out

It made a change to go more slowly and see the park in a different way. I even heard a woodpecker. I hadn't realised how big it is nor the depth of its historical credentials going back to Henry VIII. There used to be a Nonsuch Palace in the park, created by Henry VIII but used by Elizabeth I.

Out of Nonsuch Park and going towards Ewell West, you get a reminder of how odd the Victorians could be, take the Ewell Castle as an example, built in 1810. It is on the site of an earlier castle but really, is this the best 'style' they could come up with?

Ewell Castle now a school

Opposite is a stand-alone medieval church tower which is dilapidated and beautiful in the middle of a churchyard.

Tower no church

I spotted a sad story on the headstone of "Catherine, wife of James Bailey who in consequence of the overturning of the Dorking Coach April 1 1826 met with her Death in the 22nd Year of her Age". The newer, replacement church is elsewhere in the same churchyard. Ewell threw up a few gems including the little Watch House where locals would be locked up for their misdemeanours.

Watch House c 1770

Bourne Hall Park has an impressive gate and some gardens that perhaps I should have explored further. The original house from 1770 was demolished in 1962 and replaced by a rather outlandish public building in 1967.

Dog Gate, Bourne Hall Park

There is a lake in the park and there were goslings of various sizes, feeling brave enough to waddle about on their own. This didn't stop the geese following them.

Geese, fence, goslings

Fence, goose

Altogether again

What I didn't know before is that this lake and nearby ponds form the source of the Hogsmill River. Thus the way was set home. Feeling that I am fairly familiar with the Hogsmill, it was interesting to join up the pieces and still discover new things. I did see the go-kart track in action for the first time and looked at the 'church on the hill' in a different way.

Red go-kart

St John the Baptist Malden

From the church to the finish was a well trodden route, being a regular running route with my club. Lovely daughter met me at the end and we retired to the Berrylands pub for refuelling and a touch of celebration.

Womble at the end of the LOOP

14 days and my garmin says it was at least 162 miles. That doesn't include walking to/from New Malden station on many days and the occasional user/technical failure. The weather was pretty good really, I did get rained on but never very badly. I did have to use suncream and wore my best sun hat some days.

The description on the cover of the book is "150 miles of secret countryside to walk in a green corridor around London". It was definitely like going for a walk in the park every day. To say it was countryside was pushing it slightly by the time I was on yet another golf course not knowing which to look for flying golf balls. There is a huge amount of glorious countryside within easy access of your Oyster card, so no moaning about not having any money or not knowing what to do. Get off your sofa and go for a walk somewhere new. My main disappointment was the amount of litter in some areas, so please do your bit and take your rubbish to a bin or home with you.

You don't even have to buy the book, I think the internet can help you.

Day 13 Hamsey Green to Banstead - the words

Whatever they say about public transport in south London, it's true. I've had more trouble or made more poor decisions on this bit of the walk than anywhere else. Anyway, this is about *yesterday* ie Friday's walk, the penultimate day's womblings.

This was a hilly day and to prove it there was the only trig point to be found on the whole LOOP route.

It looks lonely

There are plenty of rail lines around here even if they don't seem to provide a useful service at the station you want to use. I had a romantic thought that this view would have been lovely with an old steam engine puffing around the corner, but then this was on the day that the Flying Scotsman was scuppered on a journey elsewhere.

Use your imagination

As mentioned, there was a lot of going uphill, this can leave me feeling grumpy. I skipped on the  opportunity to make a diversion to see Kenley Airfeld, a Battle of Britain airfield. I did check with a lady who'd made the excursion and she didn't sell it well. However, towards the end of the airfield was a delight! A teeny weeny observatory belonging to the Croydon Astronomical Society! It's an active club, as witnessed by the member cutting the hedge outside.

Small observatory & very small observatory

Ground control

From Kenley to Coulsdon, via the Fox pub. I discovered the Royal Air Force Linguists' Association (never heard of them before!) as there's a plaque on the wall of the pub.

Did they enjoy a beer?

Lots of scenery, hilly scenery ensued as the route took me to Happy Valley and then Farthing Downs. I find it interesting that there is evidence of ancient settlements in some areas, for example a 7th century Saxon cemetery on the Downs. Only kings and great leaders used to get barrow burials like this but we don't know anymore who lies here. There was one of those topograph things which points off in all directions where things are and there were yet more views of London in the distance.

Topograph

Nearby, at the high point of Farthing Downs was something called The Folly, where a local landowner planted seven beech trees in 1783 to mark the summit. Only one of the original trees remained but others have been planted at various times to take their place.

The Folly

Away from Farthing Downs, shaking off the memories of cross country in the mud, it was through Coulsdon and on to Woodcote. Up here was a very good view of London in the distance.

London again

Further along, there was a very brief encounter with Mayfield Lavender Fields. It's a bit early in the growing season so there was next to no smell. I bet it's amazing in a month or two. The Oaks Farm is nearby, owned by the Derby family from the 1700s. They liked their horse racing and were responsible for naming The Oaks race, and allegedly taking a part in naming the Derby. There was more golf ball avoiding to finish the day and then the job of getting home from a station with an hourly train service.

Day 13 Hamsey Green to Banstead 1-0 to the Wimbledon

It was a busy day. I thought I would never get to the start of the walk. As a result, I thought I'd never get to the football on time, even though it was a 7.30 pm kick off. What football, you ask? First leg of the League Two Play-Offs. The mighty AFC Wimbledone v Accrington Stanley (Who are they?).
 
So, not much more to say tonight as it's very late and I have one more walk to do. I shall write it all up nicely when I've finished.
 

Day 12 Bexley to Petts Wood

So, to complete the section I skipped, it was back to Bexley and on to Petts Wood. The weather was still nice! My jacket is still safely scrunched in the bottom of my bag and I travelled without the ingestion of any painkillers for the first time in about a week. My feet have been hurting. Suncream and hat were the order of the day once more.

I do like angles & regular shapes & shadows & stuff

The book that is my guide does have some strange moments. For example, today it described a very early part of the way as finding oneself on a vast, high plateau. Now really, going up a slight incline and still being on a level with the trains going by is not equivalent to being on a high plateau. Get a grip or travel more. An old gravel working gradually reverting to nature, still with a red-brick pumping station in the corner is never going to be that romantic. However, the river Cray comes to the rescue and adds some watery diversions and delights. There was a heron for starters.

Five Arch Bridge & weir

I was pondering whether the Cray had a strange effect upon creatures. I was trying to stick to the riverside path and came across rather a lot of large chopped down tree trunks and was yet to see the way through when a runner popped up coming towards me. That's handy, he'll know a path. But no! He headed straight across the river, sploshing ankle deep and disappeared off up the other bank without batting an eyelid. I got through anyway. Next up, there was this little dog, female it turns out, brown like a Jack Russell/Corgi mix, galloping down the middle of the water chasing a low flying mallard. There was only ever going to be one winner. I found her owner and asked if she'd ever caught anything and he said, no, but it's great exercise and she loves it! Sure enough, back came the dog, found some more ducks and chased them back down the river. Absolutely hilarious.

Swan guarding another sitting on a nest nearby

There were more dog walkers, a group of school children and a couple of police officers (didn't check if they were regular or community type). Nearby I overhead a local lady relate what she would like to happen to the yoof we could hear out on [their/his/her] moped/noisy thing nearby. It wasn't kind but interesting to hear that you're not alone in wishing that perhaps these young people weren't churning up the local parks. It may be that the police officers were out trying to locate them - I did hear one of them say they hadn't been that way before.

Sidcup Place held the lure of being a pub-restaurant and hence the location of some toilets. Except that it was closed due to some gas problem. An interesting red-brick building and lovely parkland with a walled garden now hosting the Sidcup Community Garden, it was a shame to have missed having a look inside. It seems to have been built in 1743 with a mixed heritage since.

Sidcup Place

Sidcup Community Garden

Scadbury Park, another local nature reserve was definitely a place I'd never heard of but again, lots of history. The quirky thing though is the moated manor house which someone decided to start rebuilding in C20 and then stopped again. The whole place is now possibly a designated ancient monument. It's definitely subject to ongoing archaeological investigations.

Moat & remains

Random staircase

A few weeks ago, I was in the audience for a recording of The Now Show. One of the pieces was a chap going on (rather) about daylight saving. I wish I could send him these pictures :-)

I only count the sunny hours

In case you were wondering when it was

Remember that name for a pub quiz

Shortly after that apparently was a trainspotter's paradise of three footbridges going over lots of track. Takes all sorts.

The thirteen days promised in the subtitle to the blog has turned into fourteen as I have a football match to prepare for tomorrow evening. Spectating a play-off semi-final first leg is no small matter. So, tomorrow is Hamsey Green to Banstead and the final leg on Sunday will be Banstead to Berrylands.

Day 11 Erith to Bexley

Well that was lovely! The weather was completely different to yesterday, I wore my Merrells again (like slippers after the boots) and my jacket stayed in my bag. No hillocking hills either, flat as a Dutch pancake. Brilliant.

I'd not been to Erith before, no real reason I suppose. It's a part of the river that still works for its living.  This is the start point if you follow the logical flow of the official walk route from beginning to end. The book suggests that every walk needs a 'proper' start and so takes you to a flagpole in Riverside Gardens. I'm not sure why the rather elegant station building wasn't chosen, they don't make them like that anymore, sadly.

Erith station

Flagpole disguised as a yacht's mast

The river was very much at a low tide when I was passing by. It's amazing to see how wide the Thames is here, even if you think it's big in central London. Although it's still difficult trying to get my head around the scale of the Queen Elizabeth II Bridge and the Dartford Power station chimney - both are enormous. I saw them the other day when approaching Purfleet and again today; both are genuine feats of engineering.

Viewed from north bank: QEII bridge & Dartford Power Station

Today's route took me along to Crayford Ness then round into the Darent Valley, past its own curious flood barrier, then onto the River Cray towards Crayford. The industrial noises came and went as did the occasional cyclist, runners and other walkers. They have this thing for piebald ponies around here, you find them in odd corners, often on their own, seemingly not looking very happy. Perhaps they're not very cheerful ponies? Strange.

You can see all their footprints up the bank from the river

Following the storyline from other days, it's great to see that we're taking more care of our environment these days. The marshlands are being conserved for wildlife, there are more birds visiting or just enjoying living here. It was a very quiet walk for much of the way, becoming busier with dog walkers and families nearer to Crayford. The scenery changed from mud flats to more traditional river disposition. It never got quite as scrubby as some places I've recently though (thank you).

Along the River Cray

One of the many things I love about London is its history. This city is so rich in memories. You can go pretty much anywhere and find something interesting if you try. The middle of Crayford at the Waterside Gardens, for example, is where the Roman Watling Street forded the River Cray.

Crayford Waterside Gardens

Sometimes you wonder at the grandeur of a place long-gone when the only things left are two columns. Such is the case for the one-time Crayford cinema and the columns which now adorn the forecourt of a car showroom. The columns used to support the canopy. They are rather lovely :-)

Column with leaf and shell motifs

The other column

There were a few gems and the biggest was about to arrive - Hall Place. This house was built in two halves a hundred years apart in two styles, no apologies. Hall Place was built in 1537 for Sir John Champneys, a former Lord Mayor of London, using local monastery fragments and the outer walls have a distinctive checkerboard pattern of flint and rubble masonry. In 1649, Sir John's grandson sold Hall Place to Robert Austen, a merchant, who decided to add a red brick extension. Don't know who gave planning permission for it. Both halves of the building are absolutely beautiful. The gardens are open, there's lot to do and I want to go back for a proper visit.

The red brick later addition

Spot the join

Topiary updated

Old meets well, old

So beautiful!

I had to drag myself away. Not much further on, and near the end of my day's stroll, was St Mary the Virgin, Bexley. I'm not quite sure how old the current building is although a church has been on site since a mention in the Domesday Book at least. It has been much updated on the interior in particular, but its distinguishing feature is the spire.

An octagon on top of a chopped off pyramid

And finally, there was the rather handsome High Street House, bearing a blue plaque in the name of John Thorpe, who was a Kentish historian. Apparently.

Are we nearly there yet?

Day 10 West Wickham Common to Hamsey Green

Today (Wednesday - someone told me) was a relatively short walk of about 8 miles but I put off getting out as I'd looked at the weather forecast. Lots of black clouds with drips except for two hours in the afternoon - I decided to aim for that. Having got home by walking to Hayes station as per the book, train to London Bridge bla bla, I decided to look for an alternative route. Strangely, TFL wasn't that helpful and I usually think it's really good. Anyways, I sussed that getting the tram from Wimbledon to a stop I'd never heard of, then a bus to a stop I guessed was the right one and then walk round the corner would get me there and I was right :-)

On the way over it absolutely chucked it down and I was not looking forward to my walk. However, the plan worked and I didn't actually get rained on!

The walk didn't have too much of *interest* to it. There was plenty of up and down, mud and more mud, woodland and bird noises, dog walkers to chat to and so on. The first point of interest for me, which will never make the book, was going past the end of the road where my sister lived in Coney Hall until a couple of years ago!

In Coney Hall Park was a small concrete pillar standing astride the Greenwich meridian. All I could think was at least I was back in south west London.

Look no graffiti

Wickham Court manor house and its church St John the Baptist are nearby. Both are ancient buildings. The manor house has historic links to the family of Anne Boleyn and is now a school. Yet again the church was locked. I was struck yet again by the number of WW1 graves. I suppose there should be a lot but in this region of London I've noticed them.

Wickham Court

St John the Baptist West Wickham

I plodded on, getting into my stride. Who knew what excitement was to come - "a fine view north over central Croydon". I knew there was something missing in my life. It was up a hill, of course, and once there found that the locals take their litter by another route to abandon it. All the little plaques to tell you of the faraway places you might see on a clear day are no longer there. Honestly. How much were they worth melted down? I took some pictures anyway but didn't stay long as I wasn't too sure how work-related the conversation was between the two other people.

Croydon I'll have to be nicer about it soon

Heathfield Gardens were pretty. Plenty of rhododendrons starting to bloom, the smell of honeysuckle here and there, a pond with a duck house, terraced gardens. It was in private ownership and then Croydon Corporation bought the estate by agreement; the building is used as a training centre, the orchard is a conservation centre and the gardens are still open to the public.

The old stable lock, Heathfield House

You know that moment when you can't remember where you left something?

Where's the saw? The trainee had it.

The walk finished at Hamsey Green, opposite the pub that isn't there anymore. The journey home was hideous. Why does the TFL website say one thing but its bus drivers do something different?

More thoughts. I spoke to a nice lady who was walking her Westie called Sparky, she'd done most of the LOOP and wished me well. I forgot to mention that the other day in Ingrebourne I heard a cuckoo!