Day 7 Chigwell to Harold Wood

It was hot hot hot! I did find Chigwell station this time although it took a while, you need to know the inner secrets of the Central Line timetable. Nice toilets too. Chigwell was an old settlement before it got a tube station, so there are some picturesque buildings, lanes and greens.

Ye Old King's Head

This place used to host the Verderer's Court - enforcing the forest laws. It's one of those buildings that makes you wish the saying 'if walls had ears' could be true. It's a restaurant now and looking at their website it seems they've restored it sympathetically internally and externally, it is Grade * listed.

It's still hilly around here, and it was hot so it was slow going, especially with the odd blister or two now sneaking in. There was plenty of scenery - it's amazing how much you can find within reach of the outer tube stations yes in Oyster territory! I saw some sheep  on Day 6 I think it was but then we get them quite near home. I found some new bovine friends. This one looked at me and didn't move a step, which made a change from a whole bloody herd following me last year. Twice.

See, friendly cow

It was the hottest day of the year so far, which meant lots of families out enjoying themselves and the weather, having picnics, boating on the lakes, playings games, leaving litter. It seems odd that, when so much is the same - facilities, great open spaces, number of people using things and so on - some places stay in much better condition and demeanour than others. The closer I got to Harold Wood the worse it got. There were plenty of good moments but the edge sure gets taken off by all the sh1t.

Looks small from over here

In Havering Country Park is a plantation of giant redwood, the second largest in London. I know they probably need some management but they've already cut down a couple. Seems to defeat the purpose of having these trees really....

Giant sequoia

There is a myth behind the name of Havering- atte-Bower which you'll have to look up but the current flint Victorian church takes a lovely picture on a sunny day. I tend not to go into churches on Sundays (!) as I'm sure they're busy doing something that I don't want to interrupt.

St John the Evangelist Havering-atte-Bower

I didn't see any, they were lying

Near the end of the afternoon, I turned to follow Carter's Brook "here flowing in a steep-sided sylvan dell, quite unexpected in its urban setting". This apparently is to be the way generally speaking to the Thames for the next day or so. Sylvan dell to me conjures up some nice thoughts of sun breaking through the leaves as the brook meanders through but guess what? LITTER Why not go dahn the sylvan dell wiv yer mates an a few cans an spliffs and munchies? And leave all the crap there? And the council isn't much better, with industrial waste, road barriers and other stuff that simply shouldn't be there. This area could be so nice. I wouldn't want to take any small child down there to play by the water waiting to see if there were any live ducks. Squirrels are quite tough though.

Squirrel