Mappiman's Real Ale Walks: 05/08/17

Saturday, 5 August 2017

05/08/17 - London's Royal Parks

Distance - 7.5 Miles
Geocaches - 1
Walk Inspiration

London on a Saturday, with several hours to kill before a Virgin Experience Day at a Shaftesbury Avenue Comedy Club. How to entertain ourselves?

I've had my eye on a walk from www.walkingworld.com that takes in all of the Royal Parks in an 8 mile spectacular of urban country walking. Apart from a brief spell across Marylebone, this is almost entirely pavement free.

This is one of the many reasons London is unique.

The walk is only an inspiration. Rather than face the tube to get to Chalk Farm station, we notice the Regents Canal is a stone's throw from our hotel. We'll add this to the trek.

Mrs M is impressed by the canal side regeneration (Barge Based Book Shops, Flats made from Gas Tanks) until the exact point we walk under the first bridge. Unhappy campers have divided their two tents with the latest in outdoor WC technology. A bucket. This is a theme that repeats itself at the majority of bridges into Camden.

The Word - on the Water

What can we do with old Gas Tanks? Make Flats, of Course.

A handy sign to show where we have arrived.

Primrose Hill, at the back of Regents Park, provides my favourite view over the City. A fine place to "start" any walk and I was delighted to share this with Mrs M, who was visiting for the first time. She admired the little farmer's market at the school and the clamber up, through the discarded prosecco bottles, for a cracking game of spot the landmark.

She did rather well but thought "Walkie Talkie" a stupid name for a building

Through Regents Park, past the Zoo and into our only bit of road walking - along the delightful Marylebone High Street. Another chance to demonstrate something new to Mrs M - the Ginger Pig Butchers, purveyor of the finest sausage rolls in the land and a regular lunchtime haunt. If you ever find yourself in Moxon Street...

The walk is meant to take you into Hyde Park, to complete a circuit. Three reasons for not including it today - 1) I walked the perimeter in only April 2) the clouds are looking most ominous and 3) we've added a couple of miles to start.

Instead, we wind our way through Mayfair, finding the only geocache of the day, before struggling on how to cross Piccadilly to get into Green Park and see if Queenie is at home.

She Is

Into St James, the finest of all the Royal Parks, complete with fine views of the London Eye and a spanner shaped pool to walk around and over.

St James - The pick of the Royal Parks

The walk ends at Trafalgar Square but the thunder storm breaks and everyone takes cover. Many hide in the subway under Horse Guards Road, but I know a place where they sell Badger Beer - a minor component of Panda Pops Shandy, from back in the day.

St Stephen's Tavern has one of the finest views of any pub in London. If only the Tanglefoot came with a head, I would heartily recommend it to you.