Waterloo Bridge to the Thames Barrier
On Monday 30th December, Michala and I were all set to complete our hike along the Thames Path National Trail. We had started the trail on 9th October 2022, just over 2 years ago. Whilst dedicating 16 days in succession might seem very appealing, we have loved the fact that we have experienced this wonderful trail through different seasons. It had been our wish to walk the final London leg as close to Christmas as possible so that we could enjoy seeing the city by night. Our timing could not have been more perfect.
On our Way
And so it was that we found ourselves picking up the trail where we left off a week ago, along London’s South Bank with a view of St Paul’s. Last week we had looked across to the North Bank where Wren’s dome gleamed against the dark night sky. This morning, it was no less beautiful.
With the knowledge that seals might bask on the shore we glanced hopefully at the shingle exposed by the low tide. Nothing!
Our first bridges of the day were in sight. We had passed by 14 bridges on our last stretch. Today we would only pass 7. Before us stood Blackfriars’ road and railway bridges. Only recently I had visited Blackfriars station with friends on a recce for images of London by night. We found that for 10p you can purchase a platform ticket. Tickets can be purchased from the ticket office only and are valid for one hour. It is well worth it for the view. However, today we had to press on as we did not want to find ourselves walking along lonely areas of the Thames after dark.
London's Skyline
We continued downstream to the next set of bridges and views of so many iconic London landmarks, the Walkie-Talkie marking the financial city’s square mile. I have long hoped to visit the Skyline cafe there, at 20 Fenchurch Street, to enjoy the aerial views. Another one to be added to the list of things to do sometime in the future.
There was a hint of the Tower of London beyond and then Canary Wharf which we would find dominating so many of our views throughout the day. It reminded me of walking the Ridgeway National Trail for the first time in 2016 with Didcot power station keeping me company for so many miles.
Another Power Station
On our right, we walked alongside the Tate Modern. I often think the silver birches outside the building look like an art installation in itself. The building, Bankside Power station, was originally designed by Sir Giles Gilbert Scott who designed Battersea Power station and, would you believe it, the iconic red telephone box. In 1995 a new design was drawn up in keeping with the character of the original power station.
The Millenium Bridge
From there to the Millenium Bridge. (No longer London’s newest bridge since the opening of the Boardwalk bridge at Canada Water dock in November 2024). Remarkably, Michala had never been on the bridge before so a detour was a must. From the photographer’s point of view, this is a ‘honeypot’ location which has been photographed over and over again, however, it is hard to resist as this pedestrian bridge provides the perfect leading lines to St Paul’s Cathedral.
We tore ourselves away to continue on with Southwark Bridge in view and Tower Bridge now visible on the skyline. We were making slow progress with just so much of interest to enjoy along the way.
I Love Thee More and More
Next we were walking beneath the timbered building of the Globe Theatre. If you have never experience Shakespeare here you have missed a treat. Standing tickets are a mere £5 and well worth it. It is like being a promenader at the last night of the Proms. There is no better way to experience it and at £5 it means you can go and see ‘more and more’.
Dirty Lane
The Christmas lights were twinkling in the gloom down Dirty Lane tempting us in but no, we would have to investigate another time. Dirty Lane is so called because this is where gentlemen seeking pleasure, would have left their horses in days gone by. I am not sure whether ‘dirty’ is referring to the gentlemen’s deeds or to the horse manure.
It was remarkable to be in this part of the city, Borough Market, and not find ourselves having to push through crowds. There was still barely a soul in sight as we continued on to Winchester Palace. The rose window bares witness to the past grandeur of a palace which, in its time, would have been more splendid than Buckingham Palace.
Crows and Cranes
As seagull cries rang out along the Thames shoreline you could almost imagine climbing the crow's nest of the Golden Hind with our captain, Francis Drake on the deck below. This is a reconstruction of Drake’s galleon and is in fact seaworthy having, itself, circumnavigated the globe before birthing in Bankside to become a museum piece.
Another one to add to the list when we have more time, is Southwark Cathedral. We were beginning to wonder if perhaps it would not be possible to complete the Thames Path national trail today with so many places of interest distracting us along the way.
At one point in our planning we had even considered making a detour to The Shard, which loomed up above us. However, our plans had changed.
Policing the Capital
Looking down onto the river we could see the River Police, who are apparently the longest serving police in the world. They existed long before the London Metropolitan Police. Their Targa 31s enable marine policing at 35 knots (equivalent of 40 miles per hour). It certainly beats running red lights through the city. Throughout the day we saw many a Targa bouncing up and downstream.
Talking of boats, next up was the majestic HMS Belfast, guarding Tower Bridge. This cruiser has served us well from her launch on St Patrick’s Day 1938, the part she played in the blockade in World War II and the Korean War and she has been moored up by Tower Bridge since 1971 as part of the Imperial War Museum.
Just before the Belfast, we detoured into the Hay’s Galleria to admire the Christmas tree and the view of the City’s square mile.
The Latest Scoop
Then to the Scoop, an outdoor amphitheatre which seats about 800 people, which would be hard to imagine were it not for the family sitting on the highest level giving it scale.
Stopping to admire one of our favourite monuments, that of Tower Bridge, it really was time to press on. We had walked 3 miles in just under 2 hours. At this rate, we would not finish the path today. We wanted to reach the Thames Barrier before sunset.
We picked up the pace as we walked through the streets of Bermondsey and Rotherhithe, leaving the glut of iconic monuments behind.
Doctor Salter’s Dream
Along Bermonsey Wall East we came across statues of Doctor Salter and his family. Doctor Salter was the equivalent of ‘the NHS before the NHS existed’, offering free medical services to the those who could ill afford it, living in the slums of Bermondsey.
Also featured were his wife Ada, his daughter Joyce, who tragically died of scarlet fever at the age of 8, and their cat.
As we tramped thought the streets, the temptation to look back at the view of the city and the Shard was too great but we must not delay further. We would walk at a pace when there were no monuments in sight.
The Mayflower
But before long we came to a halt again as we found, by the Mayflower Pub, a statue in memory of the Pilgrim Fathers who departed for America in 1620. The boy, from the 1920s, is looking at a comic called Sunbeam Weekly in which are illustrations of how America has changed since the Mayflower set sail. The ghost of a pilgrim father is looking over his shoulder in horror. A further 100 years on I wonder what he would think. For a start, the boy would be scrolling a mobile phone and not a comic.
As the river widened there was a real sense of the sea with the continuous cries of gulls, the smell of salty air and the sound of the water lapping as the tide was coming back in. We could not have been happier with the weather on this day, as the grey clouds lifted to offer up skies of blue. The perfect backdrop to the sky scrapers of Canary Wharf.
The National Trail acorns were not always visible and in some cases it seemed to us that the finger posts had been twisted round to cause confusion.
We had left the hoi polloi long behind with only the occasional cyclist whizzing around a corner. As the path zig-sagged around bends we realised before long that we should really be keeping well to the left to avoid a collision. We were walking along part of the National Cycle Network.
A Rowe down the River
The marker on the Rowe milepost showed Oxford was 110 miles upstream which we had reached at the end of day 5 of our trek.
At Surrey Docks we were surprised at a whiff of country air. There was a distinct farmyard smell. It was as if we had carried a piece of Gloucestershire on our boots. Sure enough we had come across Surrey Docks Farm.
By Surrey Docks a gentleman warned us to be careful because there were young lads about who would snatch our Apple iPhones. It was frustrating for us and a little bit worrying that the National Trail signage was not good here and yet we felt obliged to put our phones away in the bottom of our bags. I even put my camera away for a short while until we were sure we were back on track.
Without reliable National Trail signs we found ourselves having to use our common sense. (Not that we have much of that).
Peter the Great
At Deptford, we met with a statue of Peter the Great looking strong and powerful, towering above us. Michala took her place by his side having a well earned rest. Peter visited England to study shipbuilding and learn from the best. In return the Russians gifted this statue.
Greenwich
From there we arrived at Greenwich, by the Cutty Sark which I had last visited when I was about 11 years old. Also of interest was the entrance to the pedestrian tunnel going under the Thames to the north bank.
My last occasion to visit the Royal Naval College was to watch my daughter, Harriet and her friends’ mortar boards flying into the air on a cold October day in 2015 as she celebrated the conferring of her first class honours degree. Today was warmer than that autumnal day 9 years ago despite the sun being low in the sky.
We had not time to stop for a plate of whitebait at the Trafalgar Tavern, for which it is renowned. It looked like celebrations were in full swing with the colourful bunting flying the in the breeze.
However, way back in 1805 it was a sight of mourning as 10,000 people waited by the Royal Naval College for the return of Nelson’s body and 2 days later a procession consisting of over 3,000 barges made their way up the Thames to Westminster. A river procession of this scale was not witnessed again until Churchill’s funeral.
The river widened beyond Greenwich as it wend is way around the Isle of Dogs on the north bank. We walked past large industrial areas where our nostrils were filled with the smell of tar and then the smell of concrete and we walked alongside extensive conveyor belts and large cement mixers.
Here at last
We can truly say we have been ‘here, there and everywhere’. This ‘sculpture’ stands on the Greenwich meridian marking the 24,869 distance around the globe and back.
It was also here that we found a Tracks milepost designed by David Dudgeon with a fitting poem on its base.
Down a Wandering Path
Down a wandering path
I have travelled,
Where the setting sun
Lies upon the ground.
The tracks are hard and dry
Smothered with
The weather’s wear,
My mind did move
With them that had
Before me been,
Trodding down the ground
A track for me to follow,
Leaving marks for others
A sign for them to follow.
~David Dudgeon (Belfast artist and poet) 1999
Note that the mileage shows 11.5 miles between Waterloo Station and the Thames Barrier - The cycle route must be a shorter distance, perhaps not hugging the Thames. Our route would be 14.5 miles.
From Damien Hirst to Antony Gormley
At North Greenwich Pier, stood a self portrait of Antony Gormley encased within a cloud. Gormley’s Quantum Cloud is in fact taller than the Angel of the North. The cloud forms part of a 5 mile art trail which runs through the Greenwich meridian.
What a splendid day it would be to ride the Dangleway (previously sponsored by Emirates Airline) across the river. However, time would not permit and I am not sure I actually would have the stomach for it. Once on board I would have to commit. I think I prefer terra firma.
Round the Greenwich Peninsula we discovered many other art forms and monuments including a Polar Sundial designed by the Worshipful Company of Tylers and Bricklayers who marked the new millennium by presenting the sundial to the City of London,
Their were a number of pieces created by Damien Hirst including a gargantuan headless monster holding a bowl, a mermaid and Hydra and Kali. All three pieces are part of Hirst’ Treasures from the Wreck of the Unbelievable series.
Along the way Michala stopped to feed the birds. She was perhaps more successful with the grey heron than she was with the robin on our last leg of the Thames Path.
Journey’s end - From Source to Sea
We had done it! Walking at a fast pace over the final couple of miles, we reached the Thames Barrier, journey’s end, just before sunset. The steel shells gleamed in fading light.
Our beautiful capital city is kept safe from extreme flooding by the ten gates which lie flat on the river bed. They lie ready to be raised in the event of a major storm surge. The gates when raised stand as high as a 5-storey building and create a solid steel wall preventing water flowing up stream towards the capital. It takes about 90 minutes for the gates to close.
The Thames Barrier was put in place to avoid a repeat of the catastrophy of 31st January 1953 when 2100 people lost their lives in countries around the North Sea. With climate change new flood defences need to be developed in the future.
We lingered for a while digesting the reality of our achievement. We had walked all the way from source to sea and what an awesome experience this had proven to be. However the adventure was not yet over.
It seemed most appropriate that we should return to Waterloo via the river. This walk had been about so much more than the wildlife, the boats and barges, the bridges, the monuments, the art and the shortbread. It was about this beautiful flowing ribbon which rolls out all the way from Glouchestershire, Wiltshire, Oxford, Buckinghamshire, Surrey, Greater London, Kent and Essex. It is a ribbon of many colours, from brackish brown to green, blue and silver depending on the season and the location, depending on whether fresh water or salt, depending on the weather, the sky over head and the leaves on the trees. Whatever, it is always beautiful and full of life. It is the best tonic even on a dull day. We could not have expected to enjoy this walk as fully as we have. The Ridgeway was a hard act to follow but The Thames Path National Trail has delivered in buckets.
However, where was the Thames Clipper when we needed it. We saw a Uber boat go past the barrier and on. Checking the map we reckoned that we would have at least a further 30 minutes walk to Woolwich so we felt more comfortable walking back the way we had come, towards the 02 arena. We were extremely tired now having walked a total of 14.5 miles with only one stop to eat lunch. However we were able to slow the pace in the knowledge that we had passed the North Greenwich Pier by the Dangleway and the Gormley Quantum Cloud. Here we joined a queue of people waiting for the next Uber Boat. A larger queue formed behind us so fortunately we had arrived just in time and now it was only a matter of waiting patiently.
Almost delirious with exhaustion I sunk down onto my seat on the boat whilst Michala dropped her bag and then disappeared off to purchase us a little bottle of Prosecco each. We clinked glasses in a toast and nibbled short bread celebrating what has proven to be a marvellous trail. Numbed by the effects of alcohol we forgot our aching feet.
By the time the clipper was approaching Tower Bridge, we were outside looking back over the wake and feeling thoroughly euphoric. What an inspirational idea this was to complete our trail, celebrating this wonderful illuminated river by getting out on the water. It was totally exhilerating and we simply could not stop smiling.
We disembarked just by Hungerford Bridge and then crossed over on foot, looking down on the jewel of the Thames.
I think it is fair to say that Michala was feeling every bit as euphoric as I.
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