London Loop Day 1: Erith to Bexley

So today I started walking the London Loop. This is a 150 mile circular route around the outskirts of London, starting at Erith and ending at Purfleet on the opposite bank of the Thames. I've been thinking about doing this walk for roughly a year and have been eagerly anticipating today. Amongst other things my planning involved reading several other blogs of the London Loop. I highly recommend reading Des de Moor's commentary on the London Loop, he provides an incredibly detailed history that definitely enriched my walk. His blog can be found here. http://desdemoor.blogspot.com/p/london-loop_44.html

Today's section of the Loop (8.7 miles)

I arrived at Erith at 9:00 am and was instantly hit by the heat. I expect that the heat will be a constant companion for the duration of the walk, so I won't mention it too much but today was hot. Sometimes the heat was dry and dusty, sometimes the heat was tempered slightly by shady woodland, and sometimes the heat was humid but it was relentless. Why I decided to do this walk in July I can't quite remember.

Erith station

I had a slow start to the Loop as I decided to explore Erith's town centre. I was looking forward to seeing the library as it is supposed to be quite the ornate building but unfortunately it was hidden away behind scaffolding. The actual library can be seen below.

Hidden library

Now that's a library!

After wondering through the very pretty riverside gardens I climbed up some steps and had my first sight of the Thames.

Erith Riverside Gardens

The Thames at Erith is very wide and tidal, quite unlike the parts of the Thames I am familiar with. It is scattered with the decaying remains of heavy industry, and as if to enforce this point, a boat passed by emitting a stream of thick black smoke.

First glimpse of the Thames

Next I came to the Deep Water Wharf, the longest pier in London. Sitting on a bench at the end of the pier, in the middle of the Thames, I looked out at the opposite bank where I would be finishing my walk two weeks later. I stared at the red lighthouse of Coldharbour Point, where the walk originally ended before it was extended a few miles further along the Thames to Purfleet. I wondered what adventures I would encounter over my walk, what sights I would see, everything that was to come and thought about when I would be standing on that other shore, looking back at the pier, having reached it the long way round.

Deep Water Wharf

View from middle of Thames

You can just make out the red lighthouse at Coldharbour point.

After following the Thames for a while I reached my first obstacle, a closed footpath sign. And yet the footpath looked remarkably open and I could see other people using the path so I decided to forge ahead anyway. It would be too much to admit defeat only a mile or so into the walk! When I reached the end of this section I met two cyclists coming the other way who said there was a closed footpath sign at their end of the footpath too  and wanted to know if  the path I'd just walked was clear. I assured them that it was.

Is it though?

But back to the first sign. As I walked through the gate, I entered the wide and desolate landscape of Crayford Marshes. The marshes were full of wildlife, with the constant buzz of insects providing music for my walk, as butterflies flitted across the path and the verges were full of wildflowers. Although this area is industrial, filled with mangled car wrecks and giant shipping containers, it also beautiful, a vast and lonely place, a unique spot on the fringe of London.

Reeds and a windfarm

Petrified trees at Crayford Saltings

As I approached the confluence of the Thames with the river Darent, I spotted a horse lying down on the ground. At first I wondered if it had died, but upon closer inspection it was clear that it was just having a nap. It had separated itself from the horses on the other side of the path, and was enjoying a doze in the sunshine.

Zzz

Most of my day would be spent walking along rivers, first the Thames, then the Darent and lastly the river Cray. Whilst the rivers were pretty they were also fairly unchanging, and I spent a while working my way down the riverbank, walking through overgrown paths and disengaging a bit, watching my thoughts go by.

Dried mud near the River Darent

Needs just a bit of a trim

Eventually I came to some suburbia, with every house festooned in England flags. I wonder if some big football event is going on? Although from what I know of Bexley, I suspect that it would have England flags on display regardless of the World Cup.

The next animal friend I made was a ginger cat, we shared a footpath along the river Cray for a while, the cat running ahead of me and then pausing for me to catch up. We continued like this in silent companionship  until sadly it turned off from the Loop and back into a housing estate.

Farewell!

I continued along the river to reach Waterside Gardens, a beautiful little park, with a memorial to those who died in the first world war, as well as references to the fabric printers that used to print silks here for clients such as Liberty and Dior. The park is decorated with the Liberty Paisley pattern.

Waterside Gardens Memorial

Next I reached the absolute gem of today's walk, Hall Place House and Gardens. A welcome stop for a slice of lemon cake and a break for lunch, sitting in the gardens and looking at the topiary figures known as the Queen's Beasts. The house itself is very charming and literally made of two halves, an older Tudor building made of a chequerboard of grey flint, and then a newer red brick half.

Hall Place House

Seamless piece of work

Queen's Beasts

After navigating my way through the A2 I came to the first stile of the Loop and entered the first woodland of the Loop too. I very much enjoyed walking along this strip of woodland, with its clumps of mushrooms, ivy clad fence posts and a shimmering spiders web.

Churchfield Wood

Mushrooms in Churchfield Wood

Spiderweb

Finally the woods brought me to my final destination for today, the village of Old Bexley. It has a spectacular looking church with an overgrown graveyard and I eventually made my way to the train station only to discover it was closed! Disappointed to discover that a long bus journey was my only route home, I at least discovered some almshouses opposite the bus stop, something I would not have otherwise seen.

St. Mary the Virgin, Bexley

This first section of the walk has been remarkably varied and being flat, a relatively easy start to the walk. I am keen to see what is in store tomorrow.

Bexley Station