I decided to walk section 4 this time- so far as I could see there was no benefit to doing them in order, and this one was absolutely in the right area for where I needed to be later. The walk starts right in the heart of "Legal London" - chancery Lane. The first stretch is lined with Barristers chambers and law firms, all within spitting distance of the Royal Courts of Justice.
In theory this is a waymarked walk - with the route indicated by these inset plates in the pavement, you might have seen them when you've been walking around London...
...I say "in theory" because I didn't find these to be tremendously reliable. I'd taken the precaution of downloading both map and directions onto my iPhone - in spite of assuming I'd not need them - and was glad I had. At about 50% of the junctions the plates were missing altogether and in other spots the overlapping nature of the various sections of the walk caused confusion. Thanks to the directions though finding the right route was easy enough - although that may in part have also been due to having a pretty good working knowledge of London!
I realised as I walked that I was going to be revisiting a lot of familiar spots - Thanet Street, where MrEH's Best Man Nick lived when I first knew him, and the Lamb pub at Lambs Conduit street, where Nick & his now wife had their engagement party. Bidborough street - home of the London Drinker Beer Festival, and numerous places when I did site visits in my old job. Blue plaques were plentiful too, Sir John Barbirolli, Mary Shelley, but probably best of all, this one...
If I had to come up with one word to summarise this walk it would be "Contrast" - startling to go from immaculate and opulent looking legal practises to streets full of pretty little Pied A Terres, via scruffy backstreet Bed & Breakfasts of the sort usually filled with only those desperate enough to have nowhere else to go, and run down council estates...every now and then though I came face to face with something like this...
...a real attempt to brighten up the environment going on in that little section of street.
Fabulous architecture is another feature of this area - from the stunning St Pancras Station...
...very possible the most impressive building in London in my view, to this entirely unexpected little building not far from Kings Cross...
Then on past Euston Station (no impressive architecture there!) where we would be returning later that night to catch a train to Manchester - more about that trip in another post - pasing by the two small buildings which used to flank the spectacular Doric Arch which marked the entrance to the station. These now house pubs, the Euston tap (a craft beer fans mecca) to the left, and opposite, the Cider Tap. Next came some of London's smartest squares - Gordon Square, Russell Square, Bloomsbury Square - surprising areas of green-ness in this very built-up area.
Next, a first for me, my first ever foray inside the British Museum! If I had a pound for every time I've been told that I "really ought to go" then saving for retirement would not be an issue! The problem is, the more I'm told I "ought" to do a thing, the less inclined I am to actually want to do it! Anyway, it is a fantastic building, no question, and yes I did have a little look around as I wandered through it. I might even go back for a proper look one day!
From the Museum you emerge into the heart of Bloomsbury before returning via High Holborn, Kingsway and Lincolns Inn Fields to the starting point. This walk would make a fantastic pub crawl - I passed lots of decent pubs, and there's any number more just a stones throw away from the walk route. Of the Jubilee Walkway routes this was one of the longer ones at just about 4 miles, and being all on pavements means it's quite unforgiving walking. With plenty to look at and investigate though it feels easy enough, and there are certainly enough places to stop along the way!
Robyn
2 comments:
Interesting that the walking route wasn't easy to follow. I would have thought clear marking would be essential when setting up a walk! I think those green squares are vital to London, especially in the traffic-heavy areas. I love the planting around the tree.
I think back in 1977 when (I assume) the walks were originally laid out, the signage would have been a lot clearer - I guess the intervening years have meant roadworks and similar have seen some of the pavement plates removed, and others may have been replaced by those who don't realise that the cross in the crown is all-important to mark the correct direction.
The squares are wonderful -and I'm sure I remember reading somewhere that thanks to those and the big parks, London has more green space than any other big city in the world.
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