After a forced hiatus of two and a half years, I can't even begin to tell you how happy I was to get back on the Capital Ring. This beautiful 76 mile route winds around the suburbs of London going through as many green spaces as possible.
So on Saturday July 30th I excitedly double-checked the contents of my backpack before heading off to Streatham Common railway station which is less than a five minute walk from my Bed and Breakfast. Streatham is in South West London and I needed to get to North West London so it was well over an hour of transport to get to South Kenton station which is where I left off back in January 2020.
The walk started off in Preston Park. Preston Park was developed between the two World Wars to serve the nearby council estate. This was once a village but got swallowed up by Greater London when the railways arrived in the area during the 1930's.
As you can see the grass was in bad shape after the heat wave
Even though I was walking through fields the "tube" (London underground which goes overground in suburbs) was nearby.
I have to confess that I got a bit confused with the directions in my guidebook (nothing new!) and got a bit misplaced here. I finally figured out where I was supposed to be.
The algae-filled pond was the greenest thing around!!! I chatted for quite a while with the two people sitting on the bench in the distance. They were not a couple but had eight dogs between the two of them - mostly whippets. The man told me he had four dogs sleeping with him the night before! People say London people aren't friendly but the doggie people sure aren't - get talking about dogs and you could be there all day long!!! I finally had to say I best get going or we could still be there chatting!!
I am not a sports fan (to put it mildly) but it was good to see Wembley stadium. Brought back memories of walking Emma and seeing the arch back in late 2014 when I looked after her for a month in nearby Alperton. This part of the walk was in an area called Barn Hill.
It was always reassuring to see posts with the Capital Ring logo.
I loved this forest walk. This was Freyent Country Park.
Yay! Because yes, I can get lost in the middle of a field.
As I was leaving this field and approaching a residential area I stopped to chat with a woman with a dog because I can't go past a dog (sorry, can't remember the breed!) without saying something. We were there for a while as well. I have to allow extra time on my walks for "doggy chatter".
This was a derelict cemetery beside St Andrews Church. For someone who intends to be cremated and have her ashes scattered in a park where Canada Geese will poop on them I sure enjoy visiting cemeteries!!
This was my favourite part of the walk. It is the Brent Reservoir, known as the Welsh Harp. Why is it called that? It's named for a pub that was once nearby!! Only in England!! It was developed in 1837 to provide a water supply for the nearby Paddington branch of the Union canal. I had no idea this place existed until I read about it in my guide book - then again walking the Capital Ring has introduced me to so many places in London.
This part of the Capital Ring ended at Hendon Park but as I needed to get to the Hendon Central tube station I had to walk through it.
Of course I had to visit this part of the park. There are a high number of Hasidic Jews living in this area.
Yes I planted my butt on this bench - after seven miles of walking I was tired!!! Though I have to say I sat down at every opportunity!
This was the first of four walks on the Capital Ring for this trip. While this section was far from my favourite I still enjoyed seeing new parts of London and chatting with Londoners. There is so much more to London than the "touristy" central part and I intend to explore as much as I can for as long as I can. I love every square inch of this beautiful city!!!
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