Thames Path Walk - Greenwich to Woolwich (approx 6 miles)

The Thames Path 'London' section.
We have walked from Hampton Court to Woolwich
(both banks where the path exists)
One section left to walk - Woolwich to Crayford Ness

It has been a while since hubby and I have been out walking along the Thames Path. I'd hoped to go around Christmas time or New Year and then I was busy. We planned this walk for Monday but when we woke it was raining. We waited in hope it would clear up but the forecast said it would be afternoon before that happened. So we abandoned the plan. I looked in my diary for the next available date and checked the weather. Thursday looked good, so we planned again.

So, yesterday we set off. It was pretty cold but at least bright. Nowadays the sections left for us to walk on the London stretch of the Thames are getting further away from central London and takes over an hour to reach the start point. The next stretch for us was Greenwich (from the Cutty Sark) and the walk would be around six miles to Woolwich. We took the bus to the next station (quicker and less walking than going to our own station) and from there took the train into Waterloo. Then it was the Jubilee Line to Canary Wharf and the DLR to Cutty Sark. It was good to be back on the Thames. I'd never walked this stretch before and there is only now the south bank accessible to the end of the Thames Path in this direction. We passed the Navel Collage, the music school and much else in those elegant buildings along the front by Greenwich Pier and set off to our first key point - the O2. We passed The Cutty Sark public house, away from the tourists (though few were around anyway yesterday) and followed the route passed various wharves and industrial works as well as a whole host of new building works and completed apartments. Everywhere along the Thames there are cranes and tall apartment blocks being built. In one section near the O2 we actually stopped because there were two diggers in front of us and we thought we'd have to double back and use the alternative route. However, there was a guy with a radio who stopped the diggers to enable us to pass. It felt rather scary and we walked through quickly!

On route we passed over the Blackwall Tunnel, though I was none the wiser! I hear this mentioned daily on traffic bulletins but never been near it. When we reached the O2 I had to break and seek out a toilet. With all the new buildings around there was a distinct lack of facilities. The local map showed one at North Greenwich station and in the O2 at Cine World. I headed for the O2 and yes had to use the loos at the cinema!

We bought some food at the nearby Tesco Express. I also bought a hot chocolate as it was so cold. We sat in the gardens there but I could only manage half a sandwich. For me it was too cold to sit and eat as the sun, which had been in and out all morning, had disappeared. We decided to walk on while I drank my hot chocolate. We passed the Greenwich Peninsular Ecology Park (maybe a return visit to view that sometime) and soon we were able to see the Thames Barrier in the distance. This is a section (from the O2 to the Thames Barrier) I have walked before but many years ago and it has all changed. We arrived at the Thames Barrier walking under a tunnel with lists of tides in various places. The Thames Barrier Centre was closed, as was the cafe and toilets (thank goodness I'd used the toilets at the O2!). We took lots of pictures and then headed out onto the last part of the walk, which was now on the Thames Path Extension. We headed inland for a time through some pretty gardens and onto a main road before linking back up along the path by the Thames again. In the distance we could see the ferry terminals at Woolwich and then watched the heavy lorries boarding and the ferries crossing the Thames. Our walk was at an end. All that was left was to find the station at Woolwich Arsenal. We picked up the DLR to Canning Town and changed on to the Jubilee Line to take us back to Waterloo.

I was worried that after not walking so far in a long time I'd be exhausted and the legs would give out,
but I'm okay. The tops of my legs ache a bit but I'm off to sport shortly! It did take me a long time to feel really warm again. I don't like walking when it's freezing or when it's raining and try to avoid both but I was desperate so I put up with the cold.

There is now only one section of the 'London' Thames pathway left to do. It's a longer section and we might have to split it. It runs from Woolwich to Crayford Ness. Hopefully as the weather picks up we will do that. I already have the book for the sections from the Thames source to Hampton Court. The walks in that are longer and more complicated and will need careful planning!