Capital Ring
Day 1 - Wimbledon Common to Richmond
7.00 miles
Isn’t it funny how it’s often the little things
in life that give you the most pleasure?
You know, those little happenings or events
that are pretty minor in their own right but that take on a
bigger-than-expected meaning in your life?
Choose one path, and life trundles on much as
before. Choose another, and you experience something new that brings unexpected
reward – a parallel universe where life is much as it always was, but slightly richer.
The start of our Capital Ring walk, entering Wimbledon Common |
This time last year, we had only the vaguest
notion of a walk circumnavigating the capital, but a get-together with friends
last summer in Bushy Park had introduced us to the London LOOP, a project we
went on to complete in stages over the winter months of 2015/6 and enjoyed very
much.
Details of this circular walk were to be found
on the Transport for London (TfL) website, and it was while planning our
attempt on the LOOP that we came across details of a second circumambulation of
the conurbation – the Capital Ring.
With Nick & Celia |
Because of its circular trajectory around the
outer fringes of London, the LOOP is considered by some to be the M25 of
walking routes. If so, then the Capital Ring equates to the North and South
Circular, describing a smaller circle closer to the city centre – around 80
miles compared to the LOOP’s 150+.
However, the raison d’etre for its existence is much the same, connecting green
spaces and interesting places as it goes.
Queensmere Lake |
So once again we found ourselves with an early
morning tootle on the train, crossing the city by tube and rail to Wimbledon to
meet up with our friends Nick and Celia, who had kindly agreed to walk the
first couple of miles with us.
A short bus journey later, we alighted close to
where the Capital Ring enters Wimbledon Common and took our first steps along
the route amidst the finest of mizzle.
How wide do you want the bole? |
Now readers of a certain age will probably be
thinking “Wimbledon Common, eh?” And indeed we did see hundreds of short, fat,
furry creatures in funny outfits shuffling around in the undergrowth.
But enough about the competitors in the
Wimbledon Common Half Marathon, we wanted to see Wombles.
Mind you, if the Wombles were about and wanting
to make good use of the “things that the everyday folks leave behind” they’d
need a lot of ideas for things to do with empty plastic water bottles.
In Richmond Park, near Spankers Hill Wood |
After a lovely couple of miles ambling across
Wimbledon Common, it was time to say goodbye to Nick and Celia. They went off
to catch the bus while we continued along the Capital Ring, entering Richmond
Park via the Robin Hood Gate.
We climbed a gentle incline past the indelicately-named
Spankers Hill Wood, and stopped for lunch on a bench overlooking the open
grasslands. Richmond Park covers 2,500 acres, is a national nature reserve and
SSSI, and is one of the largest urban parks in Europe. Plenty of room, then,
for the herds of deer we were watching to roam freely across the Serengeti-like
plains.
Deer in Richmaond Park |
Moving on, we followed the track between the
two lakes of Pen Ponds. Away to our right stood White Lodge, now the home of
the Royal Ballet School.
Looking back to Pen Ponds |
Coincidences and connections intrigue me. The
initial reason for our visit this weekend was to see an evening performance of
Swan Lake by the Bolshoi Ballet at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden. Swan
Lake and Pen Ponds, the ballet school and the best-known ballet company in the
world – symmetries thrown up by a random choice of activities on one particular
weekend.
Old oak tree |
Passing an old, hollow oak, we crossed Queen’s
Road by Pembroke Lodge, one-time home of former Prime Minister Lord John
Russell and of his grandson, philosopher, logician, writer and historian
Bertrand Russell.
Pembroke Lodge stands on a ridge overlooking
the Thames valley, and you can see the logic behind the location of this
historic house. The views from here are splendid, and we could see Twickenham
stadium, Ham House and the river.
Descending into the Thames valley |
Nearby Henry’s Mound (a burial mound so named
because Henry VIII is said to have waited here for news of the execution of
Anne Boleyn and the freedom to marry Jane Seymour) offers one of London’s
protected views – a view which no tall buildings are allowed to obstruct – which
stretches to St. Paul’s Cathedral 12 miles away.
Cattle grazing in Petersham Meadows (after John Constable) |
After a steep descent, we crossed the road and
entered Petersham Meadows, where a tarmac path led us on to the Thames towpath
(part of the Thames Path National route – now there’s an idea!). Needless to
say, on a warm, summer’s weekend in the school holidays, it was busy with
families and tourists strolling and picnicking beside the river.
Beside the river |
Richmond marks the end of this section of the
Capital Ring. Having arrived in good time, we decided on an impromptu river
cruise along the Thames – something neither of us had done before – around Eel
Pie Island (a famous venue for jazz and blues music, where acts such as The Who,
Genesis, Hawkwind and The Rolling Stones performed back in the 1960s) and back.
Richmond Bridge |
A performance of a different sort beckoned in
the evening. Covent Garden was busy and buzzing as we shoved our way through
crowds and past street entertainers en
route to the Royal Opera House.
Street entertainers, Covent Garden |
Although not our usual choice of gig, we were
familiar with much of Tchaikovsky’s music and the traditional choreography. Like
with much “live” entertainment, you get a far more visceral sense of the
performance seeing it on stage, and in this case the effort put in by the
orchestra and the physicality of the dancers really impressed.
Inside the Royal Opera House, waiting for the curtain to rise |
The journey home was a late affair, and it was no
surprise we were sleepy after a long day. A good day it was, though, and we look forward to more of the Capital Ring over the winter of 2016/7.
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