Want to find a little time for your walking boots amidst the hustle and bustle of a visit to the capital city, London? Meindl team member, Nick, shares one of his favourite walking and running routes.
The Captial Ring is located half way between the circle line and the M25 and it’s made up of 15 different, easy-to-walk sections between Woolwich and the Becton District Park.
A whopping 78 miles in total, it’s a chance to see some of London’s finest scenery, including nature reserves, country estates and Sites of Specific Scientific Interest. It’s a good family-friendly walk in all seasons as there’s just so much to explore, but the places we’ve stopped to see along the way and would recommend for a visit include;
The Thames Barrier – it’s one of the largest moveable flood barriers in the world, protecting London;
Eltham Palace –the childhood home of Henry VIII, though of the building he knew only the Great Hall remains and it’s now more of an art-deco mansion, ran by English Heritage;
The Grand Union Canal, Hanwell Lock, Brent Reservoir (Welsh Harp) and the London Docklands – they’re all great waterside walks;
Queen Elizabeth Park and the 2012 Olympic Stadium – this is the last leg of the Capital Ring.
Richmond Park, home of the weekly Saturday morning 5k Parkrun, and Wimbledon Common are some of the greenest sections of the walk, so they’re a firm favourite of ours. In spring, we wander the Isabella Plantation which is best known for its rich and colourful azalea display. And in autumn, the red deer are a spectacular sight as they bellow away on a misty morning. Lesser known nature highlights include flocks of parakeets and the endangered stag beetle.
We’d recommend walking shoes, rather than boots, as the best footwear option for the Capital Ring as you cross pavements and tracks so need good cushioning under-foot. Activo Lady, Respond Men and Snap Junior are our top picks for a family.
You can find all the information you need to try the 15 sections of the walk, the Parkrun and the maps here. There are green signs everywhere, so it’s really easy to navigate.
We want to share some photographs of a family autumn adventure. A stroll through Richmond Park on this particular day was bright and colourful as we crunched through fallen leaves and practiced some climbing with the children.
