The London Loop: section 2
In January 2024 I walked the second part of the London Loop: Old Bexley to Petts Wood, a 12km walk which follows the River Cray and passes through nature reserves, parks, ancient woodland and commons.
I haven’t been doing so well with my London Loop walking. I’ve managed one so far (it’s end of March as I write). Rain often stops play and when it’s not raining there are often engineering works on one or both of the train lines I need to use to get there or back.
With this loop being a lot further out than the Capital Ring, travel to and from the start and end points is a lot more time consuming. The prospect of replacement buses puts me right off. I don’t mind the train journeys. I listen to podcasts or stare out of the window. But I’m not so keen on bus journeys. And of course, the almost constant rain means that, even on dry days, the way can be very muddy when it goes off road.
There was a diversion at the start of this section when I walked it (and still is at time of writing), as National Rail has shut the path while it’s improving Bexley station. I admit this caused some anxiety – I was convinced I’d get lost. But the redirection is very short and very easy to follow on the Go Jauntly app (which I highly recommend). I soon rejoined the path proper.
The route was mostly off road. Unlike section 1, there weren’t any major junctions or road crossings that made me feel uncomfortable. There were roads to cross, of course, but they weren’t as major or as busy as a couple of those on the first walk. The very busiest roads were crossed via bridges.
Dogs and mud
The weather was pretty much perfect. Despite being January it wasn’t too cold (thanks climate change!) and it stayed dry for the whole walk. The off-road sections were very muddy, though. Much of the UK saw the wettest six-month period to January 2024 since records began. I saw a lot of very happy, very filthy dogs running around, while their humans were gingerly picking their way through the mire.
It wasn’t as bad as when my mum and I had to make our way through ankle-deep mud on the New River Path on a section of the Capital Ring, though. I’m still unsure how we managed that without falling over. It was a quagmire.
The weather meant there were plenty of other walkers and dog walkers about. I really like that when I’m walking. A smile and a cheery “Morning!” make the walk go by faster and it gives me a feeling of connection with my fellow walkers. As a solo female walker, it makes me feel safer too.
There were plenty of highlights along the route. There’s the Five Arch Bridge which was designed by ‘Capability’ Brown in the 18th century and is so named because it’s got (you guessed it) five arches. There’s a smaller bridge known as the Pennyfarthing Bridge because it has one small arch and one larger one.
The manor born
A short diversion took me to the site of a mediaeval moated manor, located in Scadbury Park. Scadbury Manor is associated with the Walsingham family, with the first clear mention of the name occurring in 1424 when Thomas Walsingham bought the estate from Thomas Dale.
Today it’s a ruin of brickwork and overgrown foundations, all surrounded by the moat. The site is being excavated by the Orpington and District Archaeological Society in the hope of revealing more about its history. It’s closed to the public, but viewable from the walk. A Grey Heron was sunning itself by the moat when I was there.
Petts Wood itself was lovely. I didn’t take the time to visit the sundial, but I did see a memorial plaque dedicated to Colonel Francis Edlmann and a tree trunk carved into the shape of a bear.
The end of the walk was slightly disappointing. I had been looking forward to a slap-up lunch in a pub with a celebratory glass of wine. But I couldn’t find one that was serving food, or any restaurants that were open. I ended up with a sandwich and coffee in what was a very nice café but wasn’t really what I’d had in mind.
Once I was back in Walthamstow I treated myself to a croffle in Heavenly Desserts. So it was all good in the end.
