14.1km (8.8 miles), with options of 18.1km (11.2 miles) or 19.8km (12.3 miles) T=swc.228
Starting from Totteridge & Whetstone station (Northern Line, High Barnet branch), which is in zone 4: aim to be there at 10.35 for a 10.45am (prompt!) start.
I was asked by the usual poster in this slot to step in and offer a rail strike-proof walk, and here it is - a proper rural outing, reached by Northern Line.
A normal drawback of this walk in winter is that it can be rather muddy...but at time of writing (Wednesday evening) the ground is not only frozen solid, but covered in 12cm of snow. Given the forecasted temperatures between now and Saturday morning, I would not expect either of these things to change in the interim (as of Wednesday, the snow had not even melted off the twigs in many places - see photo: more on the SWC group Facebook page). With the mercury due to get to the giddy heights of 5 degrees on Saturday afternoon, things could soften up a bit then, however.
Lunch is in the Three Hammers, a chain pub, but a large and cosy one. Tea in Totteridge really comes down to Costa Coffee or a couple of independent cafes, but there is a much better range of options in Barnet, if you care to do that extension to the walk (the 11.2 mile version). Cockfosters (12.3 miles) has a fine pub near the end.
Trains back from Totteridge & Whetstone, High Barnet or Cockfosters are just turn up and go - no last train to worry about.
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11 people met at Totteridge & Whetstone station in w=sunshine-and-snow for this walk, despite half-hearted attempts by the Northern Line to sabotage proceedings with broken down trains. A few later popped up pixie-like in the woods and one came from Mill Hill East to the lunch pub. All this makes me a tad unsure about final numbers, but I think I can say at least n=15.
It was a sparkling morning, the snow still thick on the ground - and in many cases on leaves and twigs. There were crystals of what looked like hoar frost on the snow in many places (I can only assume this has grown in the days since the snow fell). Things were particularly pretty in the woods by Darlands Lake, and there were widespread expressions of the "I never realised this walk was so nice" variety. (I am taking his as a compliment...)
A few did the shortcut to lunch, while others did the main route, passing the totally frozen Long Pond on Totteridge Common, intriguingly marked with animal tracks in places. I hear one person slipped on a path on the final leg to lunch, but she reported no ill effects from the experience.
The Three Hammers was vast and almost entirely empty. Indeed, one worries a bit about its business prospects if it cannot do better on a Saturday before Christmas. But that meant that we had the bar staff largely to ourselves, and 11 of us could all gather round a single table. They are to be commended for having an extensive vegetarian/vegan menu, though it is a pity that some of the vegan dishes were not available. I think most were happy with their food.
We finished lunch at 2pm. There was concern in some quarters about finishing before dark, and at least two took a bus or short cut to Mill Hill East. The rest of us carried on under somewhat cloudier skies. There was still lots of snow, but after five and a half days it was finally gone from the shrubs and trees, marking the start of the thaw. The ground remained firm all afternoon, however, the writer privately enjoying standing on brick hard ice in one notorious bog spot.
We all ended in Totteridge just as the light was fading, no extensions being entertained or needed as far as I am aware. One of our number had had breakfast in the Nature's Nest, the cafe and wholefood shop just up the road from the station, and a group of us went there for tea. Once again, all the vegan cakes had gone, but it proved a cosy stop with enough tables to accommodate us all. Then back on the tube to watch Strictly (apparently)...
If anyone who is on the walk is interested, the hoar frost on snow we saw today was "surface hoar" (acc to google): "essentially the frozen version of dew": it needs specific conditions, in particular cold still air, to form.
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