Extra Walk 188 – Richmond Circular
Length: 13.7 km (8.5 miles). Toughness: 2/10
12:58 Reading train from Clapham Jct, arriving Richmond at 13:06. There are no direct trains from Waterloo to Richmond because of engineering works on these lines, but you can take a connecting service to Clapham Jct on the Surbiton line (eg. the 12:39 to Guildford), or from Victoria (eg. the 12:41 to Epsom). Alternatively, travel direct to Richmond by Overground or District line tube: check travel times on the TfL website to arrive by 13:00 and meet upstairs in the foyer. Richmond is in TfL Zone 4.
There are fast trains back to Clapham Jct at xx:15 & xx:47, stopping ones at xx:04, xx:22, xx:34 & xx:52, plus frequent tubes and Overground trains.
Short half-day walks on Bank Holiday Mondays seem to be popular so here's a chance to join the crowds in Richmond Park. The walk starts with a section alongside the Thames and then loops through the park “exploring its varied and less visited landscapes”. Judging by its GPS route it does indeed carefully skirt the park's most popular features, but I recommend going off-piste to enjoy the Kurume azaleas in the Isabella Plantation, which should be at their most colourful.
As this is a short afternoon walk I suggest just having a tea stop at Pembroke Lodge, towards the end of the park circuit. If you want lunch, bring your own or take an earlier train and buy provisions from one of the places around Richmond station. There will also be kiosks scattered around the park for ad hoc refreshments en route, and pubs on the way down Richmond Hill to the station for something stronger.
Remember that as always there's no walk leader, so in order to follow the author's route you'll need to bring the directions from the Richmond Circular walk page. T=swc.188
7 comments:
Can meet others for the walk at Richmond Station 1pm
Hello ! I plan to join the walkers group tomorrow May 6th for the Bank Holiday Afternoon Walk – A stroll through Richmond Park. Someone else is going ? If yes, let´s join at the Richmont station at 1pm. See you ;-)
My name is Cecile-
Hello. I would also like to join this walk - where shall we meet at Richmond Station?
Many thanks,
Selina
As it says in the first para, meet upstairs in the foyer. It won't be difficult to identify a group of fellow-walkers but wave a copy of the walk directions about if you like.
Aim to get there by 1pm but please wait for the Reading-bound train to arrive at 6 minutes past, as some people will be on that.
PS. If you haven't tried one of these SWC group walks before, a short urban walk like this is a good way to start. New faces are always welcome. Please bear in mind, though, that this isn't a "led" walk like you'd get from the Ramblers. If you want to wander off after a while and do your own thing, that's fine. The FAQ page will give you an idea of what to expect.
On a w=cool-cloudy-windy-but-dry sort of day up to n=14 walkers made their way around Richmond Park, including a group of newcomers. Some of the regulars flitted in and out but a hard core of 10 or 11 decided that studying the directions was unnecessary when someone with a map (le chef malgré lui) gave a passable impression of knowing where he was going.
We took considerable liberties with the author's directions, but with the bonus of being able to admire three of the Great Trees of London (a stone pine off Richmond Green, the Richmond Riverside Plane and the Richmond Royal Oak in the park). In addition there were a couple of handkerchief trees in the Isabella Plantation in their brief flowering phase, and although the Kurume azaleas weren't quite fully out the variety of colours was still stunning.
Possibly unintentionally the group concurred with the tentative suggestion of an extra stretch alongside Beverley Brook, which had to be followed by a yomp across a tussocky hillside to get back on track at Pen Ponds. A belated and somewhat pricy tea in the admittedly fine surroundings of Pembroke Lodge revived us for the final leg down Richmond Hill, in time for the 17:45 back to CJ and points onward. I hope we see the newcomers again!
Great company, beautiful flowers and delicious cakes = perfect day.
Thank you to Sean for posting this walk.
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