Section 3 Petts Wood to West Wickham Common

 

What a great walk on Saturday 6th August.  It was even better to walk this section with Tanya.  Was lovely to catch up with you Tanya.  Nothing like a hot (deceptively more knackering than we imagined) stroll through London's  South Eastern green belt.  Actually, it was more hay like than green in most places.

I can't find my maps on Transport for London.  I think they have been taken down as there is now a book to be purchased about this long distance path.   Anyway we ended up doing about 11 miles and it took over 5 hours as I'm slow and have to stop at every plaque and like to stop in general.

Was so easy to get to London Bridge station. It really is a great station.  I know it well now.  I got side-tracked by the sound of a church organ being played and yes, there was a woman playing a church pipe organ. Free to play.  Such a weird concept.

London Bridge's pipe organ

 Then I met up with Tanya and off to Petts Wood we went.  It's a good 40 mins out of London.  We hit the track with no problems and were soon in the Jubilee Country Park and back on the LOOP. 

We had found our first sign within 10 mins. 

  

We then entered Crofton Wood with warnings on my instructions about extremely muddy paths.  Not today, the ground was as cracked and dry as I have ever seen it.

Crofton Wood

Up and out through a 1930s housing estate, which was all so strangely quiet.  In fact the whole walk was so peaceful.  Hardly ever did we hear cars and just a few Spitfire planes near Biggin Hill.  Yes, I saw the underside of a Spitfire so clearly but didn't have my phone to hand for a photo.

But I'm getting ahead of myself.  Next we entered Darrick Wood and then into Tubbenden wildflower meadow , which gave us a great view over the South.

It was then a short distance downhill to Farnborough Village.  What a lovely place this was and for the first time on this walk I really did think I was in Kent as the houses seemed more 'Kent like.' It used to be an important site on the turnpike road between London and Hastings. 

Farnborough Village.

We then entered into a church graveyard.  For the size of the church the graveyard was huge.  Some random old person was  rude to me. (A bit weird as most people out walking are really friendly.) I think the heat had got to his addled brain. 

St. Giles the Abbot Church, Farnborough.

An over dramatic Victorian masterpiece of a gravestone. 

We then went on into High Elms Country Park.  This place was pretty busy and seemed to have a lot going on.  It's strange when you meet civilisation again!

There used to be a posh country house here which burnt down in the 1960s  All that is left are the gardens, the foundation and a sustainable education centre, run by Bromley Council. 

Mr Lubbock, formally from the grand old house, was good friends with Charles Darwin. Mr Lubbock was an MP, a wealthy banker,  an author and a scientist....wonder if he would fit in/get on with our current lot of MPs.

Lubbock House History

Remains of the Lubbock Gardens.

We then went alongside the golf course and into an ancient hedged greenway called Bogey Lane.  As I am so childish I had to take photos of Bogey Lane from both ends.   Lots of horses and ladies on horses seemed to like Bogey Lane too. 

We carried on up the incline.  It was getting hot and tiring.  Holwood House was in the distance. An incredibly ugly mansion up on a hill.  It used to be the home of Pitt the Younger, Prime Minister of the time and in 1787 he had a chat with William Wilberforce under a nearby Oak Tree. It was here that the first discussion about implementing the abolition of the slave trade in the UK took place.

 The original oak tree was dead , but still standing,  an acorn from the original tree is now growing into a replacement Wilberforce Oak.  (The first one planted got destroyed in the storms of 1991.)

The new oak behind us. 

The original tree

  It was a great place to sit and get some rest.  My ankle was playing up and I needed a bit of a break. 

More information from a 1987 paper.  The new oak was growing inside the old and was finally moved. Lovely photo too. 

Wilberforce oak

We were near Biggin Hill now and the Spitfires were flying over.  It was great to see the underbelly of a Spitfire up so close. 

We actually met Jack Frost from the nearby pet stores.  I told Tanya that I thought he was a magic  elf or sprite...suddenly appearing. This phenomenon of helpful people appearing just when I  need them is a recurring theme of my walks. As many of my walking friends know I think they are magic spirits...appearing just when you need them.  Unfortunately Jack Frost wasn't one of them. His pet shop in the  field totally exists in reality. Although I have just checked the website and the pet shop is run by James, Katie, Sam and Allen....not one damn reference to Jack Frost himself!  So my theory still holds! Jack Frost hasn't got much else to do in this dry, hot summer. 

We then moved on into Keston Common and found Caeser's Well, a spring which is the source of the River Ravensbourne.   

Caesar's Well

Erith, where I started, was now 23 miles away.

The ponds of Keston Common. A site of Special Scientific Interest

We then came to the village of Keston and carried on into West Wickham Common.  This common is one of the last remaining original heathlands of London.  It felt and smelt so different to the other commons we had been through that day.  Ferns all around and softer underfoot. 

West Wickham common plans 2021-2031

West Wickham Common.  My favourite of the day.

Ferns look a bit dry.

Looking over West Wickham from the common.

Once we left the common it was the end of part 3 of the LOOP.  We then had a mile walk to the nearest station, Hayes.  We did that at a very slow pace as it was so hot and we were exhausted and we'd run out of water by this time.  We luckily found a pub opposite the station and had a few kent beers before we got on the train back to London Bridge. So all in all it was about 11 miles of wandering.  Not too bad at all but it seemed further!

Was a really fun day. Loved it!  Thanks Tanya for joining me.