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Thames Path: Tower Hill to Putney Walk

The Thames Path through the centre of London, passing the City, Westminster, Chelsea, Battersea and Putney via 18 bridges

Easy London

History

This is a list of previous times this walk has been done by the club (since Jan 2010). For more recent events (since April 2015), full details are shown.

Date Option Post # Weather
Wed, 22-Jun-22 County Hall to Putney - In place of Saunderton via West Wycombe Circular - due to rail strikes
Sun, 30-Jan-22 The Thames Path from Westminster to Putney 11 sunny
Wed, 28-Feb-18 County Hall to Putney via Tate Britain and Battersea Park: a mud-free walk beside the River Thames 3 very cold but bright day with sunny spells
Thu, 02-Feb-17 Sky Gardens, Thames Path from Monument to Putney, and a Riverside pub 5 overcast with occasional glimpses of sun

Wednesday 22-Jun-22

Marcus

It appears the rail strikes on 21, 23 and 25 June are going ahead (as of pm Saturday 18 June), so the programmed walk Book 2 Walk 3 - Saunderton via West Wycombe Circular will be replaced by part of SWC 282 - County Hall to Putney, a 5 mile leg stretcher.
Meet at County Hall on the south embankment, outside the cafe near the steps up to Westminster Bridge, at 11 am. We will have lunch in Putney at the Wetherspoons. After lunch, those who want a longer walk can do an out and back leg along the Thames tow path to Barnes.
County Hall to Putney directions - are here
The Saunderton walk will be deferred until autumn 2022.
T=swc.282



Sunday 30-Jan-22

Sean
SWC Walk 282b – Westminster to Putney

Length: About 11¼ km (7 miles). Toughness: 1/10

Meet up for an 11:00 start on the south bank of Westminster Bridge, as described in the second half (Westminster to Putney) of the L=swc.282 : “Turn left out of Westminster tube station. Cross the bridge. Go down the stairs at the far end (in the direction of the London Eye). Meet at the bottom of the stairs. You can see a Pret à Manger café nearby.”

If it's more convenient you could travel to Waterloo station and make your way to Westminster Bridge from there.

In response to some anguished pleas for less muddy walks, I thought I'd offer a straightforward riverside route from central London. It's described as entirely on hard surfaces, so comfortable footwear might be a better choice than walking boots.

There are stretches of the Thames Path on both the north and south banks for much if not all of the way, and the written directions offer suggestions for where you should cross to the other bank. You could of course simply follow the GPS route, but the small print warns that the two are ‘slightly out of sync’ and so you might find yourself on the opposite bank at times.

The directions mention that the recommended route in #10 (Vauxhall Bridge to Chelsea Bridge) will change when the pedestrian riverfront around the Battersea Power Station redevelopment is open to the public; does anyone know the status of this?

As always there's no leader for this walk. It's entirely up to you whether you detour into any of the tourist attractions along the way, break for refreshments or walk straight through to a pub or café at Putney Bridge. You can return from either the main line station (trains to Clapham Jct and Waterloo) or Putney Bridge (on the District Line, but note that its branches from Earl's Court to Richmond and Ealing Broadway are not running this weekend).

  • Sat, 29-Jan-22

    It's now a no name cafe.

  • Sun, 30-Jan-22

    11 on a sunny day. There aren’t many walks where your boots end up cleaner than they started but this is one of them. A day mercifully free of mud and nature. A few trees and bushes tried to spoil it but mostly nothing. Just glass and concrete. Bliss. The occasional duck on the river but you expect that. Somebody said something was a heron. Maybe it was.

    No lunch stop today just on and on till Putney was reached. There, a kindly Wetherspoons helped replenish the alcohol/ caffeine deficit.

Wednesday 28-Feb-18

Marcus
London County Hall to Putney, with option to continue westwards

 Length: County Hall to Putney along the Thames: 10 km (6.2 miles)

Toughness: 1 out of 10 But hard on the feet (hard surfaces all day) so suggest well cushioned trainers instead of walking boots. And wrap up well - it will be very cold, with a cutting wind

The distance we walk today will depend on weather conditions. As we head westwards the underground stations are all "above ground" and they are likely to be affected by any inclement weather.

Meet on the Embankment by County Hall on the southern side of the River, near the Aquarium, by the Pret coffee shop, at 11 am.

I was planning to do this mud-free walk alone today, but noting the concern of some over the prospects of travel disruption on Southern Rail, SWC walkers are welcome to join me. But that said, I hope those adventuring to Eastbourne make it there and back without train cancellations or delays, and fingers crossed, you have a wonderful day's walking along the southern coast.

For City walkers, we will start today's walk by County Hall. A pleasant leg southwards along the Albert Embankment takes us to Lambeth Bridge, which we cross, and head for Tate Britain, which some might like to visit, A new exhibition starts today: "Bacon, Freud and a Century of Painting Life". A bit pricey at £ 19-50 (free for Tate Members) and it might be booked up. But no matter, there is still the "Impressionists in London" exhibition on, which I am told is well worth viewing. Those stopping at the Tate should afterwards continue the few hundred metres up the road to the Morpeth Arms for lunch. This pub is one of my Pimlico watering holes and it serves honest, unpretentious pub grub, and an excellent pint of Youngs bitter.
Those by-passing the Tate are best advised to wait until you reach Putney before stopping at one of its many pubs for a late(ish) lunch. Or you could stop earlier at a pub in Battersea.
After the Tate we pass Vauxhall Bridge and head along the north bank for Chelsea Bridge, which we cross, to then walk through Battersea Park. Westwards then, on the southern bank of the river, at times inland and at times bedside the Thames, to Wandsworth and into Wandsworth Park. A short walk through the park takes us to Putney Bridge.
Those wanting a longer walk (if weather conditions permit) can continue along the Thames Path to Hammersmith Bridge (2.8 km -1.7 miles). Or on to Barnes Bridge (a further 2.7 km - 1.6 miles).

Travel Back to Central London District Line from Putney Bridge. Buses. Riverboat from Putney Pier to Westminster Pier. T=swc.282
  • Wed, 28-Feb-18

    3 of us on a very cold but bright day with sunny spells . The compacted snow under foot was treacherous at times but we just managed to stay upright as we walked along the Thames path.

    We stopped early on at Tate Britain to visit the "Impressionists in London - French Artists in Exile" exhibition - most enjoyable, and recommended (it's on until 07 May).

    A very pleasant luncheon followed at one of my locals, the Morpeth Arms - and then it was back out into the cold and occasional snow flurries to continue our walk. We all enjoyed the walk along this section of the Thames path which took us into parks as well as hugging the riverside beside new flats developments. On reaching Putney we stopped for tea at a Wetherspoons pub before we headed for Putney's stations for transport home.

    An invigorating walk.

    Those that stayed at home missed a good winters walk.

  • Marion
    Thu, 01-Mar-18

    I nearly joined you yesterday but was seduced by the offer of a lunch with friends. Its a really good idea to have an alternative relaxing shorter walk option as proved by the Petts Wood short walk last Saturday when 20 walkers were very happy not to be travelling to the Cotswolds.

Thursday 02-Feb-17

Andrew
Entry to the Sky Gardens is now sold out for Thursday, but you can join the walk at Monument tube at 11:30. Remember you need a passport (they check ids). You can book for up to 10 people. https://skygarden.london/booking

If someone could bring a Time Out Country Walks book to wave around that would be nice.

The meeting place for this extra (special) midweek walk is the Sky Gardens, a viewing gallery on top of the 'walkie talkie' office block near Monument tube. Meet there at 10:45. Arrive earlier if you want to look at the view. Its a large enclosed glass piazza, with an outside terrace on 1 side. Great views of the square mile. There's a kiosk if you want coffee.

Leave at 11:15, pass Monument tube at 11:30, and look for people who left it too late to get tickets, head to the Thames, and go west.

Sky Gardens : 10:45
Monument tube : 11:30
Wetherspoons pub near Putney Bridge: ~ 15:30

1. Head west along the North bank for a change, cross the wobbly bridge to the Tate.
2. South bank, cross Westminster Bridge, walk round Parliament
3. Cross Lambeth bridge to the south bank
4. Cross Vauxhall bridge back to the north bank
5. Cross Chelsea bridge to the south bank, go past Battersea park
6. Cross Albert bridge to the north bank
7. Cross Battersea back to the south. Then there's a longer stretch (the north looks OK here too)
8. Stay on the south bank past Wandsworth bridge
9. A longer stretch past Wandsworth Park.
10. Pass a riverside Wetherspoons just before Putney Bridge. This is your suggested lunch / afternoon tea spot. Thursday is Curry Club. Putney BR is close by. Putney tube is across the river, and there are buses to Wimbledon and Tooting (Northern line)
11. Recommended, Cross Putney Bridge to the north bank, (Hint: there's something noteworthy about the churches at either end of it). Wander around Bishops Park, and visit Fulham Palace (free). Return to the pub
12. If you really want to continue, Cross Putney Bridge, follow the north bank ... change to the south bank at Kew Bridge... north at Kingston ... south at Hampton Court
T=3.282

  • Fri, 03-Feb-17

    4 of us enjoyed the wonderful view from the "Walkie Talkie" sky garden - highly recommended to all - and from our meet-up place at the Monument 5 of us set out on a 8 mile Thames Path walk, switching from north to south sides of the river and back via numerous bridges. The Weather did not look auspicious when we started - steady rain - but fortunately it soon stopped and for the rest of the day it was overcast with occasional glimpses of sun . We stopped for lunch at one of my Pimlico locals, the Morpeth Arms, where we enjoyed a light lunch and a good pint. Onwards, then, back and forth over more Thames bridges, down Battersea Park, to Wandsworth Park and into Putney. By then we were pleased to conclude our walk, for eight miles on tarmac and concrete takes its toll on aged limbs. Refreshments and home. Those that stayed away missed a great day out.

  • Marion
    Sat, 04-Feb-17

    Can certainly recommend the Sky Garden for views and chose the fine dining option over the Brasserie. Spent my birthday there last month. If we're going to have more mid week walks why not alternate with Thursdays and Tuesdays when there's less competition from Ramblers mid-week walks and remember that discounted fares don't start til 10.00am for some younger walkers. South East trains tell me that from 20 Feb they will not sell tickets on trains with a discount rail cards from boundary zone 6 unless you find the guard before the train reaches zone 6.this affects those travelling from unmanned stations and Antoine unable to buy a ticket at the mainline station did running late. REMEMBER MY RUN IN WITH SOUTH WEST TRAINS WHEN A GUARD TRIED TO HAVE ME ARRESTED AT GULDFORD.