Chingford to Forty Hill
Well, that was a spectacular day.
Just look at this view across the reservoir to Alexandra Palace. Really not far from the end of the run.
View of Alexandra Palace
I had to detour around a car boot sale in the field next to Sewardstone Road before I came across the real surprise of the day.
The Clear, Clean River Lea
Who would have thought that one day I would ever come to write the clean, clear River Lea and mean it. I used to canoe and row in that river when I was at school. I am pretty sure I glowed in the dark for that period of my life.
River Lea near Enfield Lock
Sadly, there was a derelict pub at Enfield Lock and the boarded-up building next to the lock-keeper’s cottage was approaching terminal decay. I wonder what can be done, if anything, about it. I don’t regard tearing them down and putting up a series of those tiny hutches as being an option.
Enfield Lock
Between Enfield Lock and Forty Hill it was a bit on the urban side. Seemed to be a lot of geezer types with sore heads from the night before. Some serious gold chains and of course the inevitable pit bulls – the true horror story of the Loop. Fortunately, the balance weighs far more to the beautiful and dramatic and I can tolerate running the drooling, yapping gauntlet every now and then. Well, I have to run it quite often actually.
I also saw my first blackberries. I thought they were supposed to come at the end of summer. Very beautiful even if we didn’t have the summer first.
First blackberries of 2008
I will talk about it in my roundup but still amazed that other users of the Loop are sparse to the point of being a neglible presence. It is a shame because it is a fantastic facility for us all to have and take advantage of.
Lane at Sewardstone
Miles today, 5.9, making a total of 140.52 miles
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