Walk T8
Hilton Hotel Rotherhithe to London Bridge
London Borough of Southwark
Saturday June 22nd 2024
Our journey from Peterborough this morning went a little awry, although we caught up with ourselves later. Sam stayed overnight with me and we caught the X4 bus into the city centre. We only just caught it because it was running early and Jenna was nowhere near her bus stop when it flew past. Luckily there was a different bus just behind and it didn’t really matter too much because our train was cancelled. We finally found each other and left Peterborough half an hour later than planned. The initial plan had been to take the tunnel under the river from Whitechapel to Rotherhithe by getting off at Farringdon and taking the Elizabeth Line to Whitechapel but the line was closed for engineering works. Instead we stayed on to London Bridge and hopped on a boat to Canary Wharf. While waiting at London Bridge ferry landing I took this photo of a beautiful building on the other side. It is the old Billingsgate Fish Market which is now let out as a conference or dinner venue and the sample photos show it to be a very upmarket place to hold an event.
At Canary Wharf we changed onto the little ferry that crosses the river to the hotel. It seemed very strange again to be walking through the hotel reception from the gangway of the boat. Once outside, we took a before photo in which both Jenna and Sam have theirs eyes closed!
The walk began as it meant to go on, constantly directing us along the riverbank for a while then off again behind buildings. These buildings were not industrial like those we had encountered further downstream but old warehouses, evidence of London’s past preserved by redeveloping then into flats. We were to see a stream of fascinating history and architecture of many kinds during this short walk which we very much enjoyed.
We began by walking along the road behind Columbia Wharf then climbed a flight of steps back to the river again to enjoy the houses in Pageant Crescent. These houses are set back from the river, have small gardens and parking spaces and are generally beautiful. And very expensive – well over a million pounds for a three bedroomed house.
Soon we came across a unmarked obelisk. It apparently serves no purpose and was built here at the same time as the houses in the 1990s which were built on the site of an old fire station. We put it to good use as a footrest to retie bootlaces.
Soon we were routed over a bridge across the entrance to what was once Lavender Dock. The dock was a shipbuilding centre from about 1700 until 1890 then used for many businesses from grain storage to paint manufacturing, all connected with the river. The old dock buildings in the photo are now occupied by the Hatching Dragons Day Nursery.
As we walked along the front of some beautifully renovated houses we spotted some sort of race going on in the river. We couldn’t quite work out what was happening but there were a couple of boats with people rowing or punting and some guide boats too. It was all a bit mysterious.
Across the river we could see a circular building, highly decorated in Victorian style and once we had passed one on our side of the river we realised they were ventilation shafts for the Rotherhithe tunnel. I suspect if they had been built recently they would not have been anywhere near as decorative
Soon it was time to stop for lunch and we found some seats on an old wharf on the far side of this amazing bridge. It is at the entrance to Surrey Basin and is a bascule bridge. Although no longer in use it is beautifully maintained and looks as though it could easily swing open at any time.
After lunch we walked on to Cumberland Wharf where we had to turn away from the river to pass behind the Mayflower Estate. To our surprise here was an information board about the sailing of the Mayflower which had, apparently, started its journey from here in 1620.
We didn’t linger as we were keen to find the Brunel Museum which is located here and which tells the story of the first tunnel under the Thames dug by Isambard Kingdom Brunel in 1827. It is a small museum with access to the start of the tunnel and the engine house. We had been looking forward to seeing what there was on offer, but were very disappointed to find it closed for a private function. As we left a wedding car drew up so it had obviously been booked for the reception.
It was disappointing but there was nothing we could do so we walked on round the corner to our next planned stop just a few yards away. The Brunel Museum has no café so we had planned to stop at The Watch House. This must be one of the tiniest coffee houses in London. There is just a counter and a cold fridge and a very limited but delicious stock of refreshments,
Luckily the weather was still good so we were able to take our coffee and cake to tables set up beside the building in the churchyard of Mary’s Church. It was very pleasant sitting there and Sam went off to make friends with a dog while Jen and I enjoyed our break. Later I looked up the history of the Watch House which I had assumed was associated with the river. That is not the case however, as the building was used for a much more sinister purpose. In the early 19th century it housed watchmen tasked with preventing bodies from the churchyard being stolen to be used by anatomists at the nearby Guys hospital.
Suitably refreshed we continued along the road one building back from the river behind and through more old warehouses converted into flats.
We passed Kings Stairs Gardens and emerged into an open space which again had much to see. On the river bank were several statues and a board explaining the story behind them. Dr Salter worked with his wife Ada in the slums of Bermondsey at the end of the 1900s. They helped thousands of people with medical care, housing and by making the area a better place to live. Their daughter died at the age of 10 of Scarlet fever. The story of their lives and the sculptures of Alfred, Ada and Joyce Salter and their cat is told here.
https://www.londonremembers.com/memorials/doctor-alfred-salter-se16-statue
Sam, of course, made friends with the cat who sits permanently on the wall looking out over the river.
We continued to walk and as we threaded our way behind, through and in front of old warehouses now converted for other use we admired the huge variety of architecture.
The final hidden path cut between the two buildings in the photo below and brought us out onto Butler’s Wharf within sight of Tower Bridge. Butler’s Wharf houses luxury restaurants on the ground floor and flats on the upper storeys.
The warehouse was built in 1873 and was used for unloading and storing grain, spices, tea, fruit and sugar arriving on ships from all over the world. A four bedroomed flat with roof garden overlooking the river and a private lift serving its five floors, is currently on the market for just under £4 million.
It was then just a short walk to Tower Bridge and the intended finish of today’s walk. The area around the bridge was busy as always but managed to find a space to sit down and enjoy an ice cream. As we were resting we realised that the traffic on the bridge had stopped and a few minutes later it opened to let a Thames barge with its tall mast through.
The plan from here was to return to London Bridge station and catch the train home, but it was early, we all felt fine and we decided that we would carry on past the station to London Bridge itself. Sam was keen to have a look at Southwark cathedral with its resident cat. Having been there recently Jen and I knew it had a wonderful café and good loos, so we set our feet westwards. It was hard going because we were really in busy tourist London now soon enough we passed HMS Belfast, the Hays Galleria and arrived at London Bridge itself.
We declared the walk finished and repaired to the cathedral for a look round and to visit the café. Sam enjoyed a strange cake called a crookie which was a croissant with a chocolate cookie baked into the middle. And he found the cat!
Eventually we did go back to London Bridge and caught the train home after an easy and very interesting day’s walking.
Coast Walk 