It’s been a while since i've gone somewhere for a hike so I've been itching for a proper field trip and as the Regents canal has been on my 'visit list for a long time a bright Sunday morning saw Kate and I head to our start point, Camden Lock. It's an odd start as it is not one end of the canal but maybe halfway along its course. Still it is easy to get to by public transport so that was in its favour.
The Lock is a primary destination for a big chunk of London visitors on a Sunday but i may not have been here intentionally for over a decade. Still on a sunny 'market' day the whole place was humming with activity. We stopped for a coffee but didn't linger to enjoy the vibe. Just a few too many people for our taste.
I was concerned about the crowds but ten minutes stroll along the canal saw us with clear space around us. The tow path being populated by dog walkers joggers and cyclists. The few other people who ventured up the waterway turned back to Camden early on. The water was blighted by a layer of duckweed so thick I imagined you might need a miniature ‘ice’ breaker to get through it. But the river was alive with a variety of craft rental motor boats a narrow boat (or two) and an oversize tourboat that might have had room for a hundred sightseers. They chugged past accompanied by the chinks of glassware and crockery.
Our early points of interest were a couple of graffiti artworks by Banksy. But i was was more taken by the narrow boat homes moored strategically along the path. And i was drawn to take the odd snap or two.
The canal passes the edge of London Zoo in Regent’s Park and a little while afterwards the path diverges from the watercourse (just after the route passes behind a large electrical substation) near Lords cricket ground, then joins the Grand union canal at Little Venice. Which happens to be tucked round the corner from the Westway.
It wasn't a long hike but the weather was fair and if we'd seen a waterside cafe i'm sure we'd have stopped earlier than we did. We smelled bbq and on this sleepy Sunday canal living looking very appealing, at least where it was free of the duckweed. We stopped for a coffee in little Venice. Very nice in the summer sun, although the nearest public toilets were a good distance from the cafe which felt a mite ‘inconvenient’.
We did a short loop up the grand union canal to the first bridge then completed the last section to Paddington where we were met by a very familiar bear. Marmalade sandwich anyone?
