Parks of North London Ride

Sunday, 20 March 2011 - 10:00am - 4:00pm

A tour of the parks of North London, some large, some small, several with cafes (we'll make at least two stops). We did this last year and will follow approximately the same route but with at least one extra park thrown in. Being a bit later in the year it should be warmer and the daffodils and crocuses will be in flower.

The ride will be about two-thirds on road, with off road sections up the Parkland Way from Finsbury Park to Highgate, along the Lee valley and through some of the parks. We will find quiet roads wherever possible, so it will be an easy sociable ride and should be OK for relative beginners especially as you will be riding in a group and we'll be happy to walk across any particularly tricky junctions.

Note that this replaces our planned visit to Eltham Palace - we will delay that until later in the year when the weather should be better and we can enjoy the gardens as well as the house.

Ride difficulty: 
Easy
Ride distance: 
24 miles
Route map: 
https://www.towerhamletswheelers.org.uk/sites/default/files/rides/routes/North%20London%20Parks%202.tcx" target="_blank">view on bikehike.co.uk
Ride report: 

This was a repeat of a ride from 2010 but with an extra park thrown in.

An assembled group of 18 set off quickly ticking off Mile End, London Fields, and Hackney Downs before making a stop at Clissold Park for coffee. The indoor café there is still under refurbishment but this time it was warm enough to sit outside.  Next on the route was Finsbury Park, and then the Parkland Way. We had a slight splitting of the group as some missed the entrance, but we were soon re-united up at Highgate. The second (detached) part of the Parkland Way led to Muswell Hill Park where we thought of having lunch but rejected it due to a lack of loos. In Alexandra Palace Park we found and used the loos but the café prices were a bit high and there was a queue, so we decided to push on to the new park on the ride – Priory Park. This had good little café, but it was slightly overwhelmed by our group and ran out of some options. Not a disaster though as it was warm enough to sit outside and watch the antics of some lively under-5 year olds pushing scooter tricks to the limit.

A longish road section took us to Downhills Park, and then to Markfield beside the Lee. We did consider another tea stop but (unusually for Wheelers) carried on cycling. Last time we merely went to the corner of Springfield Park and ticked it off, but this time we did it properly and went all the way up the hill and down again. From there it was a quick ride to Victoria Park and finally back to the starting point – or nearly, we made it as far as The Palm Tree for a well earned drink.

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