Walking in 2016

This time last year I started walking the Jubilee Greenway, a 60km (37.5 mile) circular walk around London (marked in purple on the map below). All went well at first and I'd walked six of nine sections, and explored both the Olympic Park and Greenwich Park, by mid-March. Then I started experiencing a problem with my right foot, and was only able to walk one section per month from April to June, but I did finish that walk in June. Unfortunately I didn't do much else, I just added The Line in October.

Image from tfl.gov.uk

Back in March, when I had been making good progress with the Jubilee Greenway, I had begun thinking about my next walk, and decided to do the Capital Ring (marked in yellow on the map). It's another circular walk around London but it's further out from the centre and therefore longer - a total of 78 miles (or 126km). 

Also, while I was walking The Line, I found waymarkers for the Lea Valley Walk (pink on the map), a walk that I knew of but hadn't previously considered doing myself. The whole thing is 53 miles long and runs from Luton in Bedfordshire to the Thames at Limehouse; however, the London stretch is a more manageable 13.5 miles from Waltham Abbey to Limehouse.

I had been planning to tackle the Capital Ring next, but a lot of it runs through woodland and green spaces so it could be rather muddy at this time of year. The Lea Valley Walk follows the River Lea and I know that the first part at least is on tow-paths which should be easy walking. Therefore I've decided to start with the Lea Valley Walk and I'm going to do it 'backwards', starting at Limehouse for two reasons. Firstly, this is the end nearest me and I know where the walk starts; secondly, if I am enjoying it I can continue with the walk past Waltham Abbey, though probably not as far as Luton!