TfL's Section 2 of the LOOP has me heading down a narrow lane, passing under the railway line and
emerging alongside some fields. The path bends to the right, coming up
alongside Bexley Cricket Club & Burnt Ash Hockey Club, before
climbing for a short distance to leave me looking out across a wide expanse of grassland. The LOOP runs
straight through the middle, down a rough descent then along a freshly ploughed field, before leading into a cul-de-sac. I'm only on Riverside
Road for about 50 metres before I'm directed down a narrow fenced path,
which empties me out onto a bridge over, you guessed it, our old friend
the River Cray. I wend my way beside the river, with the path at times
becoming uncomfortably close to being in the river itself. Soon I pass
Five Arches Bridge, where a group of youths clamour for me to take their
picture, having been just starting to cross the bridge when I
photographed it. Thankfully they're not going the same way as me, and I
carry on in peace towards what will be my last crossing of the River
Cray, over Penny Farthing Bridge. I come to a small open space amongst the trees and leave the Cray behind for good this time; its accompanied me on the nicest sections of this walk so far.My route takes me onto Rectory Road, past a youth & community centre who were definitely trying to tell me something, and on to a crossroads. Straight over, then second right to the end of a cul-de-sac, where I then turned left down a narrow path that led me into Foots Cray Recreation Ground. By this point it was half past 5 and starting to get dark, and I was beginning to wonder just how dark it was going to be when I got to Petts Wood. I pressed on, up a rising path past allotments and fields, passing also (although I didn't realise at the time) the former home of Cray Wanderers FC. Soon I reached the bottom of Sidcup Place Park, which climbed steeply towards a line of trees and behind them, Sidcup Place itself. I pass through the trees and round a playground, then curse my stupidity when I turn around and glimpse a fine view, now obscured by the trees. Whilst not completely exhausted, I'm in no mood to go back down that hill, and so I turn my back and head on.
Sidcup Place was built in the 1750s and extended throughout the 19th and early 20th century. Today it houses a restaurant, but has been used as a school and as council offices in the past. I pass by the side of the building, drawing a strangely
interested look from a family by a window, and walk over the grass to
the main road, the A222. Passing Queen Mary's Hospital on the left, I'm
coming up to a bit of road I'm very familiar with; Frognal Corner, the
junction of the A20 with the A222. I pass under the junction via stairs,
ramps and subways, and emerge on the London-bound exit slip road of the
A20, where I'm directed through a metal gate into the northeastern
fringe of Scadbury Nature Reserve. The path starts to slope downwards as
I'm taken southwards through the woods, with the light fading. I pass a
lone dog walker as the route curves to the right, heading towards
Scadbury Manor House, and soon I'm standing by the moat that surrounds
the house. Owned by the Walsinghams in the Middle Ages, the original
structure was demolished in the 1800s, and partially reconstructed in
the 1930s using the ground plan as a guide. All that remains today are
some brick pillars and chimneys, and a staircase.The light by this point is fading badly, and I hurry onwards, my thoughts now more about just getting to the endpoint before darkness falls completely. The path starts to slope uphill again, and it's not long before I meet a tarmacked road, which leads me out to St Paul's Cray Road. Eventually a gap in the traffic lets me scamper across, and I pass into Petts Wood. The doleful hooting of an owl serenades me as I walk briskly through the gloomy trees, heading steadily downhill again. By the time I reach the railway line at the bottom of the hill darkness has fully descended, and I'm now finding it difficult to see where I'm going. I'm startled by another dog walker, who's going the opposite way (into the woods in the dark?) before coming to a footbridge over the railway line (the Chatham Main Line). I quickly come to another footbridge over a railway line, this one crossing the Up Chatham Loop between the Chatham Main Line and the South Eastern Main Line. A narrow footpath brings me out into the cul-de-sac of Little Thrift, where the very last part of this walk is unwalkable, as Network Rail have removed the footbridge carrying the LOOP over more railway lines. The last mile or so then is a trudge through suburbia, before reaching Petts Wood railway station, 6 hours and 47 minutes after I left Erith.
I slump on a bench on platform 3 at Petts Wood, happy to rest my weary legs. In truth, my misjudgement of the time it would take me to complete this walk meant the last 2-3 miles were not as enjoyable as the rest of the walk, but nevertheless, it was a fine start to this project. When I got home and plotted my route in Google Earth, I found one reason for the misjudgement; the planned mileage had been 15 miles, but I'd ended up walking 17.2! No wonder then that I'd finished almost an hour later than anticipated. Still, the walk had been very enjoyable, and had left me excited for what lay ahead.
More photos from this walk here:
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