Saturday Walkers Club www.walkingclub.org.uk Highgate to Hampstead walk A varied walk through the green spaces of London's ‘Northern Heights’, with some panoramic views of the city. Length Main Walk: 15¼ km (9.5 miles). Three hours 40 minutes walking time. For the whole excursion including trains, sights and meals, allow at least 8 hours. Short Walk, starting from East Finchley: 13 km (8.1 miles). Three hours 10 minutes walking time. Extended Walk, with Finsbury Park ‘preamble’: 19 km (11.8 miles). Four hours 40 minutes walking time. OS Map Explorer 173. Highgate is in north London, 8 km NW of the City. Toughness 4 out of 10 (3 for the Short Walk, 5 for the Extended Walk). Features This is an urban stroll through the green spaces of London's ‘Northern Heights’, starting with a succession of woods, parks and playing fields on the way to an early 20thC example of town planning, Hampstead Garden Suburb. A group of like-minded Hampstead residents led by Henrietta Barnett wanted to prevent development in their neighbourhood by extending Hampstead Heath northwards and the plan for a model ‘garden suburb for all classes’ grew out of this. The first houses were built in 1907 to an overall design by Raymond Unwin, but their broader social ambitions were never realised: there was too much incentive to build large houses for the rich and the humbler ‘artisan's dwellings’ soon attracted young professionals. Its Central Square is dominated by two imposing churches, both designed by Sir Edwin Lutyens: the interdenominational Free Church and the Anglican parish church of St Jude-on-the-Hill. The churches are often closed but St Jude's is open to visitors on summer Sunday afternoons. https://www.walkingclub.org.uk/walk/highgate-to-hampstead/ 1/16 The remainder of the walk is now almost entirely on Hampstead Heath, 800 acres of woods and parkland. In the late 19thC the Lord of the Manor (Sir Thomas Maryon Wilson) wanted to develop the land but was resisted by a fierce and ultimately successful campaign from local residents. There was piecemeal development in the Vale of Health and below Parliament Hill, but most of the land was eventually acquired for public ownership. Its many ponds are mostly former reservoirs constructed around 1700 to meet London's growing water needs; these are now famously used for swimming and other leisure activities. After a break for lunch (and a brief excursion into Golders Hill Park) the walk route takes you to a fascinating survival from one of the grand properties built around the edge of Hampstead Heath. The Pergola was part of an Italianate garden built in the early 20thC for Lord Leverhulme at his house called The Hill; it fell into disrepair but was restored by the Corporation of London and opened to the public in 1995. The walk now heads north-east to the Kenwood Estate, where you have the opportunity to visit Kenwood House. The seat of the Earl of Mansfield, the house dates from 1767; it was designed by Robert Adam and the surrounding parkland landscaped by Humphry Repton. It was given to the nation in 1927 and contains a fine collection of paintings (including Vermeer's Guitar Player and a Rembrandt self-portrait). The house is managed by English Heritage and is open daily to around 5pm (earlier in winter; free entry). The full walk ends with a short exploration of Hampstead's old streets, taking in some of its many historic buildings. Two which are open to the public are Burgh House (with the Hampstead Museum on its first floor), open Wed–Fri & Sun to 5pm (free entry); and Fenton House and Garden (NT), open Wed–Sun to 5pm from March to October; admission (2019) is £9. The parish church of St John-at-Hampstead is also worth visiting; its churchyard contains several famous tombs, notably those of John Constable and John Harrison. Hampstead Heath is open at all times but the parks and gardens listed above all close around dusk. Walk You can do a Short Walk by starting from East Finchley (the station after Options Highgate) as the walk route goes through this station after 2¼ km. Conversely, you could do a pre-walk extension (or ‘preamble’) from Finsbury Park. Most of the additional 3¾ km to Highgate is along the Parkland Walk, a linear nature reserve created along the trackbed of a disused branch line off the East Coast main line. Parts of this line (which extended to Edgware, High Barnet and Alexandra Palace) were incorporated into the Underground network in the 1930s, but passenger services on this section ceased in 1954. https://www.walkingclub.org.uk/walk/highgate-to-hampstead/ 2/16 There are many ways to shorten the walk. The afternoon leg is essentially a clockwise circuit around Hampstead Heath and several short cuts are mentioned in the directions, eg. omitting the loop through the Kenwood Estate. The most drastic short cut would be to continue southwards from Whitestone Pond, down Hampstead Grove directly to the underground station. You could also skip the final section through Hampstead's streets described above, or take an alternative ending to Hampstead Heath overground station. There are plenty of local bus services if you want to abandon the walk at any stage. Transport Highgate and East Finchley (both in TfL Zone 3) are adjacent stations on the High Barnet branch of the Northern line. Finsbury Park (Zone 2) is on the suburban lines from Moorgate and King's Cross, plus the Victoria and Piccadilly lines. Hampstead (Zones 2/3) is on the Edgware branch of the Northern line. For the alternative ending, Hampstead Heath (Zone 2) is on the London Overground line from Stratford to Richmond and Clapham Junction. Suggested The suggested starting time for this walk is around 10.45am from Highgate, Train or 10am from Finsbury Park. In summer you could start up to an hour later and still have time for a brief visit to Kenwood House. Lunch There are two possible lunch places after about 7 km on the Main Walk (11 km on the Extended Walk). If you want a pub lunch the Old Bull & Bush (020-8905 5456) is in North End Road, just off Sandy Heath; it has plenty of seating (including a large patio area) and serves a good selection of food all day. The alternative is 200m further on, the Refreshment House café inside Golders Hill Park. Earlier in the morning there are several pubs in the Highgate area but none on the long stretch after East Finchley. You could get a mid-morning snack or an early lunch in the parks and gardens along the way (eg. at Cafe Toulous in Northway Gardens), but on fine days these cafés are likely to be popular with family groups. Tea There are many appealing tea places towards the end of the walk. In mid- afternoon you pass the Brew House Café at Kenwood House, which has a large outside terrace and seating area (if it is too busy, note that the walk route passes a refreshment kiosk a few minutes after the house). In Hampstead itself the Burgh House Café (020-7794 3943; open to 5pm Wed–Fri, 5.30pm Sat & Sun, closed Mon & Tue) has an attractive garden terrace. There are many other cafés, coffee shops and pubs nearby. Just before reaching the station you could indulge yourself at Louis Patisserie and Tea Room (020-7435 9908; open to 6pm daily) in Heath Street, which offers a rather different experience from the chain coffee shops in the High Street. The main walk route also passes by or close to five pubs: the Wells Tavern, the Duke of Hamilton, the Holly Bush, the Horseshoe and the Flask. https://www.walkingclub.org.uk/walk/highgate-to-hampstead/ 3/16 Help Us! After the walk, we would love to get your feedback You can upload photos to the ⬤⬤ SWC Group on Flickr (upload your photos) and videos to Youtube. This walk's tags are: swcwalks swcwalk257 By Car Start Archway Rd, London, N6 Finish NW3 1QG Help National Rail: 03457 48 49 50 • Travelline (bus times): 0871 200 22 33 (12p/min) • TFL (London) : 0343 222 1234 Version Jun-21 Copyright © Saturday Walkers Club. All Rights Reserved. No commercial use. No copying. No derivatives. Free with attribution for one time non-commercial use only. www.walkingclub.org.uk/site/license.shtml Walk Directions https://www.walkingclub.org.uk/walk/highgate-to-hampstead/ 4/16 Walk Maps All maps © OpenStreetMap contributors Walk Options M. Main Walk (15¼ km) a. Short Walk, starting from East Finchley (13 km) x. Extended Walk, with Finsbury Park ‘preamble’ (19 km) https://www.walkingclub.org.uk/walk/highgate-to-hampstead/ 5/16 Walk Directions If you are doing the Main Walk (from Highgate), start at [7] in §A. If you are doing the Short Walk (from East Finchley), start at [15] in §B. 0. Finsbury Park Station to Highgate Station (3¾ km) 1. Leave by the Station Place exit and turn left in front of the bus station. Cross the A1201 at the pedestrian lights and go along a pedestrian walkway into Finsbury Park. 2. Go along the left-hand side of the park for 400m. After going through a grove of young trees turn left at a footpath signpost, joining the Capital Ring. This circular walking route around inner London was completed in 2005. You will be (more or less) following its route for the next 7 km. 3. Go across a long footbridge over the East Coast main line and then veer right onto the start of the Parkland Walk.