The London Circle Walk passes a giraffe enclosure, a high-security police station, a theatre, and at least fifty(!) pubs.
Tomorrow (Saturday 20th September) is set to be another beautiful day in London, so what better way to spend it than touring the entire capital? A group of intrepid Londoners are embarking on the London Circle Walk tomorrow, for an epic rambling loop around the entire city.
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It was several years ago that comedians Tim Wilson and Michael Brunström devised this one-day urban hike while sat in The Lock Tavern, Camden. The pair were ‘several pints into the conversation’ when they ‘argued pointlessly about how hard it would be to walk in big circles in different parts of the world.’ Thus, the London Circle Walk was born – and tomorrow sees another ambitious attempt to tackle it.
This hefty route stretches over 20 miles, so it’s definitely going to be a challenge. It’s about a week’s worth of our normal step count in one day, but it’s going to make that Sunday brunch taste all the more guilt-free! 🍴
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If you’d like to partake, meet your fellow walkers in the middle of Tower Bridge, on the east, downstream side of the road (at ‘3 o’clock’, if the circle is imagined as a clock face). The walk starts at 10am, but make sure to arrive 15 minutes early, as they won’t be waiting for any stragglers! While there won’t be time for too many rests (there’s a lot to cover before it gets dark!), you’ll be given a well-deserved lunch break in the colourful Kensington, a scenic place to stop and re-energise.
The route will take you to all corners (or sides) of the city, dropping down through South London, zigzagging between New Covent Garden and Battersea, ascending through Chelsea and South Kensington, curving around Paddington Station, through the heart of Camden Town, north of King’s Cross, along Regent’s Canal, down back streets in Hoxton and Shoreditch before abruptly entering the City of London and returning to Tower Bridge, where you have reached the finish line. Phew!
As well as wandering through these amazingly diverse boroughs, you will get to walk through some of the city’s most beautiful parks, passing a range of museums, universities and even ZSL London Zoo.
Brunström said: ‘The London Circle Walk contains some amazing and unexpected highlights. It also runs tantalizingly close to major well-known monuments, which it blithely ignores.’
‘You cannot help but become aware of time and space, observing the linear passage of the sun across the sky as you yourself perform a symbolic tour of a cyclical universe encoded in microcosm.’ Brian Cox eat your heart out!
Brunström continues that, ‘In addition to this pretentious arty bollocks, the walk offers plenty of general inspiration.
‘It is made up of concrete, water, grass, brick, glass, trees, steel and earth.’
And (most importantly), ‘It passes at least fifty pubs.’
The two comedians will be there to guide you on the walk tomorrow, so it’s sure to be an entertaining adventure. All that’s left to do now is dig out your best boots, get your sunnies on, and get ready for a brilliant tour of the capital!
For more information about the London Circle Walk 2019, visit the event’s official Facebook page here.