Route Overview

Thames Path National Trail

As a National Trail, this route has to come top of the list of London's walking gems. The walking is consistently easy, though the route is subject to flooding upstream of Putney Bridge and downstream of Greenwich, at exceptionally high tides and after prolonged periods of heavy rain. You can check high tide times by calling the Port of London Authority on 020 7743 7900 or at Live Tides.

The route extends westwards far beyond the Greater London boundary, right up to the river's source in the Cotswold Hills. You get two for the price of one through London, as the route follows both banks most of the way. This provides a total of 107km (67ml) within the Greater London boundary, fairly evenly divided between the north and south banks. There are excellent public transport connections throughout this section, so you can divide the route into chunks to suit your requirements. You can easily switch from one bank to the other at any of 24 beautifully painted bridges, most of which are stunningly floodlit at night. Two ferries, a foot tunnel and several railway lines provide further bank-switching opportunities.

The route is intensely interesting, as there are constantly changing and sometimes awe-inspiring views, and something is always happening on the river, whether human-initiated or otherwise. You are very likely to see all kinds of waterborne activity, including rowing in all its forms, canoeing, sailing, trip boats, tugs, barges, floating gin-palaces, narrowboats, houseboats, marinas and boatyards. Downstream of London Bridge you may spot seagoing ships carefully manoeuvring into or away from their mooring, and downstream from Greenwich the route angles around working wharves. The Thames is now the cleanest major river in Europe, and this is reflected in the range of species that inhabits both the river and its banks. There are just too many individual places of interest to mention here.

What you should not see, and must certainly not attempt, is swimming in the river, as the Thames is notoriously dangerous with strong currents and undertows. You should also be aware that much of the route is included in National Cycle Routes 1 and 4 - walkers and cyclists should treat each other with respect and consideration. On the north bank at Barnes Bridge, you will need to take care on a stretch of fairly busy road that has no pavement and blind bends.

Most of the bridges are only accessible from the riverside by long flights of steps, where long diversions may be necessary. The only bridges that are ramped both sides within Greater London are at Hampton Court, Teddington Lock and Lambeth, while Hungerford Bridge and the Millennium Bridge have lifts. There are cobbled stretches around Southwark Cathedral, Wapping, Rotherhithe and Greenwich.

There are four sections, each including the North and South Bank, within the Greater London boundary:

Distance walking each Section

Section:	km:	ml:
1 (Hampton Court to Albert Bridge)	South Bank 21 km or North Bank 37.6	South Bank 19.9 miles or North Bank 23.4
2 (Albert Bridge to Tower Bridge)	North Bank 9.2 km or South Bank 9.7	North Bank 5.7 miles or South Bank 6
3 (Tower Bridge to Greenwich and the Thames Barrier)	North Bank 8.2 km or South Bank 16.4	North Bank 5.1 miles or South Bank 10.2
4 (Thames Barrier to River Darent)	15.8	9.8

Boroughs which the route passes through:

Bexley
City of London
City of Westminster
Greenwich
Hammersmith & Fulham
Hounslow
Kensington & Chelsea
Kingston upon Thames
Lambeth
Lewisham
Richmond upon Thames
Southwark
Tower Hamlets
Wandsworth

Interesting places on or near the route:

Canary Wharf
Chelsea
Chiswick Pier
Greenland Pier
Hammersmith Riverside
Hampton Court and Bushy Park
Kew Gardens
Lambeth Bridge
Richmond Park
Thames Barrier
Trinity Buoy Wharf and Lighthouse
Victoria Embankment
Walbrook Stair
Wapping and Shadwell

Signage:

The route is well marked by the National Trail symbol from west of London to the end of the National Trail at the Thames Barrier in the London Borough of Greenwich. The path continues Eastward at this point through Charlton, Woolwich, Thamesmead and on past Erith and the GLA boundary. Beyond the Thames Barrier, however, the route no longer designated as a National Trail and is way marked with the Thames Barge symbol.

Further information:

There is a wealth of information available on the Thames Path and other national trails and a useful first point of reference is the National Trials website at www.nationaltrail.co.uk.

The official National Trail Guide. The Thames Path by David Sharp, contains OS 1:25,000 map extracts, detailed route descriptions, public transport suggestions and fascinating background text (ISBN 1 85410 406 3).

For free audio guides that cover sections of the Thames Path or some of the attractions along the route have a look at the following websites.

iaudioguide.com - from this website you can download a free 6 track audio guide that covers Kensington Palace, Hyde Park, Buckingham Palace, 10 Downing Street, Westminster Abbey and the Houses of Parliament and Big Ben.

London Walks – from this website you can download free audio guides of walks around London. The Riverside Walk, Greenwich Walk and the Tower of London to St Paul’s Walk all follow part of the Thames Path.

Visit the Dorling Kindersley website for a free audio guide of a walk which starts at Westminster station and follows the south bank for about 1 ¾ miles to London Bridge. Read by Radio 2's Richard Allinson it tells you where to look, where to stop and where to eat and drink along the way. 

'Accessible Thames', 10 easy access walks published by the Thames Landscape Strategy, T0208 940 0654 or email: tls@richmond.gov.uk

‘Green routes in Hounslow' 9 self-guided walks booklet available from libraries or Anna.Humphries@hounslow.gov.uk

 

Completed a route ? Why not celebrate your achievement by ordering a completion certificate from info@walklondon.org.uk