Give Me A Break Not Another Walk Along The River Thames

It is becoming a bit of a regular occurrence for me to go for a walk along the River Thames on a Saturday afternoon. I think it is a good idea that while the weather is reasonable  in London, I will make the most of things.

I decided to begin my River Thames walk, yet again from the Embankment tube station, well you have to start somewhere and the Bakerloo line takes me directly there from Kilburn. My plan on Saturday was to walk along the south bank of the Thames to Chelsea Bridge and come back via the north bank to where I began from.

As per usual the south bank of the river was mobbed with people enjoying themselves. It never ceases to amaze me the huge queues lining up to get on London’s number 1 paid for tourist attraction, the London Eye.

I watched a few of the usual suspects of street entertainers and fought my way through the hordes of people and eventually made it to Westminster Bridge. I enjoyed the views form either side of the bridge before I ventured forth again. My River Thames walk wasn’t a race and I wasn’t in a great hurry to complete it. It was going to be a relaxing walk in London.

My own personal favourite stretch of the south bank of the River Thames is the Albert Embankment between Westminster Bridge and Lambeth Bridge. This stretch has a nice feel to it and it is perfect spot to sit down and relax and watch the world go by.

Also on this stretch of the Albert Embankment I passed by Lambeth Palace a beautiful medieval building, which has been used as the London residence of the Archbishops of Canterbury since the 13th century. As far as I’m aware it is possible to go and visit the Palace Gardens, but that would have to wait for another day.

As I walked further along the river heading to Chelsea Bridge, one of my favourite sites and a London icon, the Battersea Power Station came into view. It may have been a hazard to the environment and it is doing more good as a ruin than it ever did when it was a working coal fired power station, but it is still an amazing building to look at.

By the time I reached Battersea Power Station the daylight was starting to fade and I had strong desire to have a wee wander around the ruined power plant. But I’m too old for scaling fences and dodging security guards. If only I was a few years younger!

As I walked over Chelsea Bridge it was now quite dark, I would have like to have visited the National Army Museum in Chelsea, which was only  a stones throw away, but alas it was too late and it would have bee long closed. I was also to pass by the Tate Britain on this side of the river,  another place that I have been meaning to visit. I maybe should have started my walk in the morning. I will know next time!

Now that it was dark, my stroll  along the River Thames took on a whole new dimension and feel to it. All the buildings and bridges along the river were now  lit.

I crossed back over to the south bank at Lambeth Bridge as I wanted to stroll along the Albert Embankment again and see the Houses of Parliament and Big Ben all lit up in the night. Which was an amazing looking site. So many of London’s iconic buildings look even better at night, when they are all lit up.

The great thing about this stretch of the Thames is that it isn’t rammed with tourists, and as a result there is a hell of lot less hustle and bustle. There are also numerous places to sit down and relax on both sides of the river, as well as a few decent looking places to go for a refreshment or a bite to eat. They could only be better than the many tourists traps in central London!

Of course when I reached Westminster Bridge it was back to the hustle, bustle and buzz of central London again, which isn’t such a bad thing. It is however good to occasionally escape from it all.

My walk was almost over and I was desperately in  need of a few rejuvenating pints of Lager. I did contemplate heading to Fleet Street and visiting a couple of historic pubs, which I have been meaning to visit. But I reached Embankment Tube and thought I would just head to Paddington and go to the Rob Roy a Scottish pub for a few swift jars.

Related posts:

1. Just Another London Walk Along The River Thames
2. London River Walk Seemed Like A Good Idea Part 2
3. Pictures Of A Wee Night Time Walk Along The River Thames