Just at the bottom of Parliament Hill by Hampstead Heath Station, there is a sliver of steep bank rolling down onto the railway line. Until ten years ago, was an all purpose dump. Bottles, cans, needles, old prams, abandoned supermarket trollies, broken umbrellas, plastic bags – the lot. At that point a local estate agent, …
#walksonhampsteadheath
Bank Holiday Monday
I normally try to stay off the heath on Bank Holidays but I was tempted out this afternoon for a well distanced walk with my son and daughter in law – so I took them through my favourite woods… …down as far as the Vale of Health pond. The Vale of Health is another area …
Is this oak tree on notice?
Why would it be? Well, this little girl has possibly discovered. There is a massive hole at the base of the trunk…. …which looks even more impressive from the other side from where you can see daylight light through. Get up really close and you will find that although I could not climb in, a …
Trees….
A giant in Springett’s Wood – and an S-bend friend in the morning sun… And down the hill, this bizarrely hirsute tree. And here it is close up so you can see how hairy it actually is. And finally, a few weeks ago now, this pretty little weeping cherry tree down near Parliament Hill. My …
The Viaduct and the Viaduct Pond
In the centuries-long saga of how private landowners, and later local government, tried to ‘develop’ the heath – only to be frustrated each time by those who were determined that it should remain open ground – one name stands out. That of the Maryon Wilson family and especially the villain of the piece, Sir Thomas …
More random images
I had seriously intended to tell you about the viaduct and the viaduct pond tonight but, somehow, the day ran away with me again so…. A quick gallop round my end of the heath this evening first of all revealed how parched the ground is. This looks more like August than mid May. And then, …