10 of London’s best long walks to try

If you’re in London and yearning for a long walk, the capital has an astonishing range of long, signposted trails for ramblers.  

They range from less than 10 miles to more than 100 miles, with plenty to discover in between.

So strap on your walking shoes and see a side of the capital without the crowds.

Capital Ring (78 miles)

The Capital Ring starts and ends at Woolwich Foot Tunnel, and is divided into 15 sections, bursting with bucolic places where you can pretend you’re in the countryside. Sights on the way include the gloriously glass-domed Syon Park; the reed-fringed Welsh Harp (Brent Reservoir); the Grand Union Canal; and Walthamstow Marshes, where geese, swans and kestrels dot the wetlands.  

Thames Path (184 miles)

The Thames Path starts at the source of the Thames, in the Cotswolds, and hugs the river all the way to the Thames Barrier, only a few miles from the sea. It passes through rural villages, past palaces and post-industrial waterside. 

For a London section, you could choose any stretch from Hampton Court to Woolwich for a memorable amble: the west is the greener, lusher end, where you’ll pass the bulk of the paddleboarders and canoes, while to the east there’s a greater sense of the history of the working river. There’s a 10 mile extension from the Thames Barrier to Crayford Ness, where you can join the London LOOP.

London LOOP (150 miles)  

Encircling London, the London LOOP, also known as the London Orbital, is the walkers’ version of the M25 (though far better than that suggests). There are 24 sections from Erith station to Purfleet, crossing open land such as Hainault Forest Country Park and Bushy Park, where wild deer flit through the trees, as well as through the suburban “heart of darkness” (golf courses, retail parks and industrial estates) as JG Ballard describes in his review of Iain Sinclair’s London Orbital. One of the more scenic sections is Stage 8, along the Grand Union Canal.  

Green Chain Walk (50 miles)

Southeast London’s Green Chain Walk has 11 sections linking over 300 fields, woodlands and meadows. As the name suggests, it’s not a linear walk, but links hilly pathways through ancient woodlands, parks and cemeteries, with highlights including the 18th-century Gothic folly Severndroog Castle, Art Deco glitz at Eltham Palace, birdwatching at Southmere, and the ancient deciduous…