Illuminated River walk
A Central London evening stroll all about 14 lit Thames Bridges
History
This is a list of previous times this walk has been done by the club (since Jan 2010). For more recent events (since April 2015), full details are shown.
Date | Option | Post | # | Weather |
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Tue, | Evening Walk - Illuminated River: up to nine lit Thames Bridges (Tower Hill to Vauxhall or Battersea Power Station) | 6 | clear but cold night with near full moon | |
Fri, | Evening Walk - The Illuminated River: London Bridge to Lambeth Bridge along the North Bank, and back on the other side (if you wish) | 11 | dry but cold |
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29-Nov-23
5 at the meeting point, plus 1 other met under London Bridge, ie 6 walkers on a clear but cold night with near full moon .
We had picked a perfect night for this walk, as the various light installations on the bridges were clear to see from far out, so that at times three of them were in one framed view, initially accompanied by the Christmassy light show on the top section of the Shard, as well as the one on the Globe Theatre. The (relatively) newly opened part of the Thames Path around Queeenshithe was given the thumbs up, before Blackfriars Bridge was reached, where we switched over to the Southbank to avoid the road traffic.
Fewer joggers here than north of the river, but more strollers, then the inevitable food and drink kiosks with seasonal offerings around The London Eye. We passed w/o buying anything.
Instead, a little later we opted for a break at a pub just before Vauxhall and all 6 then walked on to Battersea PS. It seems that only the remaining Tideway sites stop the TP from following the river all the way, so sometime next year it should be completely unblocked one hopes.
In Battersea, 4 went for a very nice meal at an Italian restaurant, while the 2 others went for a drink or two in the arches.
Finest vistas: from the easterly end of the Southbank Centre/National Theatre stretch back to St. Paul's and the City, with the moon towering above; and two of the four chimneys of the PS with the moon above and inbetween them when we left the restaurant.
Meet at 18.30 on London Bridge’s southwest corner, outside The Barrowboy and Banker pub.
Exploration of The Illuminated River, a “long-term art installation transforming the Thames at night with an orchestrated series of light works that span nine bridges in central London. Its subtly moving sequences of LED light symbolically unify the Thames bridges, drawing inspiration from the spirit and history of the river and from the architectural and engineering heritage of its bridges.”
For a link to a sketched map of the route click here. T=short.57
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22-Oct-21
10 at the meeting point (incl. 2 first timers), with 1 other joining on the other side of LBG, so 11 in dry but cold weather. The thinking behind walking along the Northbank was that because of the bend of the river, we'd see more of the lit bridges than from the Southbank (and so we did), and also that more of the buildings on the Southbank are purposefully lit, so best to admire them from across.
That kind of worked well. Until you hit Blackfriars Bridge and the first of two Tideway sites means you have to walk along the other side of the busy Embankment road. Not THAT great a stretch, but then again - it's not that long either, before one is riverside again and there is a cycle super highway between footpath and road.
The lit bridges themeselves are indeed quiet fascinating, in a quiet and unobtrusive way. With warmer temperatures, one would have been tempted to stand and watch for longer as they change colour slowly. Another time...
At Lambeth Bridge, the first-timers walked back to Southwark, some walked on to their home in Pimlico, and 6 went for a drink at The Windmill in Lambeth High Street (the quietest High Street in London, perchance?). Afterwards, 2 walked to Vauxhall Station, 3 walked back to their homes in W1 and EC1, and 1 took a bus.