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Norbiton to Hammersmith or Putney walk

A deer park, ‘the village on the river’ and one of the first English landscape gardens.

Easy London

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 Post # Weather
Mon, 02-May-22 Bank Holiday walk – Norbiton to Hammersmith 10 cloudy
Sun, 22-Dec-19 Sunday Walk: Richmond Park and the Thames Path 9 fine with muddy patches
Sun, 05-Feb-17 Sunday Walk 2 – Chinese New Year by the river 15 crisp and dry
Sun, 01-May-16 Sunday Walk 2 – Richmond Park and the Thames Path 13 sunny
Sat, 20-Feb-16 Saturday Third Walk – The Year of the Monkey in London W4 11 dry morning drizzle in the afternoon
Mon, 02-May-22
Sean
Bank Holiday walk – Norbiton to Hammersmith
Extra Walk 261 – Norbiton to Hammersmith

Length: 16¾ km (10.4 miles), with longer and shorter options. Toughness: 2/10

10:12 Shepperton train from Waterloo (Vauxhall 10:16, Clapham Jct 10:21, etc), arriving Norbiton (in TfL Zone 5) at 10:38.

Return from Hammersmith is via underground (or bus). The walk document lists several mainline stations as earlier and later finishing points, but there are fewer services than usual this weekend. If you carry on past Hammersmith head for the mainline station at Putney (trains at xx:04, xx:29, xx:34 & xx:59) as there's no District line service from Putney Bridge. If you want to finish the walk earlier there's a replacement bus every half hour from Chiswick & Barnes Bridge to Barnes, connecting with trains via Putney to Waterloo.

Azaleas The first part of this walk is through Richmond Park, and at this time of year it should be worth putting up with the Bank Holiday crowds in the Isabella Plantation to admire the Kurume Azaleas. It's quite a bit further to the suggested lunch pub – Sun Inn by the village pond on Barnes Green – but you could break for mid-morning refreshment (or a picnic lunch) at the park café near Roehampton Gate.

Unless you drop out at Barnes the afternoon leg is along the north bank of the Thames, with a short diversion inland to visit Chiswick House & Gardens (free entry to the gardens, but £12.50 if you want to visit the house and aren't a member of English Heritage or have a National Art Pass). There's another drop-out option of diverting to Chiswick or Turnham Green, but the full walk continues along the Thames Path to Hammersmith and (optionally) onwards to Putney. There's a café in Chiswick House and plenty of other refreshment places wherever you choose to finish.

You'll need to bring the directions from the L=swc.261 . A fair proportion of the walk is on firm surfaces, so choose comfortable footwear.

  • 02-May-22

    9 set off on a cloudy day. They weren’t long into Richmond Park when 8 of them hurried off and were never seen agaiin. Readers, they were lost. What’s worse, they were lost in the Isabella Plantation. That left one to continue with the walk, aided only by the written directions and satellite technology. Various wildlife hazards were faced. Well, two deer and a jackdaw.

    On and on he toiled through Barnes Common and its cow parsley until, at last, the Sun Inn was reached. A quick look for the others. No sign. Too early to alert the authorities, So on, across the river and along the other side back to Hammersmith -or more importantly, the Dove. Hardly into his well deserved pint of ESB, he got a phone call from one of the 8. Readers, they had only just reached the Sun! Poor things. Let’s hope they got back OK.

  • 03-May-22

    A quite scurrilous suggestion that we were lost in the Isabella Plantation. We simply chose to admire the spectacular display of azaleas and rhododendrons by exploring every inch of the grounds, though admittedly in an unstructured sort of way.

    Incidentally we were joined by a late started at Barnes station, making 10 .

Sun, 22-Dec-19
Chris L
Sunday Walk: Richmond Park and the Thames Path
Norbiton to Hammersmith
Length: 16.8km (10.4 miles) Toughness: 2/10

10:18Strawberry Hill train from Waterloo (Vauxhall 10:22, Clapham Junction 10:27, Wimbledon 10:34) arriving at Norbiton at 10:43.

For the return journey, there are frequent tube trains and bus services from Hammersmith (TfL zone 2). Norbiton is in TfL zone 5

The morning section of the walk is mainly through Richmond Park, followed, after lunch in Barnes, by an afternoon leg along the Thames Path, with a diversion to visit the grounds of Chiswick House. The house itself is closed for the winter, but nearby Hogarth House (home of the artist William Hogarth) is open until 5pm.

The directions include various options for shortening the walk by dropping out at Barnes or Chiswick, and for extending the walk to Putney.

There are several possible lunch places in Barnes, including the Sun Inn (020 8876 5256) on Barnes Green.

You will need to download a PDF of the walk directions, or print the version you want from the walk's information page, suppressing the sections you don't need.

t=swc.261
  • Anonymous
    22-Dec-19

    9 today.

    Great company throughout the day.

    Weather fine, muddy patches in Richmond Park.

  • Anonymous
    22-Dec-19

    9 fine with muddy patches

Sun, 05-Feb-17
Sean
Sunday Walk 2 – Chinese New Year by the river
Extra Walk 261 (second half only) – Barnes to Putney
Length: About 11 km (7 miles). Toughness: 1/10

11:14 Strawberry Hill (via Richmond) train from Waterloo (Vauxhall 11:19, Queenstown Road 11:22, Clapham Jct 11:25, etc), arriving Barnes at 11:34.

Barnes is in TfL Zone 3 and Putney in Zone 2, so use your Oyster card.

The full version of this walk is rather long for winter so I'm specifying just the second half alongside the river, hopefully attracting those who did the earlier sections in 2016 but dropped out before the end.

Quite early in the walk you'll reach the grounds of Chiswick House where you can admire the elaborate displays of the Magical Lantern Festival, with its Chinese New Year theme of “Explore the Silk Road”. You could stop for lunch here at the Chiswick House Café but I'd be tempted to press on and try one of the five riverside pubs on the stretch to Hammersmith. Rather surprisingly the walk author doesn't appear to have done any in-depth research, so it's a case of choosing the first one that takes your fancy.

If you stay on the north bank for the final leg to Putney you'll be able to explore the grounds of Fulham Palace towards the end of the walk, with its café providing a convenient tea stop if you're not too late. You can return on the District Line from Putney Bridge or the mainline station to Clapham Jct & Waterloo.

You'll need to print the walk directions (with maps) from the Extra Walk 261 page. You can significantly reduce the amount printed by clicking the “Afternoon Walk” option. As most of this urban walk is on firm surfaces, choose comfortable footwear. T=swc.261
  • Anonymous
    24-Jan-17

    Would the Magic Lantern be best seen when dark?

  • 24-Jan-17

    Click the Festival link above to find out more. You have to buy a ticket to see the evening show. But last year it was fun just seeing the displays while walking around the grounds and I'm assuming we'll be able to do that this year.

  • Anonymous
    06-Feb-17

    15 on this walk. Weather: crisp and dry.

    Lunch at the Chiswick House Cafe.

    5 explored Fulham Palace and 4 enjoyed tea in the cafe before finishing the walk at Putney Bridge.

    Big thanks to Sean for an interesting day.

  • Anonymous
    06-Feb-17

    15 crisp and dry

Sun, 01-May-16
Sean
Sunday Walk 2 – Richmond Park and the Thames Path
Extra Walk 261 – Norbiton to Putney
Length: Up to 20 km (12.4 miles), with lots of drop-out points. Toughness: 2 or 3/10

10:18 Strawberry Hill train from Waterloo (Vauxhall 10:22, Clapham Jct 10:27, etc), arriving Norbiton at 10:43 (see below for an afternoon walk option).

Norbiton is in TfL Zone 5 and all the possible return stations in Zones 2 or 3, so use your Oyster card.

This walk had its début on a rather damp Saturday in February when most people dropped out early, so I'm hoping for better weather this time. The first part of the walk is through Richmond Park and if the Kurume Azaleas in the Isabella Plantation are in full flower it'll be worth taking the extended route here. Hopefully you'll be able to squeeze into the popular Sun Inn for lunch in Barnes, but there are alternatives nearby (and a picturesque village green if you bring sandwiches).

For the afternoon leg you can basically choose to go as far as you like along the Thames Path, with a short diversion inland to visit the grounds of Chiswick House (free entry, but about £7 if you want to visit the house and aren't a member of English Heritage or the Arts Fund).

You'll need to print the walk directions (with maps) from the Extra Walk 261 page, which lists the possible drop-out points from Barnes Bridge onwards. As a fair proportion of the walk is on firm surfaces, choose comfortable footwear.

Afternoon Walk: If you're doing some other long walks this weekend and just want a half-day outing, an alternative to dropping out early would be to take the 12:44 Windsor & Eton train from Waterloo to Barnes, arriving at 13:03. Click the 'pm. Afternoon Walk' option to start the directions at §D and (if you like) look for the main group in the Sun Inn or around Barnes Green. T=swc.261
  • Anonymous
    28-Apr-16

    Hi there, could someone let me know please where (the full) walk ends and the approximate duration (assuming an hour for lunch). Many thanks x

  • Anonymous
    28-Apr-16

    Sorry! I've just realised it ends in Putney, but, if possible, I would still like to know please roughly, the duration, assuming an hour for lunch. Thank you so much.

  • 28-Apr-16

    Since it is a Norbiton to Putney walk, the full walk ends in Putney: for more details see the walk directions (see link in walk post) which you need to print off anyway if you are going to join the walk. For timings, a good rule of thumb is 2.5 miles per hour, possibly a bit more on this kind of parkland walk: so 4 to 5 hours walking time, maybe?

  • 28-Apr-16

    Most of our walks seem to finish at about 5pm, if that helps

  • Anonymous
    03-May-16

    managed to join the walk at Barnes. Very lovely visit to Chiswick House in the sunshine by a route unknown to myself.jfk

  • 04-May-16

    13 walkers turned up at Norbiton on a lovely sunny day, perfect for walking. The majority raced ahead, others lingered in the Isabella Plantation where the azaleas will be even better in a week or two. No problems getting lunch in the Sun Inn, with its large back garden and speedy kitchen. After a relaxed afternoon the two back markers arrived in Putney around 5.30pm, by which time I guess the leaders had long since made it to one of the many possible destinations. Lots to see and this walk might work better split into two short walks.

Sat, 20-Feb-16
Sean
Saturday Third Walk – The Year of the Monkey in London W4
New Walk – Norbiton to Hammersmith
Length: 16½ km (10.25 miles), with longer and shorter options. Toughness: 2/10

10:12 Shepperton train from Waterloo (Vauxhall 10:16, Clapham Jct 10:21, etc), arriving Norbiton at 10:37.

Norbiton is in TfL Zone 5 and all the possible return stations in Zones 2 or 3, so use your Oyster card.

This walk starts with a trek through a huge deer park and ends with a stretch along an attractive part of the River Thames. In between you can have lunch at a pub overlooking a village green and then explore the grounds of a historic neo-Palladian villa, currently celebrating the Chinese New Year. All in south-west London.

The park is of course Richmond Park and the lunchtime stop is at the Sun Inn in Barnes, “the village on the river”. The grounds are those of Chiswick House, where Lord Burlington's attempt to recreate the gardens of ancient Rome is somewhat overshadowed this month by the vivid displays of a Magical Lantern Festival. The suggested destination is Hammersmith but you can easily cut the walk short or extend it to Putney; see the walk document for details. However, if you do the extension note that football fans will be spilling out of Craven Cottage at 5pm as Fulham have a home game with Charlton.

You'll need to print the walk directions (with maps) from this New Walk page. As a fair proportion of the walk is on firm surfaces and the park shouldn't be too muddy, choose comfortable footwear.

PS. Before anyone asks, there's no GPS route on the website; the better to show up any inadequacies in the written directions. In any case you hardly need one for urban walks and Richmond Park is a nice place to get lost in. Leave your gizmo at home! T=swc.261.y
  • 15-Feb-16

    But I'm lost without my gizmo and even my GPS!

  • Anonymous
    20-Feb-16

    Lovely walk in the morning but now it has turned a bit wet so have had to adjourn to the library to do some work.jfk

  • Anonymous
    22-Feb-16

    11 dry morning drizzle in the afternoon

    Nice walk, good pub, "interesting" Chinese New Year decorations in Chiswick Park.

  • Anonymous
    22-Feb-16

    and no mud !