Chingford Hills

The Walk: From the busy centre of Chingford, this walk at the South Western fringes of Epping Forest visits 4 fine viewpoints: Pole Hill, Yardley Hill, Yates Meadow and Barn Hill, collectively known as the Sewardstone Hills. The reservoirs of the Lee Valley form the distinctive foreground to the views out over the London skyline. (This walk is based on walk number 2 described in the book 'Hillwalking London' by Caroline Buckland, Safe Haven Books, 2023.)

View from Yates Meadow

Route

NB The map shows my route, with various diversions and excursions which you may not wish to follow precisely.

Start from the Chingford Plain Car Park by taking the path adjacent to Forest View road alongside the Royal Epping Golf Club, and go outwards via Pole Hill, Yardley Hill, Yates Meadow, Gilwell Park Scout Association HQ, Daws Hill Road, Barn Hill.

Then return via Firdaus Muslim Cemetery, London Loop, Daws Hill, Scout Association HQ, Yates Meadow, descend to Woodman Road, take path back across Chingford Plain.

Why do it: Although many would instinctively say 'Chingford in Essex', it is actually part of the London Borough of Waltham Forest, and most people probably wouldn't associate the town with pleasant walking country. Station Road has quite a trendy feel with some nice coffee shops, and the nearby Royal Epping Golf Club is a backdrop for the start of the walk.

The walk is most notable for its views spanning from Westminster in the West to Docklands in the East, often including the Lea/Lee Valley Reservoirs in the foreground. Below is a map showing the various landmarks which can be seen from the four main viewpoints - Pole Hill, Yardley Hill, Yates Meadow and Barn Hill.

From the Golf Course, one is soon in woodland on the the South Western fringes of Epping Forest, rising to the first summit of Pole Hill.

Here, there is a trig pillar and an 1824 granite monument commemorating the fact that this point lies on the Greenwich Meridian, although the meridian line was subsequently (1850) adjusted to lie a few meters away. An applique plaque also records that T E Lawrence once owned land here and built a wooden house, selling the land to the Conservators of Epping Forest in 1930.

Greenwich Meridian monument, trig pillar and bench at the top of Pole Hill

There are two viewpoints framed by (limited by?) trees which set the tone for the day, one looking South West over the Lea Valley and the other South East over Chingford.

South Western view from Pole Hill: BT Tower is behind, and sticking up above, the white tower block at Tottenham Hale

The next summit is Yardley Hill, and the view now includes the Spurs football ground, Westminster (the London Eye can just be made out), the City (where the Shard is the most distinctive building), and Docklands (where the distinctive roof of the Canary Wharf Tower stands out). The tall masts of the Crystal Place and Croydon transmitters can be seen on the far horizon some 25km (16 miles) distant.

Spurs Stadium, on the left, seen over William Girling Reservoir

A path through the woods along the Yardley 'ridge' brings you to Yates Meadow, a grassy hillside, where Docklands is lost to sight, but the William Gilwell reservoir can be seen unimpeded, with the Alexandra Palace and its tall transmitter mast on the hills behind.

On Yates Meadow, City and Shard to the left, William Girling reservoir and Alexandra Palace Transmitter on the hills behind

The route then takes you past the Scout Association HQ at Gilwell Park, then onward to the final viewpoint at Barn Hill. The views here are Eastwards over the King George's Reservoir, and northwards to Waltham Abbey, seen behind the massive linear Sainsbury's Distribution Centre alongside the M25.

View from Barn Hill. King George's Reservoir and Enfield Power Station

From Barn Hill, one starts the return journey by descending and passing through the Garden of Firdaus, a recently established Muslim Cemetery.

Garden of Firdaus Muslim Cemetery

From the Cemetery, you join the London Loop path for a short way, from which there are more views.

View from London Loop

You retrace your steps along Daws Hill and past the Scout HQ, then descend from Yates Meadow to join the path across Chingford Plain back to Chingford.

Chingford Plain (Visitor Centre on the skyline)

If you have the energy, you can make the short climb to the Epping Forest Visitor Centre, next to which is Queen Elizabeth's Hunting Lodge and the Butler's Retreat cafe.

Queen Elizabeth's Hunting Lodge

Logistics: Circular walk. By train, start/finish at Chingford Station. By car, park at the Chingford Plain car park (Charge, max 6 hours, which should be plenty of time).

Chingford Plain Car Park

Challenges:

The paths pass through scrubby woodland in places, which can be quite overgrown in Summer, and muddy after rain and in Winter.

Yardley Hill summit is quite difficult to find: persevere on a rather muddy and overgrown path heading West along the 'summit ridge' to reach a more open viewing area.

Path to Yardley Hill summit

After leaving the Scout Association HQ, the route takes a narrow and rather muddy path parallel to Daws Hill road: the alternative is to walk along the road, which is quite fast and busy.

Path parallel to Daws Hill road

Finding the true summit of Barn Hill can be tricky: the path ascends and enters a wood: rather than descending on the good track forking left to the cemetery, keep ascending to the right through the woods to emerge on the grassy summit 'ridge'.

Path up lower slope of Barn Hill: keep right once in the wood

The views to London are quite distant, so a clear day, binoculars and a good telephoto lens (better than my smartphone) will be handy for picking out and photographing the less obvious landmarks.

Refreshments: There are several coffee shops and eateries on Station Road near Chingford Station. The golf course has a cafe next to Chingford Plain car park. It is also a short walk across the Plain to the Butler's Retreat cafe next to the Visitor Centre and Queen Elizabeth's Hunting Lodge.