Green Chain: Woolwich - Severndroog

The Green Chain is a set of interconnected paths linking up green spaces across South East London. I joined this walk organised by London Ramblers as part of their Green Chain Walking Festival. I was particularly interested since they had arranged for the Severndroog Tower, one of the finest viewpoints in London, to be open for us.

Approaching Severndroog Castle

Here's a map of our route.

We followed the Green Chain Section 5 (Thames Barrier to Oxleas Wood) then Section 4b (Oxleas Meadows to Plumstead). Section 5 climbs through Maryon Park, Maryon Wilson Park, Charlton Park, Hornfair Park, Woolwich Common, Eltham Common, Castle Wood (including Severndroog Castle), Jack Wood and Oxleas Wood. At Oxleas Wood Cafe we joined Section 4b, which descends through Shrewsbury Park and across Plumstead Common.

(NB For a cycle ride around similar territory, see this post on my companion cycling blog, Cycle Geography.)

We started at around 1030 from Woolwich Elizabeth Line station, and walked through the Woolwich Arsenal heritage site (home for hundreds of years of explosives manufacture for the British armed forces), then West along the Thames to join the Green Chain at Chartlon (but sadly we did not go to see the Thames Barrier, though I have visited this before for example see this post). We then followed the route up to Severndroog Castle on the 'summit' of Shooter's Hill, which was literally and figuratively the high point of the walk.

The Castle is normally only open to the public on Sundays. However, London Ramblers had arranged for the Castle to be opened specially for us today (Thursday). The 'Castle' is actually a folly tower, built c1784 as a memorial for William James of the East India Company who seized the castle of Suvanadurg in India in 1755. The tower commands fine views over London. There is also a friendly cafe in the base of the the Tower, where we had lunch.

The walk ended at Plumstead Station, which has good services to Charing Cross via Waterloo East.

Thank you to London Ramblers for organising and leading the walk.

The photos capture the walk in more detail. It was a brilliant sunny morning. It clouded over as we visited the castle around 1pm, but mercifully the rain held off, allowing us clear views of the London skyline. The heavens opened as we neared the end.