Walked — July/August 2019
This route. one of the radial Get out of London! routes, starts by going through Embankment Gardens; it then follows the Thames Path as far as Limehouse. Barking is reached via the Limehouse Cut and the Greenway, and an alternation of streetscape and parkland leads to the M25.
The original idea was to end the route at Tilbury, thus corresponding with the other eastern route which arrives across the river at Gravesend. However, there is really no connection to the national network of paths (except by taking the ferry to Gravesend), and the England Coast Path will not arrive in style here for some years. The full route, therefore, continues to Southend-on-Sea, using what is becoming known as the Thames Estuary Path as far as Benfleet, then through Hadleigh Park to finish along the shore path from Leigh-on-Sea to Southend-on-Sea. The total distance is not quite 100km, with around 330m ascent, but with the likelihood of connection distances (notably for Stanford-le-Hope), the walker is almost certain to top 100km.
There are public transport connections throughout, though between Corringham and Pitsea, the only link is a 2km walk-out/in between Mucking and Stanford-le-Hope (bus and rail). The walk is accessible from anywhere in the Greater London conurbation.The route is described in a single document, and maps are referenced below.
| 1: Trafalgar Square to Beckton Alps — 16.1km; 44m ascent Riverside walking from Hungerford Bridge to Wapping, then canal and the Greenway. | Map |
| 2: Beckton Alps to Ingrebourne Valley — 15.6km; 31m ascent Parkland interspersed with streets. | Map |
| 3: Ingrebourne Valley to Chadwell St Mary — 16.9km; 75m ascent Mainly rural with some streets and country lanes. | Map |
| 4: Chadwell St Mary to Mucking — 16.3km; 23m ascent Solitude all the way from Tilbury fort. | Map |
| 5: Mucking to Pitsea — 15.1km; 58m ascent Except for Corringham and Fobbing, large skies and solitude | Map |
| 6: Pitsea to Southend-on-Sea — 16.5km; 99m ascent Hadleigh Marsh, then the water’s edge | Map |
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