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Thamesmead — Abbey Wood

Thaabb two
Verified route

Verified Slow Way

Verified by 100.00% of reviewers

By Daisy C on 22 Feb 2023

Distance

4km/2mi

Ascent

26m

Descent

26m

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Description

This is a very green and off-road route for urban London. North Thamesmead was developed with pedestrian/cycle routes in mind and on this route the only road section is 700m of older streets just before Abbey Wood station, you don't even need to cross. The footpaths mostly follow small canals (whole area is reclaimed marshland) through a chain of small parks with Southmere Lake as the central point (where there is an arts centre/studios with a cafe). All the roads are crossed by footbridge or underpass. On the far side of Southmere Lake is the location for Clockwork Orange, but some of the brutalist architecture has been redeveloped, although the large towers remain.

Compared to ThaAbb 1 it's shorter, avoids the wide faster roads, and the northern section uses more green links and less paths between housing than ThaAbb 1 (second half is the same). ThaAbb 1 does use the waymarked Green Chain Walk, but I've found some of that signage ambiguous or hard to see

This is a very green and off-road route for urban London. North Thamesmead was developed with pedestrian/cycle routes in mind and on this route the only road section is 700m of older streets just before Abbey Wood station, you don't even need to cross. The footpaths mostly follow small canals (whole area is reclaimed marshland) through a chain of small parks with Southmere Lake as the central point (where there is an arts centre/studios with a cafe). All the roads are crossed by footbridge or underpass. On the far side of Southmere Lake is the location for Clockwork Orange, but some of the brutalist architecture has been redeveloped, although the large towers remain.

Compared to ThaAbb 1 it's shorter, avoids the wide faster roads, and the northern section uses more green links and less paths between housing than ThaAbb 1 (second half is the same). ThaAbb 1 does use the waymarked Green Chain Walk, but I've found some of that signage ambiguous or hard to see

Status

This route has been reviewed by 4 people.

There are no issues flagged.

Photos for Thaabb two

Photos of this route will appear when they are added to a review. You can review this route here.

Information

Verified route

Route status - Live

Reviews - 4

Average rating -

Is this route good enough? -  Yes (4)

There are currently no problems reported with this route.

Downloads - 5

Surveys

What is this route like?

Surveys are submitted by fellow users of this website and show what you might expect from this Slow Ways route. Scroll down the page to read more detailed surveys.

Grade 1X based on 1 surveys Sign up or log in to survey this route.
Description Note
Grade 1: Entirely smooth and compacted surfaces.
Access grade X: At least one stile, flight of steps or other obstacle that is highly likely to block access for wheelchair and scooter users.		 Grading is based on average scores by surveyors. This slow way has 1 surveys.
Full grading description

Only people who have completed our training can become Slow Ways surveyors and submit a survey. We do not vet contributors, so we cannot guarantee the quality or completeness of the surveys they complete. If you are dependent on the information being correct we recommend reading and comparing surveys before setting off.

Survey Photos

Facilities

Facilities in the middle third of this route.

Present at time of survey Public toilet (1)
Present at time of survey Wheelchair accessible toilet (1)
Not present at time of survey Supermarket (1)
Present at time of survey Restaurant (1)
Present at time of survey Vegan restaurant (1)
Not present at time of survey Accommodation (1)
Not present at time of survey Accommodation < £50 (1)
Not present at time of survey Campsite (1)
Not present at time of survey Bothy (1)
Not present at time of survey Free wifi (1)
Not present at time of survey Public phone (1)
Present at time of survey Mobile phone coverage (1)
Not present at time of survey Train station (1)
Present at time of survey Bench (1)
Not present at time of survey Picnic table (1)
Present at time of survey Bus stop (1)
Not present at time of survey Ferry (1)

Challenges

Potential challenges reported on this route. Some challenges are seasonal.

Not present at time of survey Scrambling (1)
Not present at time of survey Wading (1)
Not present at time of survey Swimming (1)
Not present at time of survey Climbing (1)
Not present at time of survey Stepping stones (1)
Not present at time of survey Very slippery (1)
Not present at time of survey Very muddy (1)
Not present at time of survey Very icy (1)
Not present at time of survey Likely to flood (1)
Not present at time of survey Long grass sections (1)
Not present at time of survey Crops encroaching on path (1)
Not present at time of survey Diverted path (1)

Obstacles

Obstacles on this route.

Not present at time of survey Stiles (1)
Present at time of survey Step and kerbs (1)
Present at time of survey Possible to avoid steps, if applicable (1)
Not present at time of survey Flights of steps (1)
Not present at time of survey Gates (1)
Not present at time of survey Kissing gates (1)
Not present at time of survey Locked gates (1)
Not present at time of survey Disables access gates (1)
Not present at time of survey Cycle barriers (1)
Not present at time of survey Ladders (1)
Not present at time of survey Cattle grids (1)
Not present at time of survey Fords (1)
Not present at time of survey Narrow bridges (1)
Not present at time of survey Ferry required (1)
Not present at time of survey Acceptable road walking (1)
Not present at time of survey Unacceptable road walking (1)
Not present at time of survey Dangerous road crossings (1)
Present at time of survey Walking on paths beside roads (1)
Not present at time of survey Walking on verges beside roads (1)
Not present at time of survey Railway crossings (1)
Not present at time of survey River crossings (1)
Not present at time of survey Cattle possible (1)
Not present at time of survey Horses possible (1)
Not present at time of survey Tidal area (1)
Not present at time of survey Potential falls (1)
Not present at time of survey Exposed to elements (1)
Not present at time of survey Remote area (1)
Not present at time of survey Mountainous area (1)
Not present at time of survey Military training area (1)
Not present at time of survey No visible path (1)
Not present at time of survey Seasonal nesting birds (1)
Not present at time of survey Other hazards (1)

Accessibility

Is this route step and stile free?

Present at time of survey Free of stiles (1)
Not present at time of survey Free of single steps/kerbs (1)
Present at time of survey Free of flights of steps (1)
Present at time of survey Free of other obstacles (1)

Measurements

Surveyors were asked to measure the narrowest and steepest parts of paths.

The narrowest part of the path is 110.0cm (1)

The steepest uphill gradient walking East 6.0% (1)

The steepest uphill gradient walking West 7.0% (1)

The steepest camber: no data

How clear is the waymarking on the route: Unclear in places (1)

Successfully completed

We asked route surveyors "Have you successfully completed this route with any of the following? If so, would you recommend it to someone with the same requirements?". Here is how they replied.

Small Pug-sized dog (0)
Small Labrador-sized dog (0)
Large St. Bernard-sized dog (0)
Standard pram (0)
Off-road rugged pram (0)
Standard wheelchair (0)
Off-road rugged wheelchair (0)
Standard mobility scooter (0)
Off-road rugged mobility scooter (0)

Recommended by an expert

We asked route surveyors "Are you a trained access professional, officer or expert? If so, is this route suitable for someone travelling with any of the following?" Here is how they replied.

Small Pug-sized dog (0)
Small Labrador-sized dog (0)
Large St. Bernard-sized dog (0)
Standard pram (0)
Off-road rugged pram (0)
Standard wheelchair (0)
Off-road rugged wheelchair (0)
Standard mobility scooter (0)
Off-road rugged mobility scooter (0)

Terrain

We asked route surveyors to estimate how much of the route goes through different kinds of terrain.

There is no data on how much of this route is on roads

There is no data on how much of this route is lit at night

Thereis no data on amount of route paved

There is no data on muddiness

There is no data on rough ground

There is no data on long grass

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1 surveys

Information from verified surveys.

1X August 2024 by Strider
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Geography information system (GIS) data

Total length

Maximum elevation

Minimum elevation

Start and end points

Thamesmead
Grid Ref TQ4637780781
Lat / Lon 51.50701° / 0.10780°
Easting / Northing 546,377E / 180,781N
What3Words online.spill.poet
Abbey Wood
Grid Ref TQ4738479026
Lat / Lon 51.49098° / 0.12157°
Easting / Northing 547,385E / 179,026N
What3Words mixer.swift.palace

Sorry Land Cover data is not currently available for this route. Please check back later.

reviews

Strider

02 Aug 2024 Summer
Report

I walked from Abbey Wood to Thamesmead.
Problems first: Two temporary diversions, easily walked around with diversion signs (see images). A few steps, easy to wheel around, but one set on the North side of Southmere needs a reasonably large detour due the steps on the East side of a really very good restaurant (Thamesmead Social, recommended). Map readers can account for this and therefore this route is reasonably good for wheels with adjustment.
Good bits. Few cars, largely off road and pedestrian.

Jane Taylor

11 Apr 2024 Spring
Report

Walked Abbey Wood to Thamesmead.
The route is almost entirely off road and makes the most of Thamesmead’s pedestrian friendly design.

Another plus is that it follows the Green Chain network in places, so signposting is generally good.

The starting point at Abbey Wood confused me until I worked out that I needed to start at the upper (station) level, then use the lift to the north of the station entrance to drop down to street level, where I could pick up Felixstowe Road and go under the A2041.

There is one diversion where the path around Southmere connects at the NE corner to Bazalgette Way. There’s now a big building site in this space - I backtracked a few metres to the orange Lakeside cafe (photo), and took the path to Bazalgette Way from there. Once on Bazalgette Way the route is clear. The diversion is supposed to be temporary.

There was one rather damp underpass which I didn’t like very much (photos 7 and 8), but apart from that all was most pleasant. It’s an interesting area, lots of water, which is part of the Thames flood defences.

The meeting point at Thamesmead is a rather imposing tower; good bus routes including Superloop bus to Bromley about 2 minutes walk.

As the previous reviewer points out, if approaching Abbey Wood from Thamesmead and you want to connect with the Lesnes Abbey area (and maybe even go on to Erith on Abberi) then you can walk straight there by continuing along the Abbey Way footpath, without going all the way to Abbey Wood station and back out again.

Andrew

07 Jan 2024 Winter
Report

This is a very cleverly devised route which is almost entirely off-road and traffic-free. There were only two occasions when I had to cross a road, and neither was a through road. It is a great tribute to the planners and developers of Thamesmead that there are pedestrian/cycle routes under or over all of the intervening thoroughfares on this 3 mile route right across (not around) Thamesmead. There are even further footbridges which take you over the railway to the ruins of medieval Lesnes Abbey, and the delightful Abbey Wood beyond.

Daisy C

12 Nov 2022 (edited 22 Feb 2023) Autumn
Report

I designed the route and was still pleasantly surprised. Follows small canals, small parks and round Southmere Lake, which was beautiful at sunset. The area is designed with pedestrians in mind and I barely saw a road until a few hundred metres before Abbey Wood station.

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Overall ratings

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Other Routes for Thamesmead—Abbey Wood See all Slow Ways

Thamesmead—Abbey Wood

Thaabb one

U U

Distance

5km/3mi

Ascent

18 m

Descent

15 m

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