A walk under the River Thames – you just have to experience it !

In London, the company  London Walks organizes excellent walks based on different themes and interests of tourists – different each day with knowledgeable guides. I have been on a few walks in the past. See their website www.walks.com This time, I chose the River Thames sightseeing walk including Brunel’s Bridges. These walks are well worth the Stg Pds 15/- they charge for the absolutely focused itinerary and excellent guide.

There is a separate blog on the Thames Walk which ended with this section – when we walked under the River Thames. I had no idea that this was even feasible; despite having lived in London for a few years a few decades ago !!

We boarded a cruise boat at Westminster Pier and saw an incredible number of fascinating sights. We disembarked at Masthouse Terrace where Brunel built his last ship, SS Great Eastern, the first iron ship in the world and the first luxury cruise liner. 

Due to a train strike, we could not take the Docklands Light Railway, so we walked past a row of three storey houses, all frightfully expensive with external staircases  and fancily built. None having lifts in them – which to my mind is a painful exercise if bringing groceries home or if someone is ill. We walked into a large park and suddenly saw a tall dome like structure!

We were on the Isle of Dogs side, so we needed to cross through the tunnel. We wanted to go to Greenwich to see the Gardens there. But if you are in Greenwich, you’ll find the entrance to the tunnel in front of the famous clipper Cutty Sark. The nearest tube station is Cutty Sark for Maritime Greenwich on the DLR. 

As you enter, you see two large black gates – these are the lifts which go up and down. Our group decided to walk down the many stairs until we came to the tunnel entrance where many people were waiting for the lifts.

As you start the walk, there is long slope downwards and you realise that you are now going right into the belly of the river for some distance where its flat. then the upward slope begins. It ends again with large black gates for two lifts with the circular spiral stairs surrounding the lifts – I was really grateful as I was not at all in favour of climbing so many stairs up to the surface.

Walking under a major river gives out a very strange feeling. One normally drives a vehicle through any form of tunnel. Here we were walking quite a distance. A bit of doubt; a bit of trepidation….certainly a feeling of anxiety as we began the long walk.

Hardly had we begun, we came across this notice (shown above) of the damage to the tunnel in WW 2 and how they repaired it. Apparently part of the tunnel collapsed and so that part was reinforced with stainless steel making it look a bit like a being inside a submarine. This immediately brought to mind the visual horror from films of damaged submarines and their leaks and waterproof doors. What would happen if a leak occurred whilst we were in the tunnel ?

 

There are definite guidelines laid out for cyclists and walkers to keep to their own directions. There were many walkers and quIte a few cyclists who would heft their bikes on the shoulders whilst going up and down the stairs.  The guide told us that around  4,000 – 5,000 people use the tunnel each day.

Construction for the Greenwich Foot Tunnel started in 1899 and was designed by Civil Engineer Sir Alexander Binnie. It officially opened to the public in 1902. It was built to replace an expensive, crowded and unreliable ferry service that used to allow a crossing for dock and shipyard workers over the River Thames. 

Considering that it was undertaken in Victorian times, it is no doubt an impressive feat of engineering which involved digging out this tunnel by hand!

“Builders worked tirelessly and often overnight to finish it. 20,000 white tiles were imported to line the walkway. The creation of the tunnel was promoted by Labour politician Will Crooks, who had worked for the dockyards previously and knew the struggles of commuting there all too well. A new tunnel would mean a safer commute, whatever the weather. Crossing over the Thames in heavy fog or storms was potentially a huge risk. It transformed thousands of workers’ lives for the better”.The tunnel has been renovated with modern conveniences like CCTV for security and upgraded elevators. However, in essence, the workmanship was so good that  much remains the same as it was when it first opened.

We came out into the sunlight with much relief right next to the famous Cutty Sark Clipper ship. It is a piece of great workmanship and well maintained. Beside it a carousel merry go round was in full steam with lots of kids enjoying the ride.

Further down as I walked towards the Greenwich park, I found an opens air food stall fiesta of food from all over – Lebanese, Thai, Indian, Korean, Arab etc. around 15 – 20 stalls. Brisk business was being done but on closer examination, I felt that the prices were on the higher side for what was being offered.  It had been a good long tiring walk and I decided that I was ready for a good lunch at a pub nearby. 

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