Dollis Valley Greenwalk
The Dollis Valley Greenwalk is a footpath route ten miles long in Middlesex, and entering Hertfordshire, between Moat Mount Nature Reserve in Mill Hill, Middlesex and Hampstead Heath in the same county. The route is designed to act as a link between the Capital Ring and the London Loop,[1] and linking the many green spaces and wildlife corridors along the way.
The route is approximately ten miles long.[2][3] It mainly follows the Dollis Brook.
History
Dollis Valley Greenwalk is based on the Brookside Walk, built by the old Finchley Council in the 1930s.[4] This was the brainchild of leading Finchley Councillor, Alfred Pike, and followed Mutton Brook west from Falloden Way to its junction with Dollis Brook, and then the Dollis north to the Finchley boundary in Wyatts Farm Open Space, opposite Walfield Avenue. Mutton Brook was the southern municipal boundary of the borough and Dollis Brook the western one, and the walk was almost all built on the Finchley side. At Westbury Road, the gardens come down to the brook, so Pike persuaded the Municipal Borough of Hendon to acquire the land on their side of the brook so that the walk could cross over to the Hendon side for this stretch.[5]
Route
Starting at the northern end, the route begins in Moat Mount Open Space, then skirts Barnet Gate Wood, and goes through Totteridge Fields nature reserve, and by fields and public open spaces through Totteridge in Hertfordshire, before re-entering Middlesex, through Whetstone and Woodside Park. It passes under Dollis Brook Viaduct and through Windsor Open Space, and on to the end of Dollis Brook where it merges with Mutton Brook to become the River Brent.
The path then follows the Mutton Brook and goes through Little Wood and Big Wood, ending at Hampstead Heath Extension in Hampstead Garden Suburb.[6]
The route is waymarked: its waymarks consist mostly of a simple a green disc with a directional white arrow mounted on a wooden post. From Woodside Park south, the walk is mainly flat and partly surfaced, and is thought to be suitable for wheelchair users and pushchairs, but some sections between Woodside Park and Mill Hill can get very muddy and walking shoes may be advisable.
Pictures
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Big Wood, Hampstead Garden Suburb -
Hendon Lane Weir, Dollis Brook -
Windsor Open Space, Finchley -
Dollis Brook near Dollis Brook Viaduct -
Whetstone Stray, Whetstone -
Dollis Brook in Wyatt Farm Open Space, Whetstone -
Totteridge Park Open Space -
Totteridge Fields -
Source of Dollis Brook, Moat Mount Open Space
Outside links
- Location map:51°36’9"N, 0°12’23"W
- Dollis Valley Greenwalk – Barnet Council
- Dollis Valley Greenwalk – Long Distance Walkers Association
References
- ↑ Dollis Valley Greenwalk - Hertfordshire County Council
- ↑ 'Barnet Council staff walk to talk about the Dollis Valley Green Walk': Edgware & Mill Hill Times, 16 April 2009
- ↑ Dollis Valley Greenwalk - The Long Distance Walkers Association
- ↑ Following the Brent quotes a letter of complaint about the construction work in 1937.
- ↑ Reminiscence of Alfred Pike in Percy Reboul compiler, Barnet Voices, Tempus 1999, p. 25.
- ↑ Distance Paths - Path Details - Long Distance Walkers Association