34km Tour of Ealing
Pitzhanger Manor
Ride Overview
If you thought suburbs were dull, you’ve obviously not ridden around ‘The Queen of the Suburbs’. More countryside than town, the borough is famous for its green spaces - parks, canals, rivers and woods. There are the most picturesque churches in London - little wooden affairs dating from the twelfth century, one of the earliest examples of a garden suburb as promoted by William Morris, and a park made from rubble from the old Wembley stadium. But it’s the greenery, the feeling that you’re far away from one of the world’s great cities, which will stay in your memory longer than the leaves will remain on the trees.
Ride practicalities
START/FINISH: Pitzhanger Manor, Ealing DISTANCE: 33km TOTAL ASCENT:216m TERRAIN AND SURFACES: Quiet suburban roads, dedicated bike lanes and gravel paths. In winter some of the paths may be muddy RECOMMENDED CAFÈS/PUBS/: Ealing; The Grange, Ealing Common; The Grove on Ealing Green NEARBY MAINLINE TRAIN SERVICES: Ealing Broadway PLACES TO VISIT; Ealing; Pitzhanger Manor, LINKS TO OTHER RIDES: London to Windsor, Lower Brent River Ride, Between the Great West Roads
Ride Notes
The ride begins beside a manor house ‘on the wooded slope where red kits fly’ - which apparently is the meaning of Pitzhanger. Pitzhanger Manor is an architectural masterpiece, built in 1800 by the most influential architect of his day, Sir John Soane as a way of showcasing of his talents. Prospective clients were invited for dinner to show what he could do for them. By building a ‘country home’ he hoped also to create a dynastic house where his sons and successors could work but his sons were a disappointment so he sold Pitzhanger and moved his library and collection of art and antiquities to his London home in Lincoln’s Inn Fields. The house is owned by Ealing Borough Council and hosts exhibitions throughout the year.
Walpole Park
From the Manor, we ride into the first of many parks; Walpole Park. Trees, meadows, a serpentine lake as well as an easy cycling path are just some of the pleasures. Crossing the road, we are quickly into Lammas Park. The name 'Lammas' originated Loafmas Day (August 1) when the first fruits of harvest were offered to the Church, usually in the form of a loaf of bread. The day marked the start of the season when villagers were allowed to graze livestock on the fields and commons known as Lammas Lands. The practice continued after this park was created in the Victorian times until reports of cattle attacking people meant that it was stopped. (The council had to compensate the villagers to the tune of £2,150). By the turn of the twentieth century, the park had nineteen lawn tennis courts, four croquet lawns, and two bowling greens, along with a tea chalet and over fifty flower beds. Between the wars Ealing was known as the most ‘Sabbath loving district of London’ and the Council had strict bye-laws to ensure all games of any sort were prohibited. The local labour party began to stage Sunday ‘cricket test matches’ which were often interrupted by members of Sunday Observance Society siting on the wicket! By 1941 the ban on Sunday games was lifted.
The Grand Union Canal
By-passing Gunnersbury Park (which in the Borough of Hounslow), we ride through quiet streets, through the South Ealing Cemetery which has a good collection of Victorian funeral monuments and onto Boston Manor Park (see the Tour of Hounslow ride) to join the Grand Union Canal. The next few miles are just super. Quiet waters lined with poplars and willows, the odd colourful houseboat and the historic Hanwell Flight, the largest flight of locks in the capital, built in 1794.
Wharncliffe Viaduct
After more riding through lush summer vegetation, we arrive at the 1835 Wharncliffe Viaduct, the second architectural masterpiece of this ride. The work of Isambard Kingdom Brunel, it was an essential part of his Great Western Railway line. It was the first viaduct to carry an electronic telegraph, which not only directly linked Windsor Castle to Whitehall. It is also reputed to be the first telegraph to capture a murderer. The message was:
A murder has just been committed at Salt Hill and the suspected murderer was seen to take a first class ticket to London by the train that left Slough at 7.42pm. He is in the garb of a Kwaker with a brown great coat on which reaches his feet. He is in the last compartment of the second first-class carriage’.
The suspect was arrested upon his arrival at Paddington.
Elthorne Park
We continue riding up the Brent Valley through woods, across open spaces some of which are wild-flower meadows to Northala Park, one of London’s newest public parks. The four mounds were built using the rubble of the old Wembley stadium. You’re not meant to ride to the top - but if no one is around it is a fun thing to do and the views to Canary wharf and across to Windsor Castle are superbly memorable.
The borough of Ealing is split in two by the A40 which we cross using a series of pedestrian crossings before riding onto one of London’s smallest - and oldest (1290) - churches. (St.Mary the Virgin)
The route now re-joins the Grand Union Canal, or rather its Paddington Branch line. The path is firm, the riding blissful. Few people use this TfL cycle route 16, which is a surprise as it’s wonderfully quiet and green. Leaving the canal, we ride up (not too severe) Horsenden Hill, an ancient woodland, where traces of a neolithic camp have been found. As you may expect, there are super views across London.
The Perivale Angel, St. Mary’s Perivale
Back now across the A40, we re-join the river Brent which wiggles its way through Pitzhanger Park, where we pass another of London’s oldest churches. Said to date from 1190, St Mary’s Perivale, looks as if it should be in the deepest countryside rather than in a great city. Concerts are held inside twice a week. The graveyard is full of admirals and generals and other leading men as the Victorian rector, a certain Rev. Hughes, sold exclusive plots to the rich. The money was not used to augment church funds, but rather line his pocket and that of his wife. He was dismissed, but the buried remained in their plots.
Brentham Garden Suburb
We ride now into the Brentham Garden Suburb. If you thought the housing in London’s suburbs was dreary, you’re in for a treat of a surprise. The origins of Brentham can be traced back to the Arts and Crafts and Garden City movements, led by William Morris. He advocated the need for beauty in man’s daily surroundings and promoted the revival of traditional methods of building, using locally produced and hand-crafted building materials. There’s a superb mix of styles, the gardens are full of flowers, the streets abnormally quiet (for London). It is a remarkable place.
Hanger Hill
After a short rise up a hill, we enter Hanger Hill Estate, another ‘garden suburb’ built in the 1940s over one of Britain’s first airfields. In 1909, Harold Piffard rented a field and built an aircraft that managed to fly a few feet above the ground for a distance of a hundred yards. The Acton Aerodrome, or the London Aviation Ground as it became known was important aerodrome in the 1914-18 war. After hostilities ended, planes continued to be built and flown, with the caveat that they were, "Not..... to cause annoyance to the vendor or tenants of any adjoining or adjacent land.” (Something which Heathrow might observe!) In 1919, the Alliance P.2 Seabird made a record-breaking non-stop flight to Madrid. The airfield shut down a year later after another plane attempting to fly to Australia crashed in Surbiton, killing its crew. The site was sold and Hanger Hill Estate grew up in its place.
The Grange, Ealing Common
The area with its mock Tudor homes is very popular with Japanese expats. Nearby are Japanese grocery stores and a school. It is a short ride along quiet streets to Ealing Common with its grand avenues of Horse Chestnut trees. It was the site of one of the earliest cricket matches ever recorded. In 1733 Ealing and Acton played the London Cricket Club.
Cricket will not be on your mind I suspect, as you cover the last few metres towards the ride’s end at The Grange pub. Should you wish to forego this celebratory spot, you might head instead straight for Ealing Broadway, where trains will whisk you away from this delightful Queen of the Suburbs.
All the details given on this route are given in good faith. However, situations on the ground can change, so if you know of any access issues, closures, or have any thoughts and feedback on the route, please include them in the comments section below.
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