PARKLAND WALK

This article will cover two of my interests... abandoned old railway lines and urban exploration. The 5 kilometre Parkland Walk follows the course of the railway line that used to run between Finsbury Park and Alexandra Palace. Last year I explored the southern section between Finsbury Park and the Highgate Tunnels and in this article I'll look at the history of the route and include many of the photographs I took.

Parkland Walk

The line between Finsbury Park and Highgate dates back to the 1860s when it was constructed by the Edgware, Highgate and London Railway. Before the line actually opened it was absorbed into the Great Northern Railway (GNR) on 22 August 1867.

In 1872 and 1873 branch lines opened between Finchley to High Barnet and Highgate to Alexandra Palace. Two years later the Palace was destroyed in a fire and that section of the line closed for two years during the reconstruction. The line would face two further closures during the 1880s. By 1923 the Great Northern Railway (GNR) had become part of the London & North Eastern Railway (LNER).

In 1935 the London Underground revealed their plans (The Northern Heights Plan) to incorporate the lines into the Northern Line. Work was halted with the start of World War 2 in 1939 and by the end of the war all the plans were scrapped. Before and in the few years following the end of the war underground maps did show the routes as 'under construction.'

Passenger trains continued to run on the lines however, by July 1954, British Rail, who had taken over from the London & North Eastern Railway (LNER), ceased services.

The branch line to Alexandra Palace closed in 1957 although the section between Finsbury Park, Highgate and East Finchley remained open for freight services through to 1964. Until 1970 the line was used to transfer empty stock from the underground and two years later, in 1972, the track was lifted signalling the demise of the line.

Following the removal of the tracks most of the station platforms and buildings were demolished. Officially opened in 1984 the sections between Finsbury Park to Highgate and Highgate to Alexander Palace were designated as The Parkland Walk and followed the bridges and cuttings. One section, the tunnels and station at Highgate, were excluded from the walk. Plans to convert it to a road were, fortunately, scrapped following opposition from locals and environmentalists collectively known as 'The Friends of The Parkland Walk.' In 1990 it was declared a local nature reserve, the longest in London. 

Having looked at a brief history of the area we will now follow my walk along the route from Finsbury Park to Highgate with more detail about the various highlights that can be found along the way for those who, like me, are interested in old railway lines.

Arriving at Finsbury Park Station I made my way the short distance to Oxford Road where there is an overbridge that crosses the main line and leads to Finsbury Park. You can approach the start of the walk from either side of the line but I approached from the end of Oxford Road, turning left just before the overbridge and along the embankment that rises by a row of Victorian houses where my journey begins. 

From there I headed along the old track over Upper Tollington Park towards the next bridge which crosses Stapleton Hill Road, and the Gospel Oak to Barking line below, and was the site of Stroud Green Station. The station is no longer there but you can imagine how it was back in the late-1800s and early 1900s with platforms either side, cantilevered from the bridge, with the wooden station building on ground level underneath. What does remain on the main road below is the station master's house and the site of the old goods yard. The station closed in 1954 and stood derelict before being destroyed by fire in 1967.

The site of Stroud Green Station

Walking on I crossed Mount Pleasant Villas, where the embankment becomes a cutting, and continued beneath two more bridges which carried both Mount View Road and Crouch Hill. As you exit from the bridge there is a modern looking building on the left which, before a modern redevelopment, was originally built to house switchgear for the planned Northern Line tube extension.

One of the brick structures along the route

Entering the area known as Crouch Hill Park you pass some graffiti covered brickwork supporting the sides of the cutting and a footbridge. This is one of several that can be found on the walk.

A few more steps and you arrive at Crouch End Station. Opened in August 1867 there were two platforms and steps leading up to the station buildings built on the road bridge that crossed the line. Buildings on the platform and those on street level were demolished in 1966 and 1977.

What remains makes interesting viewing. The two platforms have survived and the steps leading up to the road pass a brick structure which I believe may have been toilets. It appears a new structure has been built on the bridge with what looks like inverted arches. I did not venture up the stairs (something for my next visit) but apparently you get a good view from there of the platforms below. 

For lovers of disused railways this is probably the most interesting part of the walk. However, there is much to be seen along the walk if you are prepared to look closely in the hedgerows.

Crouch End Station

Continuing onwards, the walk runs parallel to Hornsey Road, crosses over Stanhope Road to an embankment where another bridge crosses Northwood Road.

It is between these two bridges that another reminder of the past can be found. Remains of a brick structure can be spotted that may have been a signal man's hut. There are some steps on the left but what makes this really interesting is the fact that the roots of a tree have engulfed the brickwork.

The last section rises and then a cutting signals the end of this section of the walk. There is an exit on the left which takes you up to the road and the route you would take along Holmesdale Road, Archway Road, past Highgate Station to Muswell Hill Road and eventually rejoining the old line which takes you to Alexandra Palace.

However, it is worth walking the few extra metres first where you will find the two portals of the Highgate Tunnels. Closed to the public the two entrances are barred. One reason is the fact that the tunnels are home to the Bat Project and access is prohibited to protect them and their habitat from disturbance.

Apparently the tunnels have been used for television dramas and I imagine they made ideal locations. Oh how I would like to explore those tunnels further, but alas that won't happen.

Highgate Tunnels

This walk is well worth visiting, not only to those who are interested in old railways but anyone who enjoys a nice walk through the woodlands and viewing all the wild flowers, plants and trees along the way.

I plan to walk the remaining section between Highgate and Alexandra Palace, and revisit some of the areas I missed, as soon as possible and will be adding a second part to this story.