• Ride 1. Camden Lock
  • Ride 2. Dickens in London

Ride 1. Camden Lock

14 mile circuit led by Amanda. 14 riders had a break at Camden, still finished at 1.15, a few minutes early.

Amanda’s comment on WhatsApp: “Love the vid Peter and the recording of the route – excellent. Thanks to everyone who came – it was really stress free with you all.”

Jamie commented: “Many thanks to Amanda for taking 14 of us to see the 18 month experimental pedestrianisation of Camden St. Fabulous route via Regents Canal as you can see [on Relive video]. As you can see [on one of the photos above] this ride was restricted to Brompton riders only.”


Above left, a bevy of Bromptons. Centre and rt, the reduced group who made it all the way to London Bridge celebrating at the Monument.

Peter’s great “Relive” stop go video
As is customary on the Healthy Rides, you do not pass Gasometer Park at Kings Cross without a circuit!

Ride 2. Dickens in London

Poto from Jean
Photo from Eva

Report from Ride Leader John S.

London Bridge, 10am, a mild morning, overcast but dry. Sixteen riders gently wending our way past St Paul’s to the quiet of Knightrider Street where the Horn Tavern (sadly renamed) still stands. It was to here that Mr Pickwick sent his order for a couple of bottles of wine while detained in the Marshalsea. Onwards to Ye Olde Cheshire Cheese in Fleet Street (a Tale of Two Cities) and up along Fetter Lane to see Thavies Inn House, where Mrs Jellyby lived (Bleak House). We proceeded up Hatton Gardens to Greville street to find Bleeding Heart Yard (Little Dorrit), then up Saffron Hill past the Three Cripples (now The One Tun) to Clerkenwell Green (Oliver Twist). We then crossed to Grays Inn Road, down which we wandered to see Staple Inn (Edwin Drood), before moving on to Bell Yard, where the kindly Mr Jarndyce found the orphaned Charlie looking after her little brothers and sisters (Bleak House).

Our coffee break at Aldwych was a leisurely thirty minutes, after which we had a peaceful ride along the river, circling round Horse Guards Avenue and Parliament Street to see the Red Lion, scene of one of Dickens’s most enduring memories. Returning along the river to Waterloo Bridge, we followed a quiet route to the Borough. There we saw the site of Dickens’s childhood lodgings in Lant Street, and the last standing wall of the Marshalsea. And so to London Bridge, arriving on the dot of 12.30pm. A good time was had by all!

Thank you, Eva, for backriding, and thank you, Jean, for marshalling!

A List of the sites visited with notes on them can be downloaded from the link below.

Notes on sites visitedDownload
Photos of the 6 sites described in the Notes.

NB To see photos in full: right click on image, choose “Open image in new tab”, open the new tab.

Back to Ride Report 2025 Index

Back to Healthy Rides Home page