{"product_id":"boundary-ride-2-harold-wood-to-enfield-lock-gravel-route-london","title":"Boundary Ride #2. Harold Wood to Enfield Lock.","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan role=\"text\"\u003eRoyal villages, giant redwoods and the last Anglo-Saxon king.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eA 37 km ride that climbs out of Harold Wood into one of the highest and most unexpectedly rural corners of outer London, then drops through Epping Forest and follows the River Lee Navigation to Enfield Lock. This is the ride that surprises people most. They expect suburbs. They get ancient woodland, a California redwood avenue and a medieval abbey where England's last Anglo-Saxon king is buried.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eIt takes about twenty minutes from Harold Wood station before the city properly dissolves. After that it stays rural for a long time. Ridge-top lanes, forest trails, open river valley. The kind of riding that makes the return train feel like a minor inconvenience.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003chr\u003e\n\n\u003ch4 class=\"product-single__accordion__title-text\"\u003eRide Details\u003c\/h4\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eRide Level:\u003c\/strong\u003e Easy (Green)\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eDistance:\u003c\/strong\u003e 37 km \/ 23 miles\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eTerrain:\u003c\/strong\u003e Gravel, singletrack, cycle paths and quiet roads\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eBike:\u003c\/strong\u003e Gravel, cyclocross or MTB\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eIncludes:\u003c\/strong\u003e GPX route file and downloadable ride guide\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003chr\u003e\n\n\u003ch4 class=\"product-single__accordion__title-text\"\u003eThe Route\u003c\/h4\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe ride climbs almost immediately from Harold Wood toward Havering-atte-Bower, a hilltop village at around 100 metres above sea level, with wide views across the Thames basin on clear days. The name comes from a royal palace once located here, a favourite retreat of Edward the Confessor in the 11th century. Nothing of the palace survives, but the village green, ancient trees and quiet lanes echo something older than the suburban sprawl visible in the distance.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eFrom Havering Country Park the route descends to the River Roding, one of London's lesser-known rivers, slow and green, threading unnoticed between towns. Herons stand motionless in the shallows. The river once powered mills supplying flour and paper to the capital. Now it's a quiet corridor connecting the ridge to the forest.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eEpping Forest proper begins at the southern edge. 2,400 hectares of ancient oak and hornbeam, protected since Henry VIII and opened as public land by Act of Parliament in 1878. Broad gravel paths run under dense canopy, the light filtering green, the ground smelling of leaf mould and rain. The forest emerges at Waltham Abbey, the route joins the Lee Navigation, and a long, flat towpath carries you the final kilometres to Enfield Lock.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003chr\u003e\n\n\u003ch4 class=\"product-single__accordion__title-text\"\u003eWaltham Abbey, King Harold and the Lee-Enfield Rifle\u003c\/h4\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eTwo pieces of history frame the end of this ride, and both are worth knowing before you arrive.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eWaltham Abbey\u003c\/strong\u003e dates to the 11th century and was one of the great monastic churches of medieval England. It is, according to tradition, the burial place of \u003cstrong\u003eKing Harold II\u003c\/strong\u003e, the last Anglo-Saxon king of England, killed at the Battle of Hastings in 1066. The church that stands today is largely Norman, its grounds still holding fragments of medieval masonry. A flat grave slab in the churchyard is marked simply: \u003cem\u003eHarold Rex\u003c\/em\u003e. It's a quiet and slightly extraordinary thing to cycle past.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eA few kilometres further north, \u003cstrong\u003eEnfield Lock\u003c\/strong\u003e was home to the \u003cstrong\u003eRoyal Small Arms Factory\u003c\/strong\u003e, where the Lee-Enfield rifle was designed and manufactured. The factory produced weapons used in both World Wars. Its buildings now stand converted to homes and workshops beside the canal, the lock gates unchanged, the name on the map the only obvious clue to what happened here.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003chr\u003e\n\n\u003ch4 class=\"product-single__accordion__title-text\"\u003eThe Wellingtonia Avenue\u003c\/h4\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eBefore the forest and the abbey, there is the avenue. Havering Country Park contains a row of \u003cstrong\u003egiant redwoods\u003c\/strong\u003e, known in Britain as Wellingtonias, planted in the late 19th century along a formal carriage drive. They rise like cathedral columns, 30 or 40 metres tall, casting long shadows over the gravel track beneath. The air smells faintly of resin.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThey are native to California. They should not be here. They are completely here, and riding under them is one of the more quietly surreal moments on the entire Boundary Rides series.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003chr\u003e\n\n\u003ch4 class=\"product-single__accordion__title-text\"\u003eFinish\u003c\/h4\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe Lee Navigation delivers you to Enfield Lock on a long, flat towpath. Willows trail in the water, narrowboats sit moored at intervals, the canal entirely unbothered by the fact that London is twenty minutes away by train. It's the kind of riding that lets everything slow down.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eEnfield Lock station\u003c\/strong\u003e sits just off the towpath. Thirty-seven kilometres, a royal village, a redwood avenue, a haunted forest, a buried king and a rifle factory. Not bad for a Tuesday evening.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003ciframe src=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/maps\/d\/u\/0\/embed?mid=1ljWkchuyOClQTnhzZfhodUOuxEIjDqk\u0026amp;ehbc=2E312F\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\"\u003e\u003c\/iframe\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch6\u003eWhat are Boundary Rides\u003c\/h6\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eA series of easy-going adventures exploring the edge of London, one gravel path at a time. Each route covers 20 to 40 kilometres, starting and finishing at railway stations within TfL's Zone 6, and each one links together the hidden corners, green spaces, and unexpected stories that make London's outer limits so fascinating.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch6\u003eStart and End Points\u003c\/h6\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eStart: Harold Wood Station (Elizabeth Line)\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eFinish: Enfield Lock Station (National Rail)\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch6\u003eRide Details\u003c\/h6\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eDistance: 37 km | 23 miles\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eClimb: 450 m | 1,476 ft\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003ePercentage off-road: 50%\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eTrail surface: Gravel | Cycle Paths | Single Track | Minor Roads\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eTechnical Grade: Green - Easy\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eMudometer - Good - largely on all weather gravel paths\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\n\u003ch6\u003eIs this ride for me?\u003c\/h6\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cimg style=\"display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;\" height=\"100\" width=\"100\" alt=\"Bike icon depicting a green or easy Hidden Tracks Cycling Gravel Bike ride\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0530\/3202\/6293\/files\/Easy_Ride.png?v=1732123807\"\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch4 class=\"product-single__accordion__title-text\"\u003eEasy (20-40 km)\u003c\/h4\u003e\n\u003cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eExpect a gentle ride ridden at an easy pace.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eWith few or no hills on well-maintained gravel paths, bike lanes and shared-use paths. These rides are suitable for riders who can pedal for about an hour without stopping.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eSuitable for off road bikes or in summer a hybrid fitted with all terrain tyres.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eRead more about our grades \u003ca rel=\"noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/hiddentrackscycling.co.uk\/pages\/ride-grades\" target=\"_blank\"\u003ehere\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch6\u003eIs my bike OK for this ride?\u003c\/h6\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis route is best completed on a gravel, cyclocross or mountain bike.\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cul\u003e\u003c\/ul\u003e","brand":"Hidden Tracks Cycle Tours","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":57202541986173,"sku":null,"price":5.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0530\/3202\/6293\/files\/BoundaryRides-RainhamtoHaroldWood_2.jpg?v=1760903866","url":"https:\/\/hiddentrackscycling.co.uk\/products\/boundary-ride-2-harold-wood-to-enfield-lock-gravel-route-london","provider":"Hidden Tracks Cycling Ltd","version":"1.0","type":"link"}