London Loop, tranquility hikes INSIDE London

Yes, this is still London.
Pic Credit Hina Pandya 2016©️

When I had a rather hectic time at work my friend suggested I take a hike.
Literally.
Now, I love hiking, so it wasn't hard to say yes.
But I couldn't really travel far to the hills of the Brecon Beacons in Wales or to the beautiful Ben Nevis in Scotland.
I live in London, a city, buildings not greenery... or so I thought.










I was wrong. Apparently the London Loop which has long been in existence is signposted and has trails you'd never know existed.

Secret alcoves with nesting birds, Pic credit Hina Pandya 2016 ©️

Straight off the tube we hiked 10 miles through trails of trees, besides waterways of the Grand Union canal, down across field of cows, through corn fields- yes I said corn fields, across deep forest where we were quiet enough- and slow enough- it was uphill to see wild deer, and all in London.
The instructions to find the paths can sometimes be very obscure like "find a big bush and turn right into the forest" Bizarrely you find it.

Seriously amazing.
It feels like a real accomplishment.

Forests with deer, be very quiet or you'll miss them
Pic credit Hina Pandya 2016©️

It completely shook me out of my city hectic mode, and took me to a wonderful magical area I thought was only accessible by a plane or by many hours of driving, and actually all it took was a few stops on the tube.
We followed the directions from a book bought specifically to do all 24 hikes, but event TFL has a link to the London Loop here.
None of the walks are too strenuous I'd say. But some inclines and uneven grounds. These can be avoided too, by following the instructions from the book.

*We went from Uxbridge to Moor Park. 10 miles.
Uxbridge to Harefield West
Harefield West to Moor Park