please empty your brain below

It is (or was) rare for the public to be restricted to an arc round the apron of Kenley Airfield. The restriction normally only applies when gliders are using the airfield which is (or was) not often the case. At other times the gates are open and you are free to wander over the airfield.

During lockdown the gates were always open and the airfield was heavily used by cyclists, walkers, dog-walkers and runners. There was masses of space for everyone to keep their distance and walkers, cyclists and runners could happily co-exist.

A great place of historical interest.

Did they have the mobile control tower out?

Our weather reports in Purley are actually based on the weather station at the airfield which, as you can see, is really exposed which could explain why our local forecasts are always unduly pessimistic.
Great report and brought back many memories from when I did the Loop. You could almost say Many Happy Returns. Can't report on the Fox and its meals as its kitchen was closed when I passed. But I got sufficiently confused with the loop guide instructions that I saw most of your diversion around Kenley as well. Must get back there again.
It's fascinating to learn that the Fox (where I went in 2009 with relatives then living in Old Coulsdon) is in Greater London. In my memory the road outside gave every indication of being in Surrey - maybe the boundary goes at an oblique angle at this point.
I wonder how the extended ULEZ will apply in Tithepit Shaw Lane and Kingswood Lane. Will it be payable only by drivers on the London sides of those roads?

dg writes: The extended ULEZ doesn't follow the Greater London boundary. All of Hamsey Green lies outside it.
The precipitous footpath at Riddlesdown appears to just be in Greater London at its steepest part - I wonder if any footpaths in GL can claim to be more vertiginous. Having descended this in winter muddy conditions, I had to cling on to the metal fence along the side of the quarry to stop slipping over.

dg writes: the bad bit is just in Surrey.
Farthing Downs and Happy Valley are prime examples of the Metropolitan Green Belt. Threats by certain Labour politicians to build on some green belt land could be the thin end of the wedge and should be resisted.
Nice to see three separate threads weave together so well today. I'm walking the London Loop, and haven't done 5 yet. This entry has whetted my appetite to try this section soon.
When I was a nipper me and my brothers used to play up on Riddlesdown Common...Dad worked in caves cut into that chalk face (on Godstone Rd)- they had constant temperature so the glass they polished could be accurately measured over a period of time.
During the summer hols he would drive us to work with him after lunch and we'd get up to all sorts of terrifying stuff at the top of the cliffs!
Great post and brought back many happy memories of completing that section of the Loop. Those chalk meadows are truly beautiful at this time of year.
Utterly gorgeous. Thought the same when I did that section of the Loop too. Just wish I lived closer.
Your lyrical prose really breathed life into these "rural" outposts of London.
Much like my own peripheral postcode here in NW this area looks like it has very polluted air...

dg interrupts: look again.
Is this the most ambitious crossover event in DG history?

Also can the geological sites (name suggestions: Geology Grind, Site Seeing) become an ongoing feature? I love learning about London's geodiversity and its geological features and oddities.
The quarry (well, the lime works then within it) is where my mum and dad met.










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