please empty your brain below

Thanks for the tip DG, great news, I will be up there on my Brompton.
Well done LB of Waltham Forest for getting all this set up. Kensington & Chelsea would no doubt have charged an arm and at least two legs ......
This one of those places I myself will not be visiting.
But it is a fantastic use of land in a urban area. It always amazes me just how many green spaces London has.
Also the fact that it's free is quite surprising in this day and age. I don't know if local politics had any thing to do with it, but if so well done
Sounds good, that such a large area of private land has now become more-or-less public. (As public as most town parks, anyway, which also close overnight, and manage somehow to avoid locking people in).

I wouldn't be surprised if the alternative of charging for entry was discussed, and ruled out because the takings (after discouraging many potential visitors) were estimated as being more than swallowed up by paying people to collect the money and associated costs.
I think the Victoria Line threads its way between the reservoirs on Ferry Lane / Forest Road - so is this technically above the tube?
As someone who's been going back and forth on the bus on Forest Rd for 30 years it's interesting to see this place opened up in this way. Previously anyone could pay £1 and get in anyway although it was never promoted vigorously by Thames Water.

It will be interesting to see how they manage things come the Spring when lots of the birds have their young. Processions of geese and goslings are a regular sight from the bus. I expect areas will have to be closed to protect the breeding birds and their young. The geese won't give any quarter in defending their young if people get too close.

I shall probably have a wander round at some point although I don't have DG's walking fitness so I won't be doing a huge walk round in an afternoon.
Diamond Geesier.
@drD - Lol!
What a splendid resource and right up my street, figuratively, if not literally!!
Many years ago I had a summer job with the Water Board at this location. I walked daily around the perimeter of the site, checking and where necessary repairing the fences. Well worth a visit!
I went yesterday after reading this post. I thought that it was great - a fantastic new leisure resource that looks as though it will be very popular. Shame that it closes at 4pm in the winter though - eg, a bit silly in October when it's still light for a while after.

Regards
An excellent description of an amazing place.
I'm very excited about this, and I'm certain to go soon, but I'd be more excited if Thames Water were to open up Abbey Mills Pumping Station to the public. When walking along the Greenway I can clearly see what looks like public-centric displays mounted in the courtyard, but the whole area seems very much out-of-bounds, even though the 'long path' around it alongside the River Lea have been open for a few months. I'm hoping maybe an opening may be ...ahem... "in the pipeline"?!?! :)=)

dg writes: Abbey Mills Pumping Station was open to the public last weekend as part of Newham Heritage Week.
Hey, don't bury the lead story so near the end of the post: "Diamond Geezer survives encounter with wild fox. Samantha receives stern warning to 'Stay Back!'".
Personally I have been going here at least once a month for the last 25 years, taking advantage of the £10 annual permit (or the £1 daily permit) and have got used to having the place almost entirely to myself on most days – it will be a shock to see other people here, but nice to be able to sit down with a cup of tea. There is a whole blog entry waiting to be written about why two of the reservoirs are named after Lady ‘Daisy’ Greville, Countess of Warwick – of ‘Daisy, Daisy, give me your answer do’ fame.










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