Hackney Marshes

I lived a few kilometres away from Hackney Marshes for two years during my stay in London, so of course I never went. The marshes remained an evocatively named and distant patch of green on the google maps representation of the area around my house... until now! On my recent post doctoral-defence trip to Britain I met up with my good friend and former housemate Ed, now a committed Hackney resident and co-owner of two rather active dogs (a whippet and a not-quite-a-whippet), which need their batteries running down if they aren't going to bark at everyone.

Ed suggested we take the dogs (and me) out for a walk in Hackney Marshes, a plan I was very much in favour of! I was slightly sad to discover that the marshes are not some kind of mist and will-o'-the-wisp haunted mystical swampland, but they do preserve some of their more marshy heritage and most importantly represent a massive expanse of green land. We started out in the huge playing field area, the towers of new developments and that weird rollercoaster in the olympic park (people may claim it isn't but I know better) forming the backdrop to people playing cricket. It was a lovely british day, bright sun combining with layers of wind-blown clouds to create a real show in the sky.

We walked on over a bridge, spotting a kingfisher flashing along the fast flowing river below. Moving between hedges of thick brambles we came out into the wilder, grassier area of the marshes. Ripe blackberries were everywhere, though the best efforts of earlier passers by meant that often all the really juicy ones were juuust out of reach! The view that opened up from the path was one that I would not have associated with London at all. In the distance, below the dramatic clouds, trains ran back and forth in front of the spire of a church. In the fields to one side were cows and to the other horses, looking small under the towering power lines.

Hackney marshes are an interesting mixed landscape of playing field, park, river, farmland, and good old London scruffiness. I echo Ed's sentiments that I wish I had discovered them sooner! My favourite photos from the walk are over here at this link, take a look!

As always, bis bald.

Der Tom