There are hundreds of long-distance footpaths in the United Kingdom designated in publications from public authorities, guidebooks and OS maps . They are mainly used for hiking and walking , but some may also be used, in whole or in part, for mountain biking and horse riding . Most are in rural landscapes, in varying terrain, some passing through National Parks and Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty . There is no formal definition of a long-distance path, though the British Long Distance Walkers Association defines one as a route "20 miles [32 km] or more in length and mainly off-road." They usually follow existing rights of way , often over private land, joined together and sometimes waymarked to make a named route. Generally, the surface is not specially prepared, with rough ground, uneven surfaces and stiles , which can cause accessibility issues for people with disabilities . Exceptions to this can be converted railways , canal towpaths and some popular fell walking routes where stone-pitching and slabs have been laid to prevent erosion . Many long-distance footpaths are arranged around a particular theme such as one specific range of hills or a historical or geographical connection.
25-633: The New River Path is a long-distance footpath which follows the course of the 17th-century aqueduct, the New River , for 28 miles (45 km) from its source in Hertfordshire to its original end in Islington, London . The path is waymarked and all signs display the words "New River Path" on a green background. The New River itself was completed in 1613. The aqueduct supplies water from Hertfordshire to North London . The New River Path
50-534: A Trail Partnership. As of January 2023 , there are over 2,500 miles (4,000 km) of trails on seventeen routes. The longest trail, the England Coast Path , is not complete though more sections are planned to open over the coming months and years, with a planned completion date of around 2024. The newest trail is the Coast to Coast Walk which will officially open in 2025. There are 83 million visits to
75-576: A better head of pressure to serve more distant areas around the West End of London . Initially water was pumped to this from the Round Pond by windmill and horse gin , but in 1768 a steam engine designed by John Smeaton was brought into use. In 1785, a Boulton & Watt engine was added, and over the years replacement engines were installed. These were all housed in the Engine House, on
100-629: A combination of day trips or as an end-to-end expedition. They are primarily intended for walkers, but may have sections suitable for cyclists and horse-riders. One of the trails, the Great Glen Canoe Trail, is designed for canoeists and kayakers . Those included here meet the definition of a long-distance path as being around 50 km (31 miles) or more, particularly that they will take more than one day's walking to complete. Some shorter paths linking between major walks (e.g. Maelor Way) are also included. The Macmillan Ways are
125-605: A linear park. At Canonbury Road, the walk continues through a fernery to Pleasant Place, where an inscription in the pavement marks the New River's route. At Islington Green, there is a statue of Sir Hugh Myddelton; the route continues along Colebrooke Row and Duncan Terrace to the Angel, then through Owen's Field to the New River Head between Amwell Street and Rosebery Avenue. The New River's course between Balls Pond Road and Essex Road, and along Colebrooke Row up to City Road,
150-610: A set of paths that promotes and raises money for the Macmillan Cancer Relief charity. Several European walking routes pass through the United Kingdom. They all use sections of UK long-distance paths. New River Head New River Head is a historic site located adjacent to Sadler's Wells Theatre on Rosebery Avenue and Amwell Street in the Clerkenwell area of London, England. Originally it
175-526: A substantial new head office building on the Rosebery Avenue side of the site and across the, by now redundant, Round Pond. This building incorporated a reconstruction of the historical late seventeenth-century Oak Room from the Water House, which was also demolished as part of the same development. Between 1936 and 1938, the water board added a new water testing laboratory to the site. In 1946,
200-592: A £12mn capital campaign to create a public arts centre that will open in 2024. There is public access to a view point over the gardens. At the rear of the building (not open to the public) there is the remains of the medieval conduit-head of the water supply of the London Greyfriars , discovered in Bloomsbury in 1911 and re-erected here in 1927. The former head office building is a grade II* listed building . The former laboratory building, remains of
225-426: Is also adjacent to Harringay Green Lanes railway station , Manor House tube station , Canonbury railway station and Angel tube station . From Clissold Park, its route along the broad verge down the centre of Petherton Road leads to Essex Road, where another redundant section of the New River's course between Canonbury and Islington town centre forms a path alongside the now shallow stream, recreated as part of
250-674: Is marked by white boulders. The path follows the now truncated route of the watercourse to its culmination at New River Head . Long-distance footpaths in the United Kingdom National Trails are a network of long-distance paths in England and Wales (plus a small stretch of the Pennine Way in Scotland ) funded by Natural England and Natural Resources Wales and maintained by local authorities under
275-527: Is the custodian of the brand, but responsibility for creating and maintaining each route lies with each local authority through which a route passes, although Scottish Natural Heritage provides some of the finance and publicity. There are 29 routes, offering 1,900 miles (3,000 km) of trails in total. Each of the routes is clearly waymarked with a dedicated symbol, and run largely off-road. They range in length from 24 to 214 miles (40 to 340 km), and are intended to be tackled over several days, either as
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#1732772483550300-687: The Lee Valley towns and villages of Ware , Great Amwell , St Margarets , Rye House , Hoddesdon , Broxbourne , Turnford , Cheshunt and Waltham Cross . After crossing over the M25 , the path passes through four London boroughs ; Enfield , Haringey , Hackney and Islington . The route of the path takes it close to the Hertford Loop Line stations of Enfield Chase , Winchmore Hill , Palmers Green , Bowes Park , Alexandra Palace , Hornsey , Harringay and Essex Road . The route
325-746: The London end of the New River was truncated to Stoke Newington with the water being fed into the East Reservoir there, thus removing the operational usage of the site. However the head office and laboratory buildings continued in use by the Metropolitan Water Board and its successor, the Thames Water Authority. In 1964–6, the Charles Allen House, a seven-storey block of staff flats, was added to
350-482: The National Trails each year and over 80,000 people complete a trail. Officially opens in 2025 When complete in around 2024 Treated as one path by National Trails Scotland's Great Trails are long-distance "people-powered" trails (predominantly hiking trails but including cycling, horse-riding and canoe routes) in Scotland. NatureScot maintains the official list of Scotland's Great Trails and
375-689: The New River Walk, local schools, and all the local authorities along the route. In 2021 the New River Path was blocked close to its northern end, when its crossing over the Hertford East branch line at Kings Mead was closed by Network Rail on safety grounds. The grassed riverside path is restricted to use by walkers, with a few sections with hard surfaces being accessible to wheelchair users. At all path access points, safety notices are displayed which specify precautions. Users of
400-668: The Round Pond, Greyfriars conduit head, former engine house, former coal stores and former windmill are all grade II listed buildings . Before the Dissolution of the Monasteries , the site was owned by the Knights of St John of Jerusalem and was known as the Commandery Mantles. It was subsequently passed to Thomas Howard, 4th Duke of Norfolk , and eventually to Samuel Backhouse who, along with his son John,
425-472: The cisterns of London. Besides the Round Pond was a single building, known as the Water House. From these beginnings a larger complex gradually developed, with further ponds and buildings covering an area of some 7 acres (2.8 ha) and bounded by what were to become the streets of Rosebery Avenue, Hardwick Street, Amwell Street and Myddelton Passage. In 1708, a new Upper Pond was constructed on higher ground where Claremont Square lies today, in order to give
450-553: The north-west corner of the site. Following the privatisation of the Thames Water Authority in 1989, the head office of Thames Water plc was relocated to Reading , along with the laboratory facilities. However in the same timescales an operational function returned to the site, with the creation of a shaft and pumping station for the London Water Ring Main on the Amwell Street side of the site. Following
475-528: The north-west of the site. In 1820, the New River Company moved its offices, which until then had been located in the City of London , into an enlarged Water House at New River Head, beginning an association of the site with the administration of London's water supply that was to last some 170 years. Between 1915 and 1920, the Metropolitan Water Board, as successor to the New River Company, constructed
500-561: The relocation of Thames Water, the head office building and laboratory buildings were converted to apartments, as was the Remus building, a former water meter testing building dating from 1922-4. The Oak Room still remains within the former office building. Two new apartments blocks, the Nautilus building and the Hydra building were added. Some of the site's industrial buildings still exist:
525-415: The route are requested (by Thames Water) to keep to the path, not to interfere with wildlife, keep dogs on leads and avoid fouling, take litter home and take care crossing roads. At times, operational work needs to be carried out which may cause sections of the path to be closed temporarily. The walk can be split into the following three sections. The path begins at New Gauge, Hertford , and passes through
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#1732772483550550-490: The site, it is now largely a residential estate, with apartments in a mixture of repurposed existing and new buildings surrounding a private garden area on the site of the old filter beds. An enclosed half-acre area of the site comprises the remains of an 18th-century windmill and a 19th-century engine house and coal stores: these buildings are being restored by arts charity Quentin Blake Centre for Illustration as part of
575-566: Was developed over a 12-year period at a cost of over £2 million; of this sum £1.3 million has been invested by Thames Water in the project. Throughout this time Thames Water has worked to overcome operational, safety and security issues in partnership with, and with the support of, many organisations; including Groundwork, London's Waterway Partnership, the Countryside Agency, the New River Action Group, Friends of
600-581: Was one of the original "adventurers" (shareholders) of the New River Company . The Commandery Mantles was 80 feet (24 m) above the Thames to the north of the City of London , and an ideal place for a reservoir to supply water to the City. At New River Head, a circular reservoir known as the Round Pond collected the water. From here it was fed into a network of wooden mains which conveyed water to
625-617: Was the London terminus of the New River , an artificial watercourse opened in 1613 to supply water to London. Subsequently the site also became the headquarters for the New River Company , the owners of the New River, and for its successors, the Metropolitan Water Board , the Thames Water Authority and Thames Water plc . Following relocation of most of the operational and administrative functions of
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