East London Docklands & Waterways

This ride starts and finishes at Farringdon Station, which is easily reached on the Elizabeth Line, Metropolitan Line, and ThamesLink services.

This is a ride through the Docklands area, then onto canals and riverside paths in East London. Some paths are narrow in places, sometimes uneven, and there are some short stretches where we might need to get down and walk. This is an area of fascinating history and transition, we will see how old industrial areas have been transformed into new enterprises, housing developments, artistic and cultural projects, and nature conservation works.

From Farringdon, we take Cycleway 6 down to Blackfriars Bridge, where we join Cycleway 3 to the Tower of London. We leave the Cycleway and use shared paths down to the riverfront, underneath Tower Bridge, and into St Katherine’s Dock. Cycleway 13 takes us on through the Docklands, via Tobacco Dock, Wapping Woods & Shadwell Basin, to reach Limehouse. We turn onto Limehouse Cut and follow a shared track to visit the curious memorial to the employees of the Gas, Light, & Coke Company https://www.ianvisits.co.uk/articles/an-eternal-flame-burning-at-an-east-london-war-memorial-58789/ .

From here, it is a few minutes’ ride to our lunch stop at Cody Dock https://the-line.org/pins/cody-dock-cafe/. The café here offers a limited range of food (burritos, burgers, fries). There is plenty of space to sit outside if you prefer to bring your own food.

After lunch, we ride on around Bow Creek, where there are various artworks to be seen as well as riverside views. Our next stop is Three Mills Island, where we will see the historic mill buildings, now used as performance studios https://3mills.com/about-us/history/. Then we ride on, to join the Greenway trail, across the Olympic Park and into Victoria Park. We turn down through Hackney and London Fields, to follow quieter back roads through Shoreditch and on to Farringdon for train services home.

Ride starting from/finishing at Farringdon Station, exploring docklands, waterways & parks in East London.

Segregated cycle tracks; shared paths, on canal & riverside routes, some short parts are narrow & uneven; quieter back roads where possible, some short stretches on busier roads.

Time to stop & take photos en route. Refreshment stop at cafe in Cody Dock.

Snacks & water. Money/card for train fare & cafe, or bring your own food if you prefer. Lock for your bike.

First-timers welcome!