The Isabella Plantation in bluebell season

The descent into Petersham begins at the top of Richmond Hill, where the pavement narrows and the air changes. You pass grand Georgian houses, their gardens hidden behind high walls, and then the trees thicken. The path drops steeply, and suddenly the noise of the town is behind you. At the bottom, the meadows open […]

You leave the house without a list. The walk itself is half the point. Saturday morning on foot means choosing your route by instinct. Through the park if the sun is out. Along the river if you want quiet before the crowds. Past the gardens where lavender spills over railings, humming with bees working overtime […]

You hear them before you see them. The cox’s voice carries over the water, sharp and rhythmic, calling the stroke. Then the boat appears, eight blades dipping and lifting in perfect time, sending ripples across the Thames. Walk the towpath between Richmond and Twickenham in the early morning and you become part of this rhythm. […]

You know them by their dogs, not their names. The woman with the two whippets who always takes the left fork at Marble Hill. The man whose spaniel barks at magpies near the rose beds. The elderly terrier who stops at exactly the same bench every morning. These are the regulars. Your orbit crosses theirs […]

Every dog owner in Richmond knows the feeling. You set off with a route in mind, lead in hand, and then your dog catches a scent or spots a familiar patch of grass. Suddenly, you are not walking them. They are walking you. Some dogs make a beeline for the same bench on Barnes Common, […]