Horniman Nature Trail
Have you explored the Horniman Nature Trail yet? A great way to extend your exploration of the Horniman Gardens is by adding a walk along our Nature Trail.
Around half a mile long and once a railway line to Crystal Palace, this is accessible via Langton Rise and the cycle path running parallel. The railway was closed in 1954 and the area was left unmanaged until 1972. This resulted in it becoming a wild woodland area that is carefully managed by our Horticulture and Ecology teams.
The Nature Trail is a sensitive area and much time goes into managing it for your enjoyment and for the protection of its ecosystem. Please help us to look after the area by not taking dogs onto the trail – dog waste poses a risk to the ecosystem. Please take all your litter home with you. Guide dogs are allowed.
One Tree Hill and Brenchley Gardens
If you wanted to extend your walking further, then diverting towards One Tree Hill and Brenchley Gardens from the Nature Trail at Langton Rise is a pleasant and quiet detour.
You can walk through the picturesque Camberwell Old Cemetery, where Frederick Horniman himself is buried, as well as Brenchley Gardens. Then, enter One Tree Hill Nature Reserve, which is very steep. At its summit, you can see the old site of former WWI anti-aircraft gun placements, as well as striking views of London’s skyline.
Camberwell New Cemetery and Honor Oak Recreation Grounds are also easily accessible from here, and much flatter!
Peckham Rye
From Langston Rise, you could also head towards Peckham Rye Park via Underhill Road, strewn with grand Victorian houses. The common is a wide-open space and a local favourite, great for a jog or a stroll with the dog.
In 1765 at the age of 8, William Blake saw visions of angels in a tree while walking on Peckham Rye. For the history buffs, the map coordinates of the tree in question can be found online, although an Oak tree was replanted in its place in 2011.
Sydenham Hill Wood
If you are exiting the Horniman on London Road, a great way to extend your walk is a detour through Sydenham Hill Wood. Walk up Sydenham Hill, take a right at the roundabout and enter through Cox’s Walk.
Here you can explore Sydenham Hill Wood and Dulwich Wood, which is also part of the same old Victorian railway line as our Nature Trail. The line once serviced the Nunhead to Crystal Palace route, and you can follow the track to an old tunnel, now a registered bat roost.
Cox’s Walk is also an 18th Century oak-lined avenue that crosses the wood by a footbridge over the old railway track, recently refurbished. The walk is particularly photogenic in the autumn time, with the deep orange leaves lining the old avenue.
Dulwich Park
At the bottom of Cox’s Walk and London Road, you can also join Dulwich Park by turning left onto Dulwich Common. Dulwich Park covers 29 hectares and is packed with wide open spaces, gardens, a boating lake, a wonderful Colicci Café and tennis courts.
Queen Mary was famously a regular at the park in the 1920s. She loved to view the gardens and their rhododendrons, which are a spectacle when in bloom around May time. One of the park gates is named after her, and the park retains its classic Victorian layout.
