[1] From Lewisham Library turn left into Lewisham High Street (busy road) and continue towards the railway bridge. Cross Courthill Road at the traffic lights (careful as there is no pedestrian lights) and continue past Ladywell Leisure Centre. Continue ahead to cross Romborough Way on the left.
(A) Opposite here is St Mary’s Church where Lewisham people have worshipped for at least a thousand years. The present church, built in the 1770s, is one of the oldest buildings in the borough.
If you wish to do a shorter version of the walk (1.8 miles, 2.9Km), cross here at the pedestrian lights towards St Mary’s Church. Follow the path around the church building. Bear left to cross the footbridge over the river, then follow the path through to Ladywell Fields. Turn left and follow the path to the fork, and here take the right fork to join the main walk description from point [5].
[2] Continue ahead to the next junction and turn left into Lewisham Park (a road). Cross over, continue past some large blocks of flats then turn right through a small gate into Lewisham Park. Turn left along the path and continue. Go straight ahead where paths cross, and pass the large gates and the park notice board on the left, to reach the next path crossing. Turn right here to walk across the middle of the park along a tree-lined path.
(B) Lewisham Park is a small park, not much used. It has been a park since 1840 and has some spectacular mature trees, like the semi-circle of London plane trees (recognisable by the distinctive camouflage-like patterned bark). Large numbers of plane trees were planted in the 19th century as an ‘antidote’ to industrial pollution. The sunken area inside these trees was probably a small lake that has been drained or dried up.
[3] Turn right just before an exit gate. Continue to a path junction. Go through the gate on the left. Turn right onto Lewisham Park (the road) and then turn right into Lewisham High Street. Cross Lewisham High Street almost immediately at pedestrian lights. Continue past the railings to reach the wide section of the footpath. Turn left in front of Lewisham University Hospital.
(C) The current hospital stands on the site of a former workhouse, built in 1612. This housed some of Lewisham’s poor parishioners. A larger premises was built in 1817, including a wing to treat cholera. Subsequently more and more of the buildings were devoted to treating the ill, with a separate infirmary finally built in 1892. Throughout the twentieth century, the hospital continued to expand and was awarded university status in 1997. A large modern building called Riverside was opened in 2007. As it is very close to the river in Ladywell Fields, you will be able to see this building clearly on the next section of the walk.
[4] Turn right into Albacore Crescent. Turn right after the hospital into Ladywell Fields by a signboard (caution, path shared with cyclists). Go straight ahead, crossing a footbridge, then turn immediately right by an iron signpost. Continue ahead between the River Ravensbourne on the right and tennis courts on the left.
(D) Ladywell Fields is a valuable green space following the course of the Ravensbourne river, as it flows from Catford to Ladywell. It includes a small nature reserve in the northern part of the park. The river banks, including a new meandering channel, have recently been landscaped to prevent flooding and to encourage wildlife.
Ladywell Fields is part of the Waterlink Way, a shared route for cyclists and pedestrians that runs south from the River Thames at Deptford Creek to the Green Chain Walk in Lower Sydenham. The Waterlink Way is also part of the National Cycle network, Sustrans Route 21, as it passes through London on its way to the south coast at Eastbourne.
[5] Turn left where the path forks, then right at the path junction. There is a café and toilets just off to the left. Continue along the path as it goes up a slope to the exit. Turn left out of the park into Ladywell Road. Go past Ladywell Station.
[6] Cross Ladywell Road at the pedestrian lights. Turn right. Cross Algernon Road (careful, busy road) and then turn left into it. Cross Mercy Terrace. When the road forks, take the right fork and then turn next right into Marsala Road, following the road as it bends to the left. At the end of this road turn right into Ellerdale Street, continue ahead under the railway bridge into Elmira Street then take the second turning right into Smead Way. Turn left just before the bridge into Waterway Avenue and follow the river Ravensbourne to Cornmill Gardens marked by a tall grey column.
(E) The Ravensbourne river is just over 11 miles long and flows through the boroughs of Bromley, Lewisham and Greenwich, before flowing into the River Thames. The Doomsday Book of 1086 records eleven corn mills along the river – can you imagine them in the city now?
[7] Turn right to cross a footbridge over the river. On the left is a small garden, worth a short diversion to look at the wooden sculptures. Go under a railway bridge. Turn right into Molesworth Street (look out for cyclists). Continue past some tall office blocks and a green space on the right beside another short stretch of the river. Cross Engate Street, continue to the pedestrian lights on Lewisham High Street (busy road). Cross here and turn left to return to Lewisham Library.