Getting some fresh air in London.

Hampstead Heath is one of several places in London where you can make the most of the great outdoors without leaving the city

Sometimes city life gets me down.

The bustle, the traffic, the noise, the full diary – everything I normally love seems to be a torture.  The streets can appear to be great canyons hemmed in by dark buildings and the air is full of dust and fumes.  At such times, I desperately need some green in my life.

The great thing about London is that you can get some fresh air without leaving the city.  When life gets oppressive and glum, I head for Greenwich.  Striking up the hill from the river, I feel my heart beating a bit faster with the effort, the clean air rushing into my lungs.  Then at the top, I get my reward: the shining, snaky Thames below, the glittering towers of Canary Wharf across the river, the whole of London laid out beneath me.

The trees in Greenwich always seem to grow more stately and ponderous than anywhere else in London.  On a crisp but sunny winter’s day, the sight of the Queen’s House shining white against the mist and the lush lawns brings a touch of romance to the walk; in high summer, if it’s clear, you can even see beyond London to the hills and the sea.

The views from Greenwich are some of London's very best

Friends are always trying – unsuccessfully – to convince me that Hampstead Heath is better, but Greenwich still has first place in my heart.  Still, Hampstead has many of the same attractions; the view down to Westminster and the Thames is magnificent, and the open heathland seems higher than it is – up close to the blue sky.  Besides, you can go swimming in one of the ponds if you’ve brought your kit with you.

There also happen some handy serviced apartments near Hampstead at 274 Suites – solid value though they can occasionally be a bit cramped.

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274 Suites offer a useful hotel alternative if you're planning to stay somewhere close to Hampstead Heath

For real wilderness, I love Richmond Park – further out of the centre of London – and I particularly love it at the beginning or the end of the day, when it acquires mysterious colours in the sunrise or sunset light (be warned that the park closes at dusk, so don’t push it).

Red and fallow deer have grazed the parkland for centuries – this was a royal deer hunting preserve; there are ancient oaks, and stubby pollarded trees with their immense, bulging trunks.  It’s really only feasible as a day trip from the centre of London, though – whereas Hampstead and Greenwich are much easier to reach on the tube.

Completely the other end of London is Epping Forest, another former royal hunting preserve.  It’s quite different from Richmond; more wooded, less open, and wilder.  Great oaks are joined by hornbeams and beeches and the fallow deer have recently been joined by longhorn cattle which graze the undergrowth.  It’s a mysterious world.

Old beech tree in enchanting Epping Forest (image credit below)

Stay at the Waltham Abbey Marriott Hotel and you can not only walk in Epping Forest but along the Lee Valley to the north of Waltham Abbey.

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You don’t have to go that far from the centre to find fresh air, of course.

There’s also Regent’s Park, Hyde Park and Kensington Gardens, Green Park and St James’s park, cutting a swathe of green through the West End.  Strangely, it’s the smallest of them – St James’s – which I find the most invigorating – perhaps because of its denser planting and the marvellous bird life (including the famous pelicans).

Even in the City of  London’s square mile, there are tiny parks between the office blocks; some are churchyards and others former churchyards, often enclosed on all four sides, but seeming all the more lush for the restriction.

Finally, one of the best ways to get some fresh air in the city is to take a stroll through some of London’s most beautiful cemeteries.

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Photo credits: 274 Suites, petergtrimming’s photostream.

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