By: Blonde Two
As you know, we Blondes love maps. So much so that we have to take one with us whenever we go outdoors, or even indoors to our favourite Dartmoor café. We have map cupboards, map quizzes and even a map towel. Can you imagine then how excited I was to be asked by map gurus Ordnance Survey to contribute to a brand new map of London? Not drawing the lines or map symbols you understand (we would all get lost if I did that) but rather by adding life to the map via some carefully chosen words.
Working in my capacity as a freelance outdoor writer alongside the able and experienced fellow Get Outside Champion Belinda Dixon, I discovered the joy of city walking and urban exploration; I also discovered that I can find my way around London after all (this was shortly after getting lost just before a navigation workshop I ran for Ordnance Survey and Stanfords Travel.)
The Walk London map is a thing of beauty. It has everything you would usually expect from a city map but with added picture and description elements. Teaching navigation has helped me to understand the difficulty some people have with map reading, and I have to say that I love the little picture hints that the Walk London map gives. This is map reading not so much made easy but rather created to enhance enjoyment of a landscape.
With four Royal Parks and a carefully researched route along the fascinating Thames Path, the Walk London map gives you access to some of the capital’s most beautiful and interesting green and blue spaces; I will admit here that, although it does have sandy beaches, the Thames is slightly less blue in real life than it is on the map! Walking, I have discovered, is a great way to get a feel for urban life and where better to do this than London. With something historical, quirky or artistic at every turn, a walk in London might be busy, hectic and stimulating but it is definitely isn’t boring.
Maps don’t usually mention cheeky squirrels, skateboard parks and recommended selfie spots but the new Walk London map does. My copy now has pride of place on the shelf in my office. It deserves it and I am looking forward to taking it back to London to do a bit more exploring. The good news for you is that, if you want your own copy, the Walk London map is now available to buy… both online and in popular travel and bookshops. When you get it and read the writing, you will have to let me know whether or not you detect a hint of Blonde.
“If you find yourself making flamboyant steps and humming as you pass Lambeth Bridge, you might just be doing the Lambeth Walk…”
https://www.twoblondeswalking.com/courses/dartmoor-navigation-courses/
