I fell in love with city walking when I discovered the London Loop, the long-distance orbital path that circles the edges of Greater London. This was back in 2002, and I cemented my relationship four years later with the Capital Ring, the Loop's younger sibling. I loved both walks; although walking through a capital city might not be as glamorous as exploring moors or climbing mountains, the city's charms are unique – even in much-maligned suburbia – and it didn't take me long to get hooked.
The problem was, I devoured the Loop and Ring as quickly as I could, thrilled by the discovery of places I'd seen on the front of Tube trains; Uxbridge came and went, closely followed by High Barnet and Cockfosters, and when I finally came to the last day of the Ring, I was bereft. And then it struck me, lying in bed one night, that maybe I should walk across London instead of around it, perhaps following the general direction of the Northern and Central lines... and from that came my plan to do the mother of all tubewalks: the London Underground, on foot.
At first I thought I'd follow the rules of the Tube Challenge, except on foot, but it just didn't feel right. Then a good friend suggested I simply walk each line in turn, and that idea soon gave birth to my own, personal rules for tubewalking. Since then I've been busy planning my route and setting up this placeholder website, ready to set off in June 2008.
I can't wait to start, and I hope you'll join me as I document my exploration of the London Underground right here, starting in June.
