Wapping & Limehouse

There were once 36 taverns along Wapping High Street that catered for the many sailors and less salubrious characters that frequented this part of London. Walk along the High Street and you will encounter the first of these; the Town of Ramsgate, previously known as ‘The Red Cow’, named after, it is said, the pub’s red-haired barmaid. If you have time, duck down the narrow alley next to the pub and if the tide is out, venture down the Wapping Old Stairs to see where once the fishermen landed their catch from Ramsgate in Kent – hence the current name of the pub. It was here too that the infamous Judge Jeffreys was captured as he attempted to flee to Hamburg. In the cellars are the dungeons where convicts were kept before being transported to Australia.

The path takes you onto Narrow Street and soon on your right, you will pass the Narrow Street Pub at the entrance to the Limehouse Basin and once home to the Dock Master who had excellent views of the Thames. This is where barges can still access the network of canals and waterways that can take you all the way to Manchester.