Camden, Bloomsbury & the Wellcome Collection (IWD Ride)

We mark International Women’s Day with a ride into Central London to view some memorials of famous women, and other sights of interest. Our destination is the Wellcome Collection on Euston Road, where we might visit the temporary exhibition, The Cult of Beauty, https://wellcomecollection.org/exhibitions/ZJ1zCxAAACMAczPA (free admission), or explore other parts of the permanent Collection.

From Ealing, we ride out via Wormwood Scrubs, North Kensington and St John’s Wood, to reach Camden Market for a brief pause to see the statue of Amy Winehouse https://londonist.com/london/art-and-photography/remembering-amy-winehouse-in-camden . Riding on, we turn south on the cycle track on Royal College Street, and take a detour to view the splendid Egyptian cats on the former Carreras Cigarette Factory in Mornington Crescent https://historiclondontours.com/tales-of-london/f/the-black-cat-factory?fbclid=IwAR1eqxQ15Yiw8ljA5WJA4vUwokvg7kBt4EJYoHE6MSosP1t_573KHpwSp_E_aem_AcreaMu9rl-VEsTeXwiiAMysznP8sI-cwoiq0UKPPMXf3mB7QzErO10RosRP7iTXLmcEHtjQD-9DaBalbzYaFZR2 , before continuing to Old St Pancras Churchyard.
Here we will pay our respects at the memorial to feminist philosopher Mary Wollstonecraft, and we will also see the tombs of John & Eliza Soane (once owners of Pitzhanger Manor in Ealing), the extravagant Burdett Coutts Memorial Sundial, and the sad remains of the curious Hardy Tree. https://lookup.london/old-st-pancras-churchyard/

Continuing south, we cross the Euston Road and ride into Bloomsbury, where we will see Tracey Emin’s mitten by the Foundling Hospital , https://londonist.com/london/features/my-fascination-with-the-foundling-museum before visiting the memorials in Tavistock Square to surgeon Louisa Brandreth Aldrich Blake and writer Virginia Woolf, and in neighbouring Gordon Square to SOE Resistance Agent Noor Inayat Khan. https://bloomsburysquares.com/2021/03/08/women-in-bloomsbury-squares-international-womens-day-8-march/

We will reach the Wellcome Collection in time for lunch in the café, before exploring the exhibitions. You are free to make your own way home, by public transport or bike. Euston station has Overground services to Willesden Junction; Kings Cross/St Pancras, Tottenham Court Road and Farringdon are also nearby for Metropolitan Line, Elizabeth Line, and other services.

Ride to Camden & Bloomsbury, to view several women's memorials and other sights of interest. Finish at the Wellcome Collection, to visit exhibition.

Quieter roads where possible, some shorter stretches on busier roads. Shared paths through parks. Segregated cycle tracks.

Several short stops en route to view sights of interest. Refreshments at Wellcome Collection and time to visit exhibitions.

Water & snacks for the ride. Locks for your bike. Money/card for cafe and for return travel.

First-timers welcome!