West is the quiet direction: fewer runners, fewer buggies, and a stretch of river that looks much as it did before anyone thought to put a rowing race on it.
Barnes has a National Trail running through it, which is more than most London neighbourhoods can claim. The Thames Path follows the river along both banks here, and in practice it gets used for three walks: east to Hammersmith, on to Putney, or west through Mortlake towards Kew. All three are flat, signposted and perfectly doable in ordinary shoes.
One thing to settle before you set off. Hammersmith Bridge has been under long-running structural restrictions, and the closure to traffic is the backdrop to the rewriting of the Barnes bus map. It shapes every walk on this list: the bridge is a landmark you walk towards rather than a route traffic pours over, and the river is quieter for it.
Barnes to Hammersmith: 1.8 miles, 35-45 minutes
The everyday walk, and the one to do on a winter afternoon when the light goes at four. From Barnes Bridge, follow the towpath on the south side past Queen Elizabeth's Walk and Barnes Village, then cross to the north bank near St Nicholas Church in Chiswick to come into Hammersmith. National Trail distance markers put Barnes Bridge at 159.9 miles from the source of the Thames and Hammersmith Bridge at 161.7 - a shade under two miles, 35 to 45 minutes at an unhurried pace.
Barnes to Putney: 3.5 miles, an hour and a quarter
The markers put Putney Bridge at 163.4 miles from source, so roughly three and a half miles from Barnes Bridge. Allow an hour and a quarter to an hour and a half. The second half is flatter and more exposed than the first, which matters more in February than it does now. The Wetland Centre, just off the towpath on Queen Elizabeth's Walk, is the obvious halfway stop and the one to aim for with small children or in bad weather.
West towards Mortlake and Kew
West is the quiet direction. The path carries on from Barnes Bridge along the Surrey bank through Mortlake, where the Ship stands on the Boat Race finish line, and on towards Kew. Fewer runners, fewer buggies, and a stretch of river that looks much as it did before anyone thought to put a rowing race on it.
The Bull's Head, Barnes
373 Lonsdale Road, SW13 9PY. A Young's pub a few steps off the towpath, dog-friendly, food served daily. The better of the two Barnes pubs on this list if you want to sit down properly rather than stand with a pint by the wall. thebullsheadbarnes.com
The White Hart, Barnes
The Terrace, Riverside, SW13 0NR. Young's again, directly on the river, with terrace tables and benches looking across to Chiswick. The one to aim for on a bright afternoon and the one to give up on at four o'clock on a warm Sunday. Both it and the Bull's Head feature in our guide to Barnes pubs and our Sunday lunch guide. whitehartbarnes.co.uk
WWT London Wetland Centre
Queen Elizabeth's Walk, Barnes, SW13 9WT. Open seven days, 10am to 4.30pm, last admission 3.30pm. Online advance admission is £17.10 for adults and £11.12 for juniors aged three to 17. That is not a small sum for a stop on a walk, which makes the Wetland Centre a destination rather than a detour - worth planning a morning around rather than wandering into. The Water's Edge cafe sits at the entrance and is the useful bit for walkers: you can stop there without committing to the full circuit. wwt.org.uk
The Dove, Hammersmith
19 Upper Mall, W6 9TA. A Fuller's pub with outside seating on the water, and the natural full stop at the end of the Hammersmith leg. dovehammersmith.co.uk
The Ship, Mortlake
Thames Bank, Mortlake, SW14 7QR. A Greene King house sitting on the Boat Race finish line, and the reason to walk west at all. Hours are worth checking on the day.
How to choose
If you have an hour, do the Hammersmith leg. If you have an afternoon and children, walk to the Wetland Centre and no further. If you want the river to yourself, go west through Mortlake. Treat the distances as a guide rather than a stopwatch - sources measure from slightly different points, and the towpath is not a place to be timed.
The towpath is the best public space Barnes has, and it is better for a reason nobody chose: the bridge that carries no cars. The question this paper will keep putting is when, if ever, anything heavier than a walker crosses Hammersmith Bridge again. Until then, the finest thing about a Sunday on this stretch of river is the traffic that is not on it.
Details checked 20 September 2026.
- Barnes Bridge to Hammersmith Bridge is roughly 1.8 miles along the Thames Path towpath
- Barnes Bridge to Putney Bridge is roughly 3.5 miles
- The Bull's Head (373 Lonsdale Road, SW13 9PY) and the White Hart (The Terrace, Riverside, SW13 0NR) are both Young's pubs directly on the towpath
- WWT London Wetland Centre, off Queen Elizabeth's Walk, SW13 9WT, is open daily 10:00-16:30 with a café at the entrance
- The Dove, 19 Upper Mall, Hammersmith, W6 9TA, is a Fuller's pub with riverside outside seating
- The Ship at Thames Bank, Mortlake, SW14 7QR sits on the Boat Race finish line
Every factual claim in this story is linked to the evidence behind it. Where the newsroom has added judgement or framing, it is listed separately. Sources accessed 20 September 2026.
- Thames Path distance markers (other)
- Barnes to Hammersmith walk description (other)
- Thames Path Barnes to Embankment (other)
- Thames Path National Trail (other)
- The Bull's Head, Barnes (business)
- The White Hart, Barnes (business)
- The Dove, Hammersmith (business)
- WWT London Wetland Centre - Plan Your Visit (business)
- WWT London Wetland Centre - Directions (business)
- The Ship, Mortlake (business)
Claim by claim (9 facts, 19 editorial judgements)
- Barnes Bridge to Hammersmith Bridge is roughly 1.8 miles along the Thames Path — other“Barnes Bridge 159.9 miles, Hammersmith Bridge 161.7 miles”
- Barnes Bridge to Putney Bridge is roughly 3.5 miles along the Thames Path — other“Barnes Bridge 159.9 miles, Putney Bridge 163.4 miles”
- The route from Barnes to Hammersmith follows the Thames Path south side to Barnes Village and Barnes Bridge, crossing near St Nicholas Church, Chiswick, to reach Hammersmith — other“A linear walk of five miles via Thames Path (south side) to Queen Elizabeth Walk, Barnes Village and Barnes Bridge, then via Thames Path (north side)... to Hammersmith.”
- The Bull's Head is a Young's pub at 373 Lonsdale Road, Barnes, SW13 9PY, dog-friendly with daily food service — business“373 Lonsdale Road, Barnes, SW13 9PY”
- The White Hart is a Young's pub at The Terrace, Riverside, Barnes, SW13 0NR, with a riverside terrace — business“The Terrace, Riverside, Barnes, SW13 0NR”
- WWT London Wetland Centre is at Queen Elizabeth's Walk, Barnes, SW13 9WT, open daily 10:00-16:30, last admission 15:30 — business“Open 7 days, 10:00-16:30 (last admission 15:30)”
- WWT online advance admission is £17.10 for adults and £11.12 for juniors (3-17) — business“Adult £17.10, Junior (3-17) £11.12”
- The Dove is a Fuller's pub at 19 Upper Mall, Hammersmith, W6 9TA, with outside seating on the river — business“19 Upper Mall, Hammersmith, W6 9TA”
- The Ship, Mortlake, is at Thames Bank, Mortlake, SW14 7QR, on the Boat Race finish line, currently a Greene King house — business“Ship, Mortlake, SW14 7QR”
- Judgement: Hammersmith Bridge has had long-running structural restrictions affecting access in recent years
- Judgement: Barnes has a National Trail running through it, which is more than most London neighbourhoods can claim.
- Judgement: In practice the Thames Path here gets used for three walks: east to Hammersmith, on to Putney, or west through Mortlake towards Kew.
- Judgement: All three are flat, signposted and perfectly doable in ordinary shoes.
- Judgement: The closure shapes every walk on this list: the bridge is a landmark you walk to rather than a route traffic pours over, and the river is quieter for it.
- Judgement: 1.8 miles is 35 to 45 minutes at an unhurried pace.
- Judgement: This is the everyday walk, the one to do on a winter afternoon when the light goes at four.
- Judgement: 3.5 miles is an hour and a quarter to an hour and a half at the same pace, and the second half is flatter and more exposed than the first.
- Judgement: The Wetland Centre is the obvious halfway stop on the Putney leg, and the one to aim for with small children or in bad weather.
- Judgement: West is the quiet direction.
- Judgement: The Bull's Head is the better stop if you want to sit down properly rather than stand with a pint by the wall.
- Judgement: The White Hart is the one to aim for on a bright afternoon, and the one to give up on at four o'clock on a warm Sunday.
- Judgement: The Water's Edge cafe at the entrance is the useful bit for walkers: you can stop there without committing to the full circuit.
- Judgement: Admission is not a small sum for a walk-in stop, which makes the Wetland Centre a destination rather than a detour.
- Judgement: The Dove is the natural full stop at the end of the Hammersmith leg.
- Judgement: The Ship is the reason to walk west at all.
- Judgement: Treat the distances as a guide rather than a stopwatch; sources measure from slightly different points.
- Judgement: If you have an hour, do the Hammersmith leg. If you have an afternoon and children, walk to the Wetland Centre and no further. If you want the river to yourself, go west.
- Judgement: Until the bridge carries anything heavier than a walker again, the towpath's best feature is the traffic that is not on it.