Cycling
Our cycling group is up-and-riding every Tuesday. See Fitness & Wellbeing.
Days Out
Leaders: Barbara Bliss & Denise Randall
Thursday 2 November: A visit to the St Bride Library and Foundation in the City of London. Tour starts at 11.00 am. Cost £15 per person. Participants should make their own way to the Foundation at 14 Bride Lane, EC4Y 8EQ (closest stations: City Thameslink and Blackfriars).
At the heart of St Bride’s Library is an extraordinary archive relating to one of the world’s remarkable and irreplaceable collection of over 200,000 specimens encapsulating the history of print, typography, and design. The museum houses an amazing collection on printing machines, steel punches, and casting matrices. The St. Bride Foundation, which is housed in a beautiful Grade II listed Victorian building, was originally set up to serve the burgeoning print and publishing trade of nearby Fleet street.
Thursday 14th December: Visit Windsor Castle for their special ‘CHRISTMAS AT WINDSOR CASTLE’ TOUR. This year will celebrate the 675th Anniversary of the Order of the Garter, the oldest order of chivalry in Britain which was founded in Windsor in 1348, and it is also the first Christmas of King Charles III reign. The State Departments will be transformed with magnificent Christmas displays alongside Coronation themed decorations to celebrate this special year. We will also be able to treat ourselves to a festive bit to eat in one of the oldest surviving spaces in the 1,000 year old castle. It is described as ‘This café is like no other’.
Tickets must be paid before the 21st November.
Total cost of the coach outing is £48.50 p.p.
For more information, please contact Barbara at ‘barbliss1@outlook.com’
Contact groupsorg@hgsu3a.uk if you want to be added to the group’s mailing list.
Grow Your Own Vegetables
Leader: Eric Hess
Join Eric for advice on how to get the best out of your vegetable garden or allotment. Eric has a background working in agriculture abroad. After he returned to the UK he established a Horticultural Project for Adults with Learning Difficulties, focusing on growing and selling vegetables.
Learn about growing winter vegetables, preparing for the spring, dealing with pests, and sowing. Although the main focus is on vegetables, Eric will also try to answer other questions you might have related to gardening.
Eric also maintains a blog dedicated to vegetable growing.
- Location: Gordon Road Allotments, London N3 1EL — off Elm Park Road and Nether Street near Finchley Central Station
History and Heritage Outings
Mark King, a professional Blue Badge tourist guide, has kindly offered to share some of London’s remarkable history, heritage, and current happenings with our u3a. He is a former chair and Life Fellow of the British Guild of Tourist Guides. Author of The Blue Badge Guide’s London Quiz Book, published in 2016 by The History Press, he acted as consulting editor for other books in the series covering Oxford, Liverpool, and Edinburgh.
In the course of lengthy and typically enthusiastic research for his book, his long-suffering family felt it necessary to bring in a house rule limiting him to ‘Three Facts Per Meal’. Mark tells us ‘suffice it to say that this programme of tours and visits to be organised for HGS U3A will be entertaining, unusual, and never knowingly under-informed!’
Outdoor Sketching
See Arts & Crafts.
Photography in London
Leaders: Michael Jacobs & Roger Cookson
We have now resumed outdoor shooting, followed by sharing our best shots a fortnight later on Zoom. For the foreseeable future, outdoor locations are being chosen where parking is possible to enable the participation of members who don’t want to travel on public transport.
It’s intended to be a fun-oriented group rather than a technocratic, competitive society.
- When: Wednesday 10.30 am – 12 noon
- Frequency: Fortnightly, alternating between outdoor shootings and review sessions.
- Number of places: 15
Walking Groups
From September, we will have two walking groups. Walking Wednesdays meets once a month for a gentle walk from Golders Green station. Thames Path in London & Other Walks ventures further afield for longer walks twice a month.
Thames Path in London & Other Walks
Leader: David Powers
Walking is an excellent way to get and keep fit. We try to get into the fresh air away from busy roads, exploring not only the Thames, but London’s canals, waterways, and green spaces. The length of each walk varies, but is generally 4–4½ miles, sometimes longer. We walk at a moderately brisk pace, but not so fast that it’s impossible to talk. In fact, good conversation is one of the many pleasures of this group.
Walks start and end at different places, so participants need to be willing to travel by public transport (or make arrangements for someone else to drop them off and pick them up by car).
We normally stop for coffee after about an hour, and then find a nice pub or restaurant for lunch. Staying for lunch is optional, but most people join in.
- When: 2nd and 4th Friday of the month throughout the year, except when the leader is away (NO walks on 10 November or 22 December 2023)
- Time: Walks normally begin at 10.15 am and end around 12.30–1.00 pm (not including travel time)
- Travel: Instructions are sent to members several days in advance of each walk. Members in the Golders Green area normally travel together from Golders Green station after 9.00 am (time depends on destination). Others join at the start of the walk.
Walking Wednesdays
Leader: Arlene Hyman
A gentle walk held once a month.
Meeting outside Golders Green Station Booking Office at 10.15 for a 10.30 start. The walk will be approximately 2–3 miles , finishing at 12.30 with a coffee break and chance to use toilet facilities.