IMAGES TAKEN NEAR TO
The Covert, Fox Hill, LONDON, SE19 2UR

I suspect that both the tree and villas date from the 1850s. The Crystal Palace was re-erected on the site to the east of Anerley Hill in 1854, and the railway arrived that same year, at the Low Level station - opening this hilly area up to suburban development. As for the monkey-puzzle tree, dipping into an old 'New Naturalist' volume (Dudley Stamp's, 'Man and the Land') I see that the Chile Pine (Araucaria imbricata) was introduced into England in 1796. A friend who was with me when I took the photo remarked that the species has now become scarce in London. Apparently the monkey-puzzle is susceptible to hard frost - but I suspect many of the losses were due to the storms of 1987 and 1990. The roadway here must be one of the steepest in South London - steeper, I'd say, than streets such as The Downs and Edge Hill in Wimbledon.

Surely one of the steepest stretches of road in South London. Since childhood I have thought of The Downs, SW20, as one of the steepest roadways 'south of the river', but - having re-visited SW20 since taking this photo - I reckon Fox Hill is steeper. That may also be true of adjacent streets in SE19. My guess is that the other likely candidates for the title of steepest street in London are to be found in North London - around Muswell Hill and Highgate. Elsewhere in England, 'the Steep' in Lincoln comes to mind: Image

"Croydon Board of Health" puts this drain grid before the setting up of Croydon County Borough in the late 19th century. It can be seen still exercising its function in Image

Camille Pissarro's famous painting of Fox Hill in snow uses a viewpoint around here; probably a little further uphill. The large oak seen leaning out across the road was taken down on safety grounds in 2013 and subsequently replaced by a tree planted in memory of the animator Bob Godfrey (see Image).

The tree leaning over the road from the left, in the middle distance, can be seen more closely in Image It was felled as a safety hazard in 2013 and replaced by a sapling planted in memory of the animator Bob Godfrey (see Image).

Rain just beginning to ease up, after a downpour that had lasted since before dawn.

The white garage doors mark the entrance to Jenson Way. In the distance, several miles off, is the high ground of Keston Common and beyond it the North Downs.

The white garage doors mark the entrance to Jenson Way, and beyond them the large Victorian villas of Fox Hill Gardens. In the distance, several miles off, is the high ground of Keston Common and beyond it the North Downs.