Grand Union Canal

First post! Today, I walked along the Grand Union Canal, specifically the Paddington Arm, from Willesden to the canal's terminus behind St. Mary's Hospital near Paddington Station.

I walked east on this map:

The canal was amalgamated in the early 20th century from a series of smaller canals, in this case Grand Junction Canal and Regent's Canal. 

Willesden, where I started, is pretty industrial, and it shows along the canal for a little while:

Looking east from a rivet-y old bridge.

Then I set off down the towpath, toward the ominous oil(?) tanks.

Most of these boats were powered by wind and sun.

Spring is kind of here.

The canal has a narrow park on the south side, and on the north side the industrial lots are eventually replaced by a massive old cemetery. Plenty of boats moored here, especially on the north side, and almost all have wind power. I was a tad uncomfortable taking photos of people's homes, especially since some of them were sitting on their roof watching people walk by. 

One of the more interesting boats on the canal. And a Sainsbury's.

Living in a water tower, overlooking the canal. Who wouldn't want that?

New-old all the way down to Paddington Basin. Maybe indicative of the whole island.

Passing through the Ladbroke Grove area. The enormous housing complex just to the south is visible from all over northwest London, and I'll bet the top floors can probably see the entire span I walked today. You can see it at the center of the first picture in the distance.

Lookalike of a cat I know.

Dzong-ish architecture.

Around Warwick Avenue. Quite a few houseboats through here, though with fewer wind turbines and solar panels, more TV antennas.

Little Venice comes up pretty suddenly, right after a British Waterways boatpark (for lack of a better word) complete with private bathrooms. 

Into Little Venice.

This is also where the canal branches from the Paddington Arm of the Grand Union to Regent's Canal. I kept straight on southeast, to the right, but the branch is to the left.

"The Regent's Canal, Paddington" by Algernon Newtown, 1930, Royal Academy of Arts.

A canal boat worth special mention.

The terminus comes up pretty fast. From this point on, its all been rebuilt, part of a waterfront revival project. Suddenly this became visible and I knew the end was nigh:

The last houseboats on the line.

Definitely the strangest bridge on the canal.

The terminus.

And then it just sort ends, right in the middle of an office complex. How different from where I started! Industrial to service industry, all in about a two-hour walk. Houseboats are really constant, all the way to Paddington, and its probably the cheapest housing in that neighborhood. Interestingly, Paddington Station has walkway that connects it to the towpath, so really the Grand Union Canal also transfers to the Bakerloo, Circle, District, and Hammersmith & City Lines, as well as Great Western Railway etc. Its a shame this isn't more clearly indicated on Transit for London tube maps.