1. Start of route at North Finchley bus garage

Before getting on the bus at the bus garage, take a short walk to the Belarus church, the first wooden church built in London since the Great Fire in 1666. The materials used were wood and glass, and as the windows are high, the church is essentially ‘windowless’ reflecting the inward-focused Byzantine liturgical tradition. Next door to the church is the Belarusian Library and Museum, the only library outside Belarus to have an exclusive collection in the field of Belarusian studies. Planning permission was granted to build the church in 2013 and it was soon after the Chernobyl nuclear disaster in 2016 that it was finally built and consecrated. North Finchley, where the church is located, has since WWII become a key location for the Belarusian community and thus this corner of Woodside Park has been dubbed a «Belarusian Village» ever since.

2. Onslow Gardens bus stop

This is a great stop as it’s right by Highgate Wood, where there is so much more than a green space and lots of trees. There’s the Muswell Hill Fountain which is actually listed as grade II. It has a granite obelisk sitting on a square plinth which stands on an octagonal base. Within the plinth is a narrow dog trough so dogs and their owners alike can take the water from here. On one side is an inscription from the writer Samuel Taylor Coleridge: “Drink, Pilgrim, here! Here rest! And if thy heart / Be innocent, here too shalt thou refresh / Thy spirit, listening to some gentle sound / Or passing gale or hum of murmuring bees!” Coleridge had strong connections with Highgate, living at 3, The Grove from 1816 until his death in 1834.

Wherever you go within the Wood, there are signposts to help you find the next place, either within the wood or a walk away. One place worthy of a visit especially at this time of the year (April) is the café with its beautifully clad wisteria roof. It’s a great meeting point and it’s near the Information Hut so you can find out more about the history of the Wood.

Now head towards the Information Hut and discover more about the pottery and kilns from days gone by. You’ll see a genuine Roman kiln that was discovered on the northern ridge of Highgate that was made by Romans working here around 150 AD. It’s made from clay and earth and wood, all of which could be found in the local area. These Roman potters used the kiln to fire their pots made from clay from the woods. The pots would have been thrown on a wheel and fired to create a range of kitchen and table ware.

As well as this hut, there are a couple of lodges that you can see if you look hard enough. There’s the Gatekeeper’s Cottage near the café, with its pretty timber-clad walls that looks fairly modern and there’s also the Keeper’s Lodge that was built in 1886. This listed building was the home of the Wood’s Head Keeper and these days still accommodates staff. It’s probably best to see it during the winter months when the trees are devoid of leaves but it’s still possible to catch a glimpse of it even now. It’s built in a mock Tudor style and bears the City of London crest on the pediment of the building.

3. Highgate Wood bus stop

Although the previous stop takes you to one entrance of Highgate Wood, this stop takes you to another entrance, with its rather lovely ornate entrance gate. Over the road from this is the house where Peter Sellers once lived and which has a blue plaque to commemorate it. It’s not an official blue plaque but one that was placed there by “The Dead Comics Society”. It tells you that he lived there in the years 1936-1940, so from age 11 for 4 years.

4. Tufnell Park station bus stop

On the way to the next stop, the bus goes underneath Hornsey Lane Bridge, aka Suicide Bridge on account of the number of deaths that have occurred here in the past. It’s now had safety barriers erected to prevent the sad occurrences but its beauty can still be admired.

Near Tufnell Park station is The Boston Arms pub, a grade II listed building that was built in 1899. It’s next door to the Dome and they are linked by the music events that are put on here. The Dome is a former public baths and laundry and with its distinct domed roof, is a well-recognised feature of this area of London. As well as a music venue, the Dome/Boston Arms, serves as a community hub, hosting a variety of events and activities, welcoming both local residents and visitors to Tufnell Park.

Opposite the Boston Arms is Tufnell Park station that was opened on 22 June 1907. The exterior features glazed terracotta tiling in a striking dark red colour, supplied by the Leeds Fireclay Company. Walk round the corner and you’ll find a couple of interesting gate piers on either side of Tufnell Park Road. The two pillars date from 1872 and once marked the start of the land owned by the Tufnell family. It is said that this family had once planned a park “as grand as Regent’s Park” in the area but soon realised that they would make far more money by building houses. It wasn’t a great success but that’s where the ‘park’ in Tufnell Park’s name comes from.

5. Kentish Town Post Office bus stop

Opposite the station is a large mural that looks out at you as you pass. This set of eyes is the creation of street artist Dac, who says that ““The model is a singer from Chalk Farm called Asami Zdrenka. Her face and her looks suited the work I do and because she lives locally, I felt it worked well. My narrative is I want to beautify the urban landscape – I call it urban aesthetics.” Locals in Kentish Town are apparently really pleased with this mural as it brightens up the area.

Along the road from the mural is the Owl Bookshop. The bookshop was launched in 1974 and moved to its current premises 25 years later. It’s now owned by Daunt Books and is a wonderful local resource for residents of Kentish Town. They pride themselves on stocking an eclectic range from popular children’s books to more esoteric literature. A great place to have a wander and browse to your heart’s content.

5. William Road bus stop

Here is the Camden People’s Theatre, another great local resource at the bottom of Camden Road, which prides itself on bringing the community together to be entertained by the artists that perform here. As a renowned fringe theatre, they support new and emerging artists and writers as well as provide a welcome space for the Camden community.

6. Warren Street station/Euston Road bus stop

Next to Euston station is the renowned building at 30 Euston Square. It was originally constructed as the HQ of a large Assurance Company, and is now the HQ of the Royal College of General Practitioners. The Grade II listed building was designed in the Greek Revival style and is decorated with Doulton Parian Ware tiles. The Edwardian façade exudes timeless elegance, making it an iconic landmark in London..

Hop over the road to the Wellcome Collection, which is always a delight. As you walk up the stairs, you’ll find “Feel”, the upside-down man, a statue by Anthony Gormley, which looks to defy gravity. The café has warm and comfortable seating and the light feature is a must-see as they change colour from purple to blue to green.

There are always exhibitions here and they are all free of charge. The interior architecture is superb – climb the classic staircases up to the first floor exhibitions. On permanent display up here is Being Human which “explores what it means to be human in the 21st century. It reflects our hopes and fears about new forms of medical knowledge, and our changing relationships with ourselves, each other and the world.”

7. University College Hospital/Euston Road bus stop

Final stop on this route is possibly the best of them all. Walk round the corner to see two museums, both part of University College London. The first is the Petrie Museum of Egyptian Archaeology. The museum is a teaching resource for UCL so it’s not open to the public until the afternoon. The first Edwards Professor of the university (a specialist Egyptologist) was William Matthew Flinders Petrie, who had carried out a number of important excavations. In 1913 he sold his collections of Egyptian antiquities to UCL, creating the Flinders Petrie Collection of Egyptian Antiquities, and transforming the museum into what is now one of the leading collections outside Egypt. There are three galleries: the main gallery contains many of the museum’s small domestic artefacts, mummy portraits and cases, and various tablets, including Pyramid Texts, written in hieroglyphics, Greek, and Arabic. The second gallery contains many cabinets of pottery, clothing, jewellery, and shabti figures, all arranged chronologically. The final gallery houses works of art from Akhenaten’s city at Amarna: colourful tiles, carvings and frescoes, and from many other important Egyptian and Nubian settlements and burial sites. 

Having filled yourself at the breath-taking museum, there’s more to come so wander round the corner to the Grant Museum of Zoology. Walk inside and you’re greeted by some very well-informed staff who will explain what are the most cherished items, how to navigate your way around the museum and as much or as little as you want to know. Like the Petrie Museum, Grant is used for teaching students at UCL.

There are over 100,000 specimens in the collection, with one of the most bizarre being a large jar stuffed with whole preserved moles. There’s a skeleton of a quagga, being one of only seven examples known of this South African zebra. The animal has been extinct since 1883 so this is the rarest skeleton in the world. Other specimens include a skeleton of an Indian Rhinoceros, a chimpanzee and a common dolphin. Look out for the cabinet filled with Sawfish Rostra. Sawfish are characterised by a toothed rostrum used during feeding and for defence. Once common, sawfish are amongst the most threatened groups of marine fish due to overfishing and habitat loss.

And finally, before you walk out, look at the Giant Deer Antlers at the entrance/exit. This extinct animal lived 400,000 – 7,000 years ago. The male stood at around 2m tall and grew the largest antlers of any animal, reaching 3.6m across. Like all deer, these antlers, weighing up to 45kg, were shed and regrown each year to coincide with the rut – the mating season when they display their impressive antlers and fight rivals for females).

And so ended bus 134. The start of the route didn’t have too much to offer but as the journey progressed towards the centre of London, it definitely got more interesting. I could have spent a lot more time in the two museums at the end and will definitely return to do them credit. But I also found Highgate wood to be enticing and the Belarus church intriguing.

Toilets that are open to the public and free of charge:

• Pavilion Café, Highgate Wood
• Boston Arms
• Wellcome Collection
• Petrie and Grant Museums