London In Photos – Summer 2026 – Wildlife, Drought, Thames Path Walks And Day Trips

As we’re finally transitioning into autumn, it’s time for my quarterly photo blog from London. It feels like summer this year has been a million years long, and writing the Spring 2026 update is just a distant memory. This summer in London was exceptionally hot and dry, and I tried my best to make the most of the warm days. I explored new parts of London, finding inspiration for further trips in the future; I went on countless day trips to escape the London heat, and I had a lovely time back in Poland around my birthday in July. Here’s a summary of summer 2026, with lots of photos from London and beyond!

Aftermath of a drought

If I had to choose a soundtrack for this post, it would be Coldplay’s song ‘Yellow’. I’m not really a Coldplay fan, but I had this song playing in my head on repeat every time I left the house. The landscape was indeed pretty yellow! If you don’t live in the UK, you can probably imagine what stereotypical English weather looks like. Well, this summer was nothing like that.

In my area of London, we had a period of 51 (!) consecutive days without even a drop of rain. There was no rain in July at all.

I posted about my summer day trip to Rochester, which I enjoyed at the end of May – technically, still in the spring. We had the first days with temperatures over 30°C then. Since then, we essentially observed back to back heatwaves. London parks, well looked after and usually stunning, turned yellow in July. Green, vibrant grass was replaced by hay.

By August, even the hay was turning to dust, uncovering bare, dry soil underneath. Walking in my local park in August felt like a post-apocalyptic experience. Everywhere you looked was bleak yellow. Dry leaves were falling off the trees, a couple of months before the official start of autumn.

London park after a long period of drought. There is no grass left, just dry hay. Trees are still green, and the sky is blue. — London In Photos – Summer 2026

London park after a long period of drought. There is no grass left, just dry hay. Trees are still green, though some have lost leaves. — London In Photos – Summer 2026

Wildlife in London parks

Let’s rewind to the end of spring. London parks were full of ducklings and gooselings. They were so cute!

Every year, I wonder what ‘teenager’ ducks and geese look like. I always see tiny baby ducks and lots of adult ones, but do you ever see any in between the two stages?

Well, I did see some this year. ‘Teenager’ geese are impressive in size… except for the tiny wings! I saw this goose in St James’s Park, it was cute but hilarious.

Young 'teenager' goose spotted in St James's Park, London — London In Photos – Summer 2026 – Young Goose

Young 'teenager' goose spotted in St James's Park, London, next to an adult goose — London In Photos – Summer 2026 – Young Geese

Adult and baby geese grazing on the green grass in a park in London — London In Photos – Summer 2026 – Geese

A duck in a pond in London — London In Photos – Summer 2026 – Duck

Apart from ducks and geese, London parks are also home to herons, swans, parakeets, and squirrels, amongst many other animals.

I once spotted a squirrel… licking a discarded Nutella pot. I know that squirrels love nuts, but I’m pretty sure chocolate can’t be good for them. Seeing it actually made me sad. I tried to scare the squirrel off, hoping it would drop the Nutella pot, but it took it onto the tree to continue the meal.

Fun fact: London’s St James’s Park has been home to resident pelicans for centuries, but there have never been baby pelicans born in the park until 2026! The Park’s pelicans had offspring for the very first time, which proves that the birds are well looked after. 4 cute baby pelicans were born! They were completely black when they hatched, but when I went to see them a few days ago, they seemed to be turning pink. I didn’t manage to take any good photos, unfortunately – they were far away and there was strong sunshine.

A squirrel on a concrete path, staring straight into the camera — London In Photos – Summer 2026 – Squirrel

A squirrel sitting on a tree, eating from a Nutella pot — London In Photos – Summer 2026 – Squirrel With Nutella

Two green parakeets on the green grass in London — London In Photos – Summer 2026 – Parakeets

A heron and a swan in a pond in Hyde Park, London — London In Photos – Summer 2026 – Heron And Swan

Lots of geese, seagulls, swans, and a couple of herons by the pond in Hyde Park, London — London In Photos – Summer 2026 – Waterfowl

An adult swan and three cygnets on a pond in St James's Park, London — London In Photos – Summer 2026 – Geese

London parks in the summer

I actually haven’t spent much time in London parks this summer. The weather has been good (too good, actually), and I spent most of my weekends on day trips to the coast or long Thames Path walks in west London. I did, however, spend some time in my local parks: West Ham Park and Queen Elizabeth II Olympic Park.

I also popped to St James’s Park, Hyde Park, Kensington Gardens and Hampstead Heath.

Rose Garden in Hyde Park, London — London In Photos – Summer 2026 – Hyde Park Rose Garden

Italian Gardens in London, England — London In Photos – Summer 2026 – Italian Gardens

Flower garden in West Ham Park, London, on a cloudy day — London In Photos – Summer 2026 – West Ham Park

Royal Albert Hall, London, at golden hour — London In Photos – Summer 2026 – Royal Albert Hall

Prince Albert Memorial, London — London In Photos – Summer 2026 – Albert Memorial

Rose garden in Hyde Park, London, in the summer. The grass is green and there are colourful flowers in the flower bed — London In Photos – Summer 2026 – Hyde Park

Colourful flowers in front of West Ham stadium in the Olympic Park, London — London In Photos – Summer 2026 – Olympic Park

Popular London landmarks

Even though I’ve lived in London for 7 years now, I still take photos of the popular landmarks. During my walks in central London I saw Tower Bridge, Buckingham Palace, the Big Ben, and more.

A view of London Eye from the bridge over the pond in St James's Park, London — London In Photos – Summer 2026 – St James’s Park

Buckingham Palace and statue of Queen Victoria, London, England — London In Photos – Summer 2026 – Buckingham Palace

Pall Mall - a wide road leading to Buckingham Palace in London, with dozens of large Union Jack flags lining the street on both sides — London In Photos – Summer 2026 – Pall Mall

The view of City of London and St Paul's Cathedral seen from an Uber Boat — Exploring London From The Thames – Uber Boat Cruise

Thames Path walks in London

As a long walk fanatic, I love exploring London on foot. This year, I discovered the beauty of Thames Path walks in west London. I walked from Hampton to Richmond one summer Saturday, and thoroughly enjoyed that day out.

On a different Saturday, for a shorter walk closer to home, I walked along the Thames Path from Cutty Sark (Greenwich) to Tower Bridge. It was a lovely, peaceful walk, away from large crowds.

River Thames in west London. There are flowers on one side of the river, and modern houses with river access on the other side. — Hampton To Richmond Thames Path Walk – Long Walk In London

Cutty Sark, Greenwich, London, in the summer. — London In Photos – Summer 2026 – Cutty Sark Thames Path

A view of Tower Bridge, the Shard, St Paul's Cathedral and the Walkie-Talkie building in London. In the foreground, there's a metal statue of a cat sitting on a wall. — London In Photos – Summer 2026 – Tower Bridge Thames Path

Taking the Uber boat for a Thames cruise

After nearly seven years of living in London, I finally took the Uber boat for a ‘cruise’ along the Thames in central London. The boats are marketed as part of public transport, not sightseeing cruises, and they do indeed move quite fast. But you still get to enjoy the views!

I took the boat from North Greenwich to Vauxhall Pier (I had to change at Embankment Pier). The whole trip cost me around £12 and took around an hour. I really enjoyed it and will definitely do it again some time. Maybe in the evening in winter?

The view of London Eye, Big Ben and Houses of Parliament seen from an Uber boat — London In Photos – Summer 2026 – Uber Boat

The view of Tower Bridge and the Shard seen from an Uber boat — Exploring London From The Thames – Uber Boat Cruise

Exploring Epping Forest

This summer, I also went to explore Epping Forest, located in north-east London, just a few tube stops away from my local station.

I took the Central line to Loughton and, after a short walk through the town, I got to the edge of Epping Forest.

Epping Forest is a large woodland area with lots of walking trails, it seems perfect for a nature day out in London, although I didn’t love the fact that the Forest is dissected by a busy road with no pedestrian crossing, with walking routes on both sides. Does the council expect walkers to run between the cars or learn to fly? What if someone visits the Forest with children or older family members?

Still, I spent a lovely couple of hours in Epping Forest. I will write a post about visiting Epping Forest soon, so watch this space!

Panoramic view of Epping Forest from the Visitor Centre. The sky is blue, the trees are green, but the gras is yellow and dry — A Day In Oxford – Day Trip From London – Epping Forest

Lotus Pond in Epping Forest, London, in the summer — Exploring Epping Forest – Nature Walk In London

Solar eclipse in London in August 2026

On August 12th, I had a chance to observe the solar eclipse. It wasn’t a full eclipse, but the Sun was about 90-95% covered. Without eclipse glasses, you wouldn’t have seen much. Luckily, I was prepared. I had bought a pair of eclipse glasses the previous week, before they sold out everywhere. It was really difficult to take pictures of the eclipse, but I managed to snap some through the glasses.

Solar eclipse captured in London in August 2026 — London In Photos – Summer 2026 – Solar Eclipse

Birthday celebrations

I have to mention my birthday too, which was at the end of July. For the first time in years, I spent it with my family back in Poland. We went to the zoo, which I wrote about in one of my very first posts on this blog, many years ago. It’s changed massively since then!

I made two cakes for my birthday, both recipes are already up on the blog: a berry ‘cloud’ cake, and a decadent chocolate cake with salted peanut butter icing.

Speaking of summer foods, I’ve thoroughly enjoyed the strawberry season this year. I had mashed strawberries with yoghurt almost every day for the past 2.5 months. It’s one of my favourite tastes of my childhood! Strawberry season is ending now and this snack doesn’t work with frozen or imported strawberries. I will miss it, despite genuinely having it every single day for weeks.

Two capybaras, a larger and a smaller one, munching on dandelion leaves in Chorzow Zoo — Visiting Chorzow Zoo – Capybaras

A slice of shortbread cake with a meringue layer and berries, on a plate — Summer Berry Cloud Shortbread Cake

A slice of egg-free salted peanut butter chocolate cake — Egg-free Salted Peanut Butter Chocolate Cake

A plate with mashed strawberries mixed with natural yoghurt and chia seeds — London In Photos – Summer 2026 – Strawberries With Yoghurt

Day trips from London

I was incredibly lucky to have a chance to go on numerous trips this summer. I’ve already posted about most of them on the blog!

I visited Rochester on a cosy summer day trip during the first heatwave of the year, where I enjoyed an ice cream by the castle, explored the high street and visited Rochester Cathedral.

I walked a few long sections of the England Coast Path: from Folkestone to Hythe, from Hastings to Rye Harbour, and from Whitstable to Margate (post coming next week).

Rochester Castle, seen from the castle grounds — A Cosy Summer Day Trip To Rochester, England

Colourful, pink beach huts along the beach in Folkestone — Folkestone To Hythe – England Coast Path – Day Trip From London

A path through the bushes on top of a cliff in Hastings Country Park — Hastings To Rye Harbour Hike – England Coast Path

Colourful beach huts by the sea near Whitstable, seen from a hill — Whitstable To Margate Walk – England Coast Path – Very Long Walk Near London By Train

I also went to Guildford for a day trip with a nature walk and some sightseeing, where I visited a stunning chapel.

I also went on a very long hike near Box Hill in Surrey Hills, extending the official Box Hill hike. I found an incredible viewpoint with a panorama of London’s skyline!

The outside of Limnerlease House near Watt's Gallery — Summer Day Trip To Guildford From London – Watt’s Gallery – Limnerlease House

London skyline seen from a viewpoint in Norbury Park, Surrey — Box Hill Hike Extended Route – Very Long Hike Near London

And speaking of hikes, I went on a quick evening hike in Edale, Peak District when I was in Manchester for a work trip, and later spent the weekend in Lake District. I climbed Helvellyn in atrocious weather, and had a lovely stroll near Ullswater the next day, with much better views.

I also spent a couple of days in my beloved Tatra Mountains in Poland and climbed Kozi Wierch.

And recently, at the end of August, I went on a day trip to Oxford – post coming soon!

Woolpacks rock formations near Grindslow Knoll in Edale, Peak District — Evening Hike Near Edale, Peak District – Grindslow Knoll

Green hills in a valley between Glenridding and Helvellyn A few sheep rest on the grass. — Helvellyn Hike – Lake District – From Glenridding Avoiding The Edges

A pile of stones on top of a hill. A lake and other hills can be seen in the background — Ullswater Hike – Lake District – Pooley Bridge To Barton Fell

The view of 5 Ponds Valley from the top of Kozi Wierch, Poland — Kozi Wierch Hike – Tatra Mountains – Poland

Bodleian Library, Oxford. The sky is largely blue, with some heavy clouds on the right side of the photo. The grass around the round building has dried up and turned to hay — A Day In Oxford – Day Trip From London – Bodleiam Library

Getting ready for autumn… and Christmas

It’s been an incredible summer. Writing this post definitely helped me realise how much I’ve had a chance to do and see in the past 3 months!

We finally had some cooler, rainy days recently, and I’m ready for autumn and then Christmas. The luxury department stores in London have already opened their Christmas stores, and I thoroughly enjoyed visiting them.

And by the way – if you’re planning to visit London this Christmas, I wrote a guide to visiting London at Christmas with lots of tips, reviews, photos, and practical info.

But for now, happy autumn! London parks are pretty when the trees turn red and yellow, so make sure to check out my next quarterly update at some point at the end of November.