The Hill was constructed at the junction of Russia Stave Docks, both of which were part of the Surrey Docks network. The last dock was filled in 1972, and the area remained untouched until 1980, when development for housing and light industry began. The Hill's resemblance to a neolithic tumulus recalls the Anglo Saxon settlement in the pre-Roman period, when the Thames was much wider and these low lying areas were subject to regular flooding. On the top, a viewing platform looks out over London. The trees of the ecology park and the Russia Dock woodland are backed by the financial district, with the river hidden in between. In the Cambrian period (541 to 485.4 million years ago), this area was covered by a shallow tropical sea. Sharks' and rays' teeth from this period can be found in gravel deposits at Abbey Wood, which can be seen to the South East. Up until the last ice age, the Thames valley was inhabited by large grazing mammals. A mammoth skull from the river can be seen in the Museum of London. >> Go back down the steps, turn right around the base of Stave Hill and re-enter the ecology park, passing between the pond and marsh. >> Bear left through the woodland. Species recorded in this area in Spring include Redstart, Nightingale, Blackcap, Lesser Whitethroat.
Woodpigeon
Call: a soft 'blowing' of varied transcription, 'do-doooh, doo doo-du', with desolate ring and having the character of an owl's call. (Lars Jonsson, 2003, p. 302)

Of the species which have established colonies in London during recent years, the wood-pigeon, or ringdove, is the most important, being the largest in size and the most numerous; and it is also remarkable on account of its beauty, melody, and tameness. (W.H. Hudson, 1924, p. 65)

>> Continue on the paved track, passing on your left
Stave Hill, 1980s. From Stave Hill Archive, archive.org

The ecology park from Stave Hill, showing the entrance through the recently created ponds.
Photo from Stave Hill archive, circa 1986. Probably by Richard Davey