A couple taking a romantic stroll in Epping Forest stumbled across a large outdoor cannabis farm.
Oscar Lerin ambled straight into the patch of 70 professionally-cultivated adult marijuana plants growing just off the beaten path of London’s largest open space.
The 35-year-old said: “It was funny. We couldn’t believe it. We like ‘Really? Is this real?’” before crouching amongst the plants for a photo.
Oscar Lerin poses amongst the produce
He added: “We like nature and we went to Epping Forest to have a walk and have a look at mushrooms and identify them.
“We were just walking and walking and I looked around and I thought this looks like marijuana plantation. The smell was really strong so I knew it could be nothing else. It was very close to the path and just near it really, behind a big bush.
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“I think there was around 60 or 70 plants and it covered quite a large area - about 15 or 20 square metres. The soil was different. We had a look and there was a sheet of plastic on the ground and the different soil was on top and the plants were in there.”
A spokesman for the City of London corporation, which manages the space told ITV.com: “We can’t comment at the moment as it’s a police matter.”
Top 50 Most Influential Marijuana Users
50: Snoop Lion(01 of50)
“It makes me feel the way I need to feel.” (credit:Koen van Weel/AFP/Getty Images)
48: Oliver Stone(03 of50)
“I went to Vietnam, and I was there for a long time. [Using marijuana] made the difference between staying human or, as Michael Douglas said, becoming a beast.” (credit:YOSHIKAZU TSUNO/AFP/Getty Images)
47: Rihanna(04 of50)
"Kush rolled, glass full... I prefer the better things!" (credit:VALERY HACHE/AFP/Getty Images)
46: Hugh Hefner(05 of50)
“Smoking helped put me in touch with the realm of the senses.” (credit:Charley Gallay/Getty Images for Playboy)
45: Miley Cyrus(06 of50)
"You know you're a stoner when your friends make you a Bob Marley cake." (credit:AP Photo/MTV, John Shearer)
44: Bryan Cranston(07 of50)
"Pot always just made me sleepy.” (credit:Neilson Barnard/Getty Images)
43: Robert Downey Jr(08 of50)
“Robert Downey Jr. said he started smoking weed at age 8.” (credit:Joel Ryan/Invision/AP, file)
42: Madonna(09 of50)
41: Johnny Depp(10 of50)
40: Phil Jackson(11 of50)
In 1975 he wrote “Maverick,” a memoir about his days playing in the NBA. Among other things, Jackson spoke frankly about marijuana use. -- Salon (credit:Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images)
39: Sarah Palin(12 of50)
"I can't claim a Bill Clinton and say that I never inhaled.” (credit:AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster, File)
38: Justin Bieber(13 of50)
"Bieber both confirmed that he'd been caught smoking weed and apologized for it." -- Huffington Post (credit:AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)
37: Maya Angelou(14 of50)
“Angelou settled into a job as a waitress and began smoking marijuana with abandon.” (credit:AP Photo/Nell Redmond, file)
36: Lincoln Chafee(15 of50)
35: Matt Damon(16 of50)
“The first time I smoked was at home with my mother and step-father.” (credit:AP Photo/Lionel Cironneau, File))
34: Conan O'Brien(17 of50)
“I’ve tried pot, but it doesn’t do much for me.” (credit:Frederick M. Brown/Getty Images)
33: Susan Sarandon(18 of50)
"Cocaine didn't interest me. Not at all. I'm way way back in the early pot…" (credit:Larry Busacca/Getty Images)
32: Andrew Sullivan(19 of50)
"The blogger and commentator Andrew Sullivan was busted in July for possessing a small amount of marijuana within the Cape Cod National Seashore." (credit:Peter Kramer/Getty Images for TFF))
31: John Hickenlooper(20 of50)
30: Seth MacFarlane(21 of50)
"I don't smoke much pot anymore." (credit:AP Photo/Matt Sayles)
29: Martha Stewart(22 of50)
"Of course I know how to roll a joint." (credit:Getty Images)
28: Angelina Jolie(23 of50)
“… the one that has the worst effect for me was pot. I felt silly and giggly - I hate feeling like that.” (credit:TORU YAMANAKA/AFP/Getty Images)
27: Morgan Freeman(24 of50)
"Never give up the ganja." (credit:Frazer Harrison/Getty Images for AFI)
26: David Letterman(25 of50)
“I went through one period when I smoked a surprising, a really breath-taking, amount of grass almost every night.” (credit:AP Photo/CBS, John Paul Filo)
25: Jennifer Aniston(26 of50)
“I enjoy it once in a while. There is nothing wrong with that. Everything in moderation. I wouldn't call myself a pot-head.” (credit: Arthur Mola/Invision/AP)
24: Michael Phelps(27 of50)
23: Tom Brokaw(28 of50)
“…what I did was experiment with a little marijuana like a lot of other people and walked away…” (credit:Kris Connor/Getty Images)
22: Ted Turner(29 of50)
"CNN anchor Gwen Scott claimed it is common knowledge that Turner sits in his office and smokes marijuana." (credit:Michael Loccisano/Getty Images)
21: Brad Pitt(30 of50)
“I was hiding out from the celebrity thing, I was smoking way too much [marijuana].” (credit:Todd Williamson/Invision for Fox Searchlight/AP Images)
20: Lady Gaga(31 of50)
"I smoke a lot of pot when I write music." (credit:D Dipasupil/Getty Images for The Daily Front Row)
19: Michael Bloomberg(32 of50)
"You bet I did. And I enjoyed it.'' (credit:Andy Kropa/Invision/AP)
18: George Clooney(33 of50)
“The owner of a local cannabis café told reporters George Clooney was no stranger there.” (credit:AP Photo/David Azia)
17: Rush Limbaugh(34 of50)
Rush Limbaugh admits that he used cannabis during his recovery from opiate addiction and says that the legalization of marijuana is "a great issue" for the GOP. (credit:AP Photo/Chris Carlson, file)
16: LeBron James(35 of50)
“James also revealed he and his teammates smoked marijuana one night after getting access to a hotel room in Akron.” (credit:AP Photo/Lynne Sladky, File)
15: Sanjay Gupta(36 of50)
"I have tried it." (credit:Photo by Evan Agostini/Invision/AP, File)
14: Rand Paul(37 of50)
"According to this woman, who requested anonymity because of her current job as a clinical psychologist, "He and Randy came to my house, they knocked on my door, and then they blindfolded me, tied me up, and put me in their car. They took me to their apartment and tried to force me to take bong hits. They'd been smoking pot." (credit:AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)
13: Andrew Cuomo(38 of50)
"I did experiment with marijuana when I was a youth." (credit:Photo by Andrew Burton/Getty Images)
12: George W. Bush(39 of50)
11: Bill Gates(40 of50)
“As for drugs – well, Gates was certainly not unusual there. Marijuana was the pharmaceutical of choice…” (credit:AP Photo / Jonathan Brady)
10: Bill Maher(41 of50)
"Look, I have never made a secret of the fact that I have tried marijuana... About 50,000 times." (credit:AP Photo/HBO, Janet Van Ham)
9: George Soros(42 of50)
"He said he had tried marijuana, enjoyed it, 'but it did not become a habit and I have not tasted it in many years.'" (credit:ChinaFotoPress/Getty Images)
8: John Kerry(43 of50)
"Yes." [In response to the question: "Which of you are ready to admit to having used marijuana in the past?"] (credit:AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
7: Jay Z(44 of50)
"I smoked some weed, and that’s how I finished ‘Izzo.’" (credit:Charles Sykes/Invision/AP, File)
6: Jon Stewart(45 of50)
“Do you know how many movies I wrote when I was high?” (credit:Charles Sykes/Invision/AP, File)
5: Stephen Colbert(46 of50)
4: Clarence Thomas(47 of50)
"The White House said today that Judge Clarence Thomas, President Bush's Supreme Court nominee, had smoked marijuana while in college." (credit:AP Photo/Tribune Review, Sidney Davis)
3: Bill Clinton(48 of50)
"I experimented with marijuana a time or two." (credit:STAN HONDA/AFP/Getty Images)
2: Oprah Winfrey(49 of50)
1: Barack Obama(50 of50)
"When I was a kid, I inhaled frequently. That was the point." (credit:Alex Wong/Getty Images)