Walking The Camino de Ronda - Platja d'Aro to Palamós
Tower near Palamós

Tower near Palamós

Start: Platja d’Aro Beach, Girona, Spain
Finish: Palamós Old Town
Distance: 8 km (5 miles)
Elevation Change: +71m /-65m. Net +6m
GPX File: get via Buy Me a Coffee
Other Routes Touched: N/A

After a worky week in Barcelona, Timi and I headed North for quiet weekend together. We also got our 2nd unexpected microadventure of the week.

The hotel was on cliff just off the beach at Platja d'Aro. After checking in we wandered down to the small bay to find that the Camino de Ronda went straight through it. With only 6 weeks to go until our Camino Portuguese trip, we had to check it out.

The Camino de Ronda is an old coastal route that connects villages on the Costa Brava. At 43km, its just over the length of a marathon. As much as I was excited to do it all, we we there to relax so we opted for a shorter taster version.

After completing a short section on the Friday between our hotel and Platja d'Aro beach we returned the next day for a longer stretch. On Saturday we headed North to see how far we could get in a few hours.

The first few KM ran along jagged cliffs and through beautiful quiet bays. This was off-season and there were very few people around. There was a stunning photo opportunity at every corner so we took out time. The route, or at least the part that we walked, is very well maintained and signposted.

The second half of the walk, from the beach at Sant Antoni de Calonge was flatter and busier. In summer this would be packed with tourists. Even now there were enough places open to find a nice local place for lunch and some not-horrendous 1 Euro wine.

On finishing lunch we chose the church that we could see in the distance as our end point. This was the Parròquia de Santa Maria del Mar in the heart of Palamós Old Town. By the time we arrived here it was getting dark and locals were out for the street markets. It was a nice way to finish an unexpected mini-Camino before taking a taxi back to the hotel.

I've got a good feeling we'll be back here too. Not just to finish the Camino de Ronda though. When we arrived at the harbour at Palamós they were setting up for a Trail Race the next day. We spoke to one of the organizers and took down some details. Looks like Spain will be more of a feature of future trips!

 
Richard gowerTrek, Coast, SpainComment
Cycling Sant Pere Màrtir, Barcelona
View across Barcelona from the trails

View across Barcelona from the trails

Start / Finish: Sant Just Desvern, Barcelona, Spain
Distance: 15.2 km (9.4 miles)
Elevation Change: +/- 400m
GPX File: get via Buy Me a Coffee
Other Routes Touched (cycle): PRC-164, PRC-171, Carretera de les Aigües

This was the first of 2 unexpected micro-adventures on a business trip to Barcelona. Timi was there for a conference and I tagged along on a combo of working-from-hotel and a Friday off. While we were there we caught up with an old friend from work who now lives in the city. I didn't think twice when he offered to take me on a evening's ride in the nearby mountains.

I've been to Barcelona a few times and always loved it. Its has the right mix of culture, coast, city and access to mountains. It's always been a potential future place to live and this trip only reconfirmed that.

The ride started in Sant Just Desvern, a suburb to the west of the city. From here you can be off road and climbing the trails within 15 minutes. My friend knew the route well and I was in the rare situation of just following along and not really knowing where we were heading. By KM 5 were were up on the Carretera de les Aigües with outstanding views over the city.

From here there's loads of options including a longer route to Mt Tibidabo. Instead we chose to climb Sant Pere Màrtir, the nearest peak before heading back. Its not a summit you can't easily miss as the giant transmitter can be seen for miles.

By the time we reached the top it was dark and I wimped out of cycling the steep 100m first section on the other side. The combo of my weird nervousness of slipping, the dark and my lack of helmet all kicked in. Beyond that first section the rest of the descent was an amazing ride back through the trails, mountain roads and town to the start.

 
Richard gowerCycle, Mountain, SpainComment
Chiltern Walks: Varneys Wood and River Gade
River Gade in forefront with Varney’s Wood on the hill

River Gade in forefront with Varney’s Wood on the hill

Start / Finish: Red Lion Pub, Water End, HP1 3BD
Distance: 5 km (3.1 miles)
Elevation change: +/- 64m
Other Routes Touched: None
OS Trig Pillar: TP6679 - Varneys Wood
Pubs / Cafes on route: Red Lion Pub at the start and finish
Map: OS Explorer Map (182) St. Albans and Hatfield
Links: River Gade, Varneys Wood Trig Pillar, Piccotts End

This is a pleasant short walk centred around bagging the Varneys Wood Trig Pillar. The guidance below will help you navigate but don’t use it as a fully accurate turn-by-turn guide. Always take a map and/or a GPX route and prepare well for the weather and terrain.

From the Red Lion Pub Car Park cross the Leighton Buzzard Road and take the footpath on the right hand side of the first bend on Red Lion Road. Follow the footpath to the top of the hill where there is a path junction at 1 km into the walk. Turn right (South-East) along the top of the hill, following the edge of Varneys Wood until you reach Wood Farm. There’s a bench with a very nice view of the Gade Valley at the mid-point of this section.

The Trig Pillar is buried inside the hedge on the right hand side of the lane as you walk south-west away from the farm. You can see it and (just about) touch it from the road although you can’t see the Flush Bracket. It’s slightly more accessible from the other side of the hedge, although be careful as that’s in the farmer’s field.

Once exiting Wood Farm continue down the hill to Piccotts End and cross Leighton Buzzard Road again. After the Waterworks, take the right hand footpath and follow this for approx 1.5km north-west following the course of the River Gade. You’ll get a good view of the Wood Farm buildings from the start of this path.

When you reach Potten End Hill road take a right then another right on Leighton Buzzard Road to return to the Red Lion.

map below: The Red Lion Pub at Water End

Richard gowerTrek, Chilterns, Trig Pillar, Hertfordshire, EnglandComment
Portsmouth Coastal Half Marathon

When: February 3rd 2019
Where: Portsmouth, Hampshire, UK
Course: Out and back along the coast from Pyramids Leisure Centre / Southsea Castle to North-East corner of Portsea Island. Similar return route with some diversions. Nice muddy/icy beach section.
Other routes touched (walk): Solent Way, The Shipwrights Way,
Other routes touched (cycle): NCN 2, 222
Finish time: 1 hour 57 minutes

 
Richard gowerRun, Half Marathon, Coast, Hampshire, EnglandComment
Completing all Hertfordshire parkruns
Hertfordshire parkrun banner.JPG

There are currently 14 active parkrun events in present-day Hertfordshire. The first was St Albans which started on January 9th 2012 and the newest is Leavesden Country which started on October 22nd 2022. Heartwood Forest was also a Hertfordshire event but has now closed. Ellenbrook Fields and Tring parkrun were active until the Covid-19 parkrun pause and are now also permanently closed.

The Historic County of Hertfordshire has 15 parkrun events. It includes Oak Hill which is now part of Greater London.

I first completed the county on February 2nd 2019 at Letchworth and maintained it at Leavesden County on January 21st 2023

The interactive maps below take you to the approximate location for the course, typically the centre of the park. See the course instructions in the parkrun page for each event for specific directions to the start. Course maps show the route at the time that I ran it and may have changed since then.

Aldenham

 

Barclay

 

Cassiobury

 

Castle Park

 

Ellenbrook Fields

***Ellenbrook Fields parkrun is now permanently cancelled ***

 

Gadebridge

 

Heartwood Forest

***Heartwood Forest parkrun is now permanently cancelled ***

 

Jersey Farm

 

Leavesden Country

 

Letchworth

  • I completed this event on: February 2nd 2019 with a finish time of: 28:31

  • Other routes touched (walk): Letchworth Greenway

  • http://www.parkrun.org.uk/letchworth

  • Inaugural: January 27th 2018

 

Panshanger

 

Rickmansworth

 

South Oxhey

 

St Albans

 

Stevenage

 

Tring

***Tring parkrun is now permanently cancelled ***

 

Westmill

 

Actual course outlines for the parkrun events in present-day Hertfordshire.

More parkrun posts

parkruns are free, weekly, community 5k events all around the world. I started in December 2012 and have been obsessive about it ever since. See my parkrun Collection page for details.

Featured and popular parkrun posts:

Richard gowerRun, parkrun, Hertfordshire, England Comments
Walking The Ranmore SCC Circular
Denbie’s Wine Estate

Denbie’s Wine Estate

Start / Finish: Denbie’s Wine Estate, London Rd, Dorking, RH5 6AA
Distance: 10km (6.2 miles)
Elevation Change: +/-220m
GPX File: get via Buy Me a Coffee
Other Routes Touched (walk): Mole Gap Trail, North Downs Way, Prospects of Polesden SCC
Other Routes Touched (run): Mole Valley parkrun, Surrey Bacchus Wine Half Marathon
Other Routes Touched (cycle): Norbury Park Off-Road Cycle & Walk SCC
Pubs / Cafes on route: Denbies Vinyard Cafe at start and end.)
Map: OS Explorer 146 Dorking, Box Hill & Reigate
Links: Explore Surrey - Ranmore Circular (PDF), Westhumble, Boxhill and Westhumble Station, Denbies, Ranmore Common, Denbies Hillside National Trust

The Explore Surrey’s guide to this walk starts the route at Boxhill and Westhumble station. If you’re driving, as we were, then Denbie’s Wine Estate is a great place to start. Denbies have obviously caught on to the benefits of attracting outdoor people as I’ve found myself visiting there 3 times in the last 6 months for different events. Most significantly for walkers, the visitors’ centre sits just off the North Downs Way and at the junction of 2 other trails.

From the Denbies car park the route heads north-west through the vinyard, joining the North Downs Way near the top of the hill. This 2 km section along the National Trail gives you some great views across to Box Hill, the Mole Valley and Dorking. Just past St Barnabas Church, the route leaves the North Downs Way and joins the Prospects of Polesden SCC trail down through the woods to the quaint Tanners Hatch YHA.

On the final section heading back east towards Westhumble we briefly diverted off the trail for a spot of Trigpointing. Trig Pillar TP2480 - Crabtree Cottages can be found about 100 metres down Crabtree Lane hiding behind bracken but easily accessible. After rejoining the main route there’s a steady descent down to Westhumble and a final 1km South through the houses back to Denbies.

Four a much better description of the route check out the PDF linked above. Its a really great walk in the Surrey Hills and we’ll definitely be back to do some of the other trails that we cross on the route.

Richard gowerTrek, National Trust, Railway, Surrey Hills, Surrey, EnglandComment
Chiltern Walks: Watlington Hill

View to Watlington

Start / Finish: Watlington Hill NT Car Park, Watlington, OX49 5HS
Distance: 3.6km (2.2 miles)
Elevation change: +/- 104m
GPX File: get via Buy Me a Coffee
Other Routes Touched (walk): The Ridgeway
Other Routes Touched (cycle): None
Pubs / Cafes on route: None
Map: OS Explorer Map Active (171) Chiltern Hills West, Henley-on-Thames and Wallingford
Links: National Trust Watlington Hill, Watlington

Maybe it was the clear, sunny winter’s day, but I think I’ve found my new favourite short walk in the Chilterns. Judging from how packed was the car-park when we arrived, this is clearly a popular place. When we left at lunchtime it was overflowing with cars lined up along the road. The guidance below will help you navigate but don’t use it as a fully accurate turn-by-turn guide. Always take a map and/or a GPX route and prepare well for the weather and terrain.

From the car-park take a clockwise / Westerly direction and you’ll soon get great views to the North. After half a mile the trail descends steeply to Hill Road where you’ll turn left onto the Ridgeway. Follow the Ridgeway for about a quarter-mile then left a left through a gate and follow the path through the fields at the foot of the hill. The route hits a T-junction in the path at the end of the field. Take another left here and follow the path gradually ascending all the way back to the car-park.

If you’re heading back via the M40 there’s also the Shirburn Hill Trigpoint and Bald Hill, the Oxfordshire Historic County Top within 5 minutes drive of Watlington Hill or the pub

Richard gowerTrek, Chilterns, Oxfordshire, National Trust, EnglandComment
Chiltern Walks: Hughenden Monument Circular
Design from the Disraeli coat of arms incorporated into the old visitor’s gates.

Design from the Disraeli coat of arms incorporated into the old visitor’s gates.

Start / Finish: Hughenden Manor, Buckinghamshire
Distance: 3.4 km (2.1 miles)
Elevation change: +/- 89m
GPX File: get via Buy Me a Coffee
Other Routes Touched (walk): Hughenden Boundary Walk
Other Routes Touched (cycle): N/A
Pubs / Cafes on route: Hughenden Manor National Trust Cafe
Map: OS Explorer Map (172) Chiltern Hills East
Links: Hughenden National Trust, Hugenden Manor, Disreali Monument

Having already visited the Manor at Hughenden, this time we were back to explore the wider estate. The Monument Walk is a a great short stroll that reveals even more about the history of the estate. From the National Trust Visitors’ Kiosk follow the orange arrows for the 1-mile walk to the monument, The NT’s own web page on the walk is a great resource for info on the route and history of the monument. The guidance below will help you navigate but don’t use it as a fully accurate turn-by-turn guide. Always take a map and/or a GPX route and prepare well for the weather and terrain.

Although the NT’s route directs you to retrace your steps from the monument, a better option is to continue south and make it a circuit. Pass through Little Tinkers Wood, across a small housing estate then back across Coates Lane into Hughenden Park. From here head north back to the fence surrounding the Manor.

As you re-enter the grounds take a moment to look at the gates designed by Benjamin Disraeli himself. They include a Castilian Tower, representing his Jewish heritage, which he played down in his earlier carrier but re-embraced later on. After passing the gates turn left onto the North Lawn for a great view of the house to finish the walk.

Richard gowerTrek, Chilterns, Buckinghamshire, National Trust, EnglandComment
Completing all Buckinghamshire parkruns
Buckinghamshire parkrun banner.JPG

There are currently 11 parkrun events in present-day Buckinghamshire. The first was Black Park which started on July 18th 2009 and the newest is Church Mead which started on April 9th 2022.

The Historic County of Buckinghamshire has 12 parkrun events. It includes Upton Court which is now part of present-day Berkshire.

I first completed the county on Christmas Day 2018 at Linford Wood.

The interactive maps below take you to the approximate location for the course, typically the centre of the park. See the course instructions in the parkrun page for each event for specific directions to the start. Course maps show the route at the time that I ran it and may have changed since then.

Aylesbury

  • I completed this event on: November 30th 2013 with a finish time of: 22:24 (My parkrun PB)

  • Other routes touched (walk): Round Aylesbury Walk

  • http://www.parkrun.org.uk/aylesbury

  • Inaugural: November 2nd 2013

 

Black Park

 

Buckingham

 

Bury Field

  • I completed this event on: November 27th 2021 with a finish time of: 25:54

  • Other routes touched (walk): Ouse Valley Way

  • http://www.parkrun.org.uk/buryfield

  • Inaugural: November 6th 2021

 

Church Mead

 

Higginson, Marlow

 

Linford Wood

 

Milton Keynes

 

Rushmere

  • I completed this event on: January 5th 2018 with a finish time of: 25:58

  • Other routes touched (walk): Greensand Ridge Walk

  • http://www.parkrun.org.uk/rushmere

  • The address for Rushmere is actually in Bedfordshire but as whole course is on the Buckinghamshire side of the border, I’m including it here.

  • Inaugural: November 7th 2015 

 

Wendover Woods

 

Wycombe Rye

 

Actual course outlines for the parkrun events in present-day Buckinghamshire

More parkrun posts

parkruns are free, weekly, community 5k events all around the world. I started in December 2012 and have been obsessive about it ever since. See my parkrun Collection page for details.

Featured and popular parkrun posts:

Richard gowerRun, parkrun, Buckinghamshire, EnglandComment
Cycling The River Mimram
Welwyn North

Welwyn North

Part of the Chiltern Rivers Series
River start: Off Lilley Bottom Road, north-west of Whitwell, Hertfordshire
River end: Confluence with River Lea, north-east of Hertford Town Football Club, Hertford, Hertfordshire
River length: 20 km (12 miles)
Cycle route start / end: Circular from Hertford Town Centre
Cycle route length: 53 km (~33 miles)
Cycle route elevation change: +/- 372m
GPX File: get via Buy Me a Coffee
Other routes touched (walk): Lea Valley Walk, Cole Green Way, Hertfordshire Chain Walk, Hertfordshire Way, The Chiltern Way Northern Extension,
Other routes touched (cycle): NCN Route 12 and 61, Chilterns Cycleway
Maps:
- OS Explorer Map (182) St. Albans and Hatfield, OS Explorer Map (193) Luton
- Stevenage, OS Explorer Map (194) Hertford and Bishop's Stortford
Links: River Mimram, Whitwell, Welwyn, Hertford

This was to be the final trip in my Chilterns Rivers project, and one to satisfy my completist nature. That idea changed during research for this blog post as I noticed that I’d missed the Ouzel, the Flit and the Hiz. Not a big deal as it gives me more trips to do this year.

I’d already attempted this trip earlier in the year, only making it 5 miles in before abandoning it. I’d just come back from my Balkans trip and I was in the mood for another adventure. The wife was out for the day and tackling the Mimram seemed like a great way to spend a Sunday. It wasn’t. What I’d not factored in was that I was exhausted from the Balkans trek and it was also the middle of a heatwave. I’d also driven an hour to Hertford before realising that I’d not packed my backup USB power charger and my phone was already down to 50%. This is a complicated route and I wasn’t going to crack it without the GPS route. For some unknown reason I set off anyway then decided 5 miles in that I had neither the power in my phone or my body to complete it. My second attempt was better planned. January 2nd wasn’t in a heatwave, I was fully rested after Christmas and I’d brought my charger. I’d also brought my friend Charlie for added entertainment.

Hertford is a great base for the trip as it's a nice town with lots of parking and choices for food. For the circular trip we took an North-Westerly anti-clockwise route along mostly quiet county roads to find the source. The actual source is not accessible but we picked a quaint pond nearby to mark the start of the river section. From here the route heads South-East also along quiet country roads back to Hertford. The first couple of miles follows Lilley Bottom Road through Whitwell High Street, crossing over the river several times.

By the time we got to Welwyn we were ready for a coffee break. Despite having several pleasant looking pubs nothing seemed to be open so we continued on. This final section was the most interesting as it gave us a chance to get off-road as we got onto some bridleways through Panshanger park. Shortly after Panshanger we joined the Cole Green Way which follows a disused railway line to Hertford.

A kilometre before reaching the end we went off-piste to find the confluence of the Mimram and the Lea. Its at the end of a footpath to the east of the grounds of Hertford Town Football Club. I imagine that few locals even know its there and its a nice quiet place to mark the end of the trip.

Blue = River, Red = Cycle Route

Elevation for cycle route (0km = source of Mimram near Frogmore Stables)

Richard gowerCycle, NCN, Chilterns, Hertfordshire, EnglandComment
parkrun Compass Club

After a New Year’s Day visit to Westmill, I’ve now earned the (unofficial) parkrun Compass Club badge. This comes from completing parkrun events that contain the words North, East, South and West. But how many parkrun compass points are there? What’s the actual most Northerly/Easterly/Southerly or Westerly parkrun in the UK? … or in the world? So, with a bit of extra time on my hands before New Year and inspired by a debate on the UK parkrun Tourists group I had to find out.

I update this page whenever I spot a new one pop up and do an annual check. Let me know if I’ve missed any or you spot any errors and I’ll donate £1 per update to parkrun Forever.

To be eligible for the Compass Club badge the event name must have the words north, south, east or west in the title. It counts even if the word is part of the name rather than a compass position (e.g loWESToft). Be careful about the long name as there’s an inconsistency were Henley Wood, OsWESTrey counts but Bangor, NORTHern Ireland doesn’t count. parkrun challenge apps tend to use the short name of the event so if the compass position is in the long name it might not count on the app that you’re using. For the purposes of this page I’ve included all compass positions in both the long and short names.

Local language spellings of the compass positions don’t count to the badge however I have noted them in the links below.

Graphics show parkrun events that are open to the public. Note that Mount Pleasant, the most southerly parkrun event in the world is a closed event on an MOD facility. Similarly, Ayios Nikolaos parkrun on the Sovereign Base Areas of Akrotiri and Dhekelia on the island of Cyprus is the most easterly event in the UK parkrun region but is also a closed event on an MOD facility.

Russian parkrun events were suspended in early 2022 following the invasion of Ukraine. Prior to this Russia was home to the most northerly parkrun event in the world at Vorkuta Borodskoy Park and two events containing “north” in Russian language: Lesopark Severny and Severnoe Tushino.

Global Compass Club

 

Global East

Excluding UK, Australia and South Africa (scroll down for these):

Global North

Excluding UK, Australia and South Africa (scroll down for these):

Global South

Excluding UK, Australia and South Africa (scroll down for these):

UK Compass Club

 

Note, Akrotiri is the most easterly event in the UK region (in a British Overseas Territory). It is not shown above as it is not open to the public.

 

UK East

UK North

UK West

UK South

Australia Compass Club

 

Australia East

South Africa Compass Club

 

South Africa East

South Africa North

South Africa West

South Africa South

*compass position is in the long form of the event name. This may not be counted in the Compass Club in some parkrun challenge apps.

More parkrun posts

parkruns are free, weekly, community 5k events all around the world. I started in December 2012 and have been obsessive about it ever since. See my parkrun Collection page for details.

Featured and popular parkrun posts:

Richard gowerRun, parkrun Comments
2018 in Numbers

TOTAL DISTANCE IN 2018

  • Run: 415 miles

  • Cycle: 416 miles

  • Trek: 265 miles

  • Total = 1,096 miles

Trek = recorded hiking & walking events, not general steps.

KEY EVENTS IN 2018

  • 1 Ultra Marathon

  • 8 Half Marathons

  • 42 Total parkruns

  • 33 New parkruns

  • 2 New County Tops (Helvellyn, Old Man of Coniston)

  • 6 New Countries (Jordan, Albania, Macedonia, Kosovo, Montenegro, Mauritius)

2018 Garmin Stats.JPG

Stats from 2010+ .. first year of tracking via Garmin

Richard gowerRun, Cycle, TrekComment
Chiltern Walks: Whiteleaf and Cadsden
IMG_9414.jpg

Start / Finish: Whiteleaf Cross car park, Peters Lane, Monks Risborough, HP27 0LH
Distance: 6.4 km (3.7 miles)
Elevation change: +/- 122m
GPX File: get via Buy Me a Coffee
Other Routes Touched (walk): The Ridgeway, Risborough Purple Route, Outer Aylesbury Ring
Other Routes Touched (cycle): Chilterns Cycleway
Pubs / Cafes on route: The Plough At Cadsden
Map: OS Explorer Map (181) Chiltern Hills North
Links: Whiteleaf, Whiteleaf Hill, Cadsden, Windsor Hill Trig Pillar

We were on a roll with our winter walks this year. For some reason we had got out of our habit of winter walks last year. A quiet Christmas and a need to do some Camino training gave us some extra motivation to get back out. My new obsession about bagging all of the Trig Pillars in the Chilterns also gave us some new targets for the trips. The guidance below will help you navigate but don’t use it as a fully accurate turn-by-turn guide. Always take a map and/or a GPX route and prepare well for the weather and terrain.

This walk was based around finding the Windsor Hill Trig Pillar. We had come very close to it 2 years ago on our Ridgeway walk, but I wasn’t on my Trig mission back then. The pillar can be done in a fairly quick drive-by as its really close to the Whiteleaf Cross car park. You can just about see the pillar from the road but can only get to it by walking south down Peter’s Lane to the field gate. Its not on a right-of-way, but the gate was open and no-one was around so we crossed the misty field to the Pillar. On exiting the field through the same gate, you can cross the road and join the footpath to continue this 6k circular walk.

For much of the walk we had the route to ourselves. The weather probably didn’t help but I suspect that most walkers round here will stick to the Ridgeway. After a misty / spooky walk through Sargeants Wood, Cross Copice and Ninn Wood, we found civilisation again at The Plough at Cadsden. The pub is at the intersection of The Ridgeway and a couple of other paths making it very popular with walkers. Its a friendly place with good food … ideally for a stop before the climb back up to Whiteleaf Cross.

On a clearer day its worth checking out the Cross from the Ridgeway. As it was we could see bugger all from the top through the mist.

Richard gowerTrek, Chilterns, Buckinghamshire, Trig Pillar, EnglandComment
Thames Path & Jubilee River Walk - Eton and Datchet
View across the Thames from Home Park to the confluence with the Jubilee River

View across the Thames from Home Park to the confluence with the Jubilee River

Start / Finish: Car park at the Jubilee River Riverside Centre, Slough Road, SL1 2BP
Distance: 7.4 km (4.6 miles)
Elevation change: +-/ 22m
GPX File: get via Buy Me a Coffee
Other Routes Touched (walk): Thames Path, Jubilee River Path
Other Routes Touched (cycle): NCN 4, 61
Pubs / Cafes on route: Many either side of Eton Bridge
Map: OS Explorer 160 Windsor, Weybridge & Bracknell
Links: Jubilee River, Windsor, Eton, Eton College, Datchet

The Jubilee River is a man-made channel built in the late 1990s and early 2000s to take overflow from the River Thames to prevent flooding around Maidenhead, Windsor, and Eton. The path along side it passes through wildlife and woodland making a easy, pleasant walk or cycle. It also runs parallel and close to the Thames, allowing for several combinations of short trips that take in both.

This is the fourth of a series of 4 circular walks of roughly 10 km that take in sections of both the Jubilee River and Thames Path. This one starts at the small car park at the Riverside Centre on the Jubilee River north of Eton.

The first 1 km from the car-park follows NCN Route 61 before it diverts north toward the Grand Union. Here, keep on the Jubilee River heading south-east after the footbridge, crossing over Eton Road, under the railway line and into Datchet Golf Club. The confluence with the Thames is hidden from the path by high hedges that border the golf course. When you cross the bridge on King Edward II Avenue look back along the east bank and you can see the junction of the rivers.

On the bridge you’ll also get a great view of Windsor Castle and, to the south, the private areas of the Castle estate. Immediately after bridge, turn right onto Home Park and follow the Thames Path as it bends round towards Eton Bridge. After crossing under the railway line for a second time the path crosses a light industrial area containing a boat repair yard and Romney Lock. Despite living near Windsor for most of my life I didn’t even know there was a lock there as you can easily miss it. After the lock the path follows the edge of the Railway Station car-park and opens out to Windsor Riverside.

Here's a good point in the trip to take a break and there’s loads of choice on either side of Eton Bridge. The route continues back on the Eton side of the bridge with a couple of options. The short option would be to follow Eton High Street / B3022 as it will take you directly back to the start. A longer but more interesting alternative is to take a left turn off Eton High Street through Church Close. This takes you on paths round the back of the college buildings and playing fields, then along the Slough/Windsor railway spur leading back to the Jubilee River west of the car park.

The Complete Route: Thames Path & Jubilee River Walks

Left to right: Maidenhead to Datchet in 4 sections. Map base: ESRI Topo via Ride With GPS

Yellow = Maidenhead & Bray, Red = Dorney & Eton Wick, Blue = Eton Wick and Eton, Greet = Eton and Datchet

Richard gowerTrek, Chilterns, Windsor, Thames, Berkshire, EnglandComment
Chiltern Walks: Hedgerley Circular
IMG_9337.jpg

Start / Finish: The White Horse, Hedgerley, Village Lane, Hedgerley, Slough SL2 3UY
Distance: 9.1 km (5.6 miles)
Elevation Change: +/- 86 m
GPX File: get via Buy Me a Coffee
Other Routes Touched: None
Other Pubs / Cafes on route: None
Map: OS Explorer Map (172) Chiltern Hills East
Links: Hedgerley

This one’s not technically in the Chiltern Hills AONB, but its close enough and fits into my own “Greater Chilterns” region. Hedgerley is not a place you’ll find by accident and most people speed past it on the way to London on the M40. Its worth hunting out though as this is a nice, quiet (in most places) walk with a great pub at its centre. The guidance below will help you navigate but don’t use it as a fully accurate turn-by-turn guide. Always take a map and/or a GPX route and prepare well for the weather and terrain.

The whole route is a bow-tie shape with the White Horse pub in the centre. We’re locals and, with the wife feeling a bit ill, we decided to do it as 2 shorter walks on Christmas Day and Boxing day. This also gave us the opportunity for a selfie by the Christmas Lane sign 1.5m into the first part.

The western section is longer at ~6 km with the eastern section at just under 3.5km. Both are pleasant and relatively easy with only minor inclines. Watch out for a half-mile section on Parish Lane on the western section which has no footpath but lots of fast cars heading toward the motorway from Stoke Poges. Once past this you’ll be rewarded with a loop of Egypt Wood, a quiet woodland next to Burnham Beeches. The eastern section suffers from the noise of the M40 that runs really close to it. Don’t let that put you off though as it includes a pleasant walk through Hedgerley Green.

Richard gowerTrek, Chilterns, Buckinghamshire, EnglandComment
Walking The Icknield Way Part 2 - Chalk Hill to Pirton

including: Walking The Chiltern Way Part 3: Chalk Hill to Streatley

Deacon Hill

Deacon Hill

Start: White Lion Pub Watling Street, Houghton Regis, Dunstable, LU6 1RS
Finish: The Motte & Bailey, 1 Great Green, Pirton, Hitchin, SG5 3QD
Distance: 31 km (19.4 Miles)
Elevation: +435m / -470m. Net -35m
GPX File: get via Buy Me a Coffee
Other Routes Touched (walk): Chiltern Way, John Bunyan Trail, Walk on the Wild Side
Other Routes Touched (cycle): Chilterns Cycleway, Icknield Way Trail (cycle route)
Map: OS Explorer Map (193) Luton and Stevenage
Guidebook: The Icknield Way Path: A Walkers' Guide
OS Trig Pillars: TP6734 - Warden Hill and TP2743 - Deacon Hill
Links: Icknield Way Wikipedia entry, www.icknieldwaytrail.org.uk, www.icknieldwaypath.co.uk
- National Trails page on the Icknield Way Trail (Rider's Route and Walker's Route)

It had been 2 years since I’d started the Icknield Way and I was eager to get back to it. Other adventures had got in the way, but I had a new motivation for it once I’d decided to explore the “North Chilterns Exclave”. This is the north-eastern part of the Chiltern Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) that’s cut off from the rest of it. The Chilterns’ rolling chalk hills stop abruptly after Dunstable Downs followed by a flat gap featuring Dunstable, Luton, the A5 and the M1. I’d have to get through this section before the pleasant parts start again near Sundon. So, when I was looking for this year’s Winter Solstice long walk, the next section of the Icknield Way was the obvious choice.

In a change to my previous Solstice walks, I wasn’t alone as my friend Brian came too. It was great to have a buddy this time and there was an added logistical advantage by being able to leave a car at each end. After a bit of parking logistics we set off from the White Lion pub as the sun rose over the newly built distribution centres. We were already firmly in logistics country: a corridor of fields along the M1 that are being gradually replaced by huge warehouses. Within a mile of our start we were already on a diversion of the trail as it skirted round a building site that would soon be a new growth on Dunstable.

At Wingfield we were back on course and in pleasant countryside again. The next 5k was fairly unremarkable as the trail crossed the gap between the 2 parts of the AONB, crossing the River Flit, M1 and mainline railway. Immediately after rail bridge, the trail ascends 60m reaching Upper Sundon and the border back into the Chilterns. This next section before lunch was lovely with great views for miles to the North and a pleasant route along the John Bunyan Trail and into Sharpenhoe National Trust land.

Streatley is a great stopping point a little over half-way into the route. It also had the only pub that we found on the trail and it conveniently opened for lunch shortly after we arrived. After a pretty large Surf-and-Turf and an hour of warming up we headed South back on the trail. The route briefly dips out of the AONB as it skirts the Northern edge of Luton before a steep climb up through South Beds Golf Club to the top of Warden Hill. Here we took a minor diversion from the trail to bag our first Trig Pillar of the day. From the Trig you can see right across Luton, which sits right in the middle of the gap in the Chilterns, and Dunstable Downs in the distance.

The final few miles was on a straight path heading North-East and keeping on high ground. We took another diversion up Deacon Hill to bag the 2nd Trig Pilar of the day. By now it was getting dark and misty so we quickly returned to the trail and start the final descent to Pirton. My energy was noticeably depleted after Deacon Hill and the final mile seemed to go on for ever. The end point at the Motte and Bailey was a very welcome sight, as was the table by the fireplace to warm up next to before the drive home.

Walking The Chiltern Way Part 3: Chalk Hill to Streatley

When we did this section of the Icknield Way the trail followed the same route as the Chiltern Way from Chalk Hill to Streatley. A few years later when we decided to walk the Chiltern Way, we finished part 2 at Chalk Hill. Not feeling the need to retrace these 16 km, we picked up again at Streatley.

Looking back at the map when writing the Chiltern Way posts it looks like the Chiltern Way between Chalk Hill and Streatley now takes a different route to the Icknield Way. Presumably this was due to the development of housing and distribution warehouses around the A5/M1 corridor.

Details for this 3rd section of the Chiltern Way are:
Start: White Lion Pub Watling Street, Houghton Regis, Dunstable, LU6 1RS
Finish: The Chequers, 171 Sharpenhoe Road, Streatley, Luton, LU3 3PS
Distance: 16.4 km (10.2 Miles)
Elevation: +184m / -149m. Net +35m
GPX File: get via Buy Me a Coffee
Other Routes Touched (walk): Icknield Way, Chalgrave Heritage Trail, John Bunyan Trail
Other Routes Touched (cycle): Chilterns Cycleway, Icknield Way Trail (cycle route)
Map: OS Explorer Map (193) Luton and Stevenage

Richard gowerTrek, Trig Pillar, Chilterns, Bedfordshire, Hertfordshire, EnglandComment
Chiltern Walks: Hambleden & Rotten Row
View from the east of Hambleden

View from the east of Hambleden

Start / Finish: Car park next to the Stag and Huntsman, Hambleden, Henley-on-Thames RG9 6RP
Distance: 6km (3.7 miles)
Elevation change: +/- 113m
GPX File: get via Buy Me a Coffee
Other Routes Touched (walk): Chiltern Way, Shakespeare’s Way
Other Routes Touched (cycle): Chilterns Cycleway
OS Trig Pillar: TP4092 - Huttons Farm
Pubs / Cafes on route: The Stag and Huntsman at the start and finish
Map: OS Explorer 171: Chiltern Hills West, Henley-on-Thames and Wallingford
Links: Hambleden

This is part of a series of short circular walks in the Chilterns. The guidance below will help you navigate but don’t use it as a fully accurate turn-by-turn guide. Always take a map and/or a GPX route and prepare well for the weather and terrain.

Hambleden is a great choice for a Chiltern walk with several options for routes and ample free parking at the Stag and Huntsman. This one starts at the pub with a short walk through the village before turning right onto the first road off Pheasants Hill, Frieth Road. You’ll see a sign for Huttons Farm and some retractable entry bollards. It's a public right of way so continue on up the hill. At the top of the hill take a right, then a left at the path junctions as the route goes round the well-kept Huttons Farm estate.

The Trig Pillar that I based the walk on is buried in the hedge on the North side of the road before the East entrance to the estate. It was easy to spot on this mid-winter’s day but likely harder to find in the Summer. After the Trig Pillar, continue on for about ~0.5 km before taking a right hand turn following a path into the woods. Continue in the same North-Easterly direction to an obvious junction and follow the fence into a clearing in the trees. In ~0.5 km you’ll meet the Chiltern Way. Take the right-hand / Southerly direction up a steep bank to the road. From here follow the Chiltern Way / Shakespeare’s Way signs for 2 km through Rotten Row back to Hambleden.

The North-east Hambleden Circular route is a longer version of this walk but doesn’t include the Trig Pillar.

Richard gowerTrek, Chilterns, Trig Pillar, Buckinghamshire, EnglandComment
Chiltern parkruns

There’s only 4 parkrun events in the Chiltern Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, but the Chilterns covers a much larger area. I’ve not seen a common definition, so I’ve decided to select the boundaries marked by the rivers Thames, Colne and Lea. Most of the rivers and streams that start in the Chiltern Hills eventually flow into these 3 rivers, so it feels like the best boundary. One could argue that the area could also include everything south of the Lea before it reaches the Thames at Limehouse Basin, but that would include most of North London too.

So, the Greater Chilterns area, a beautiful and adventure-filled region, contains 16 parkrun events so far. It also includes my home event, Black Park and 2 of my hilliest favourites, Church Mead and Wendover Woods. Here’s the links:

Actual course outlines for the parkrun events in the greater Chilterns area.

parkrun events within the Chilterns Hills AONB

parkrun events within the greater Chilterns AREA

More parkrun posts

parkruns are free, weekly, community 5k events all around the world. I started in December 2012 and have been obsessive about it ever since. See my parkrun Collection page for details.

Featured and popular parkrun posts:


Richard gowerRun, parkrun, Chilterns, Buckinghamshire, Berkshire, Oxfordshire, Hertfordshire, Bedfordshire, EnglandComment