Chequers (out and back) – (Buckinghamshire) – 26/06/10 – 9 Miles – Helen

Certainly this was the hottest day of the year so far, with the temperature touching 28c. So for our sins me and Helen decided to do a walk that was both a feature article and route from the May edition of Country Walking magazine, namely a ramble round the Prime Ministers weekend getaway. This would involve climbing up onto the heights of the Chilterns, and taking in some beautiful views over the Vale of Aylesbury. So while it was certainly a splendid day with splendid scenery, it did prove that we, and these cut out walks (which we have had nothing but success with thus far), are far from infallible.

Coming out of the station and picking up the Ridgeway, we passed two girls on the long ascent up to Coombe Monument. We were to see a lot more of them during the day, and from here on in are to be referred to as ‘the girls with the OS map’. Not long afterwards we came to our first route navigation dilemma of the day when we had to decide whether the kissing gate we were to go through was the one on the path we were on, or the one on the path slightly above us. In the event not an issue as they both came out at the same place, but certainly the first portent of things to come. For my part I was more concerned about the flying insect thingy who having bit my knee, decided to come back for a second go at my calf muscle. Suffice to say he met a squishy end.

Anyway after a mile and a half of gentle climbing we reached the Coombe Monument. This being both a memorial for the men of Buckinhamshire who lost their lives in the Boer War, and also a suitable place for us to have our sandwiches. The views here looking over the Vale of Aylesbury were gorgeous if a tad hazy with the sunlight. Also up at the monument enjoying the view were ‘the girls with the OS map’. Anyway we set off again and as the cut out route instructed took the right hand path towards the kissing gate. Now the higher left hand path (which was still the Ridgeway) looked the more obvious, and was the one Helen wanted to follow, but I decided we had to follow the instructions exactly and lo and behold we did come to a kissing gate, although we could hear one slightly above us. From here we were to follow a unclear path through a beech wood, and when we eventually came to the road (as promised) I felt fully vindicated.

Unfortunately having turned right as instructed we could not find the sign for ‘The Ridgeway/South Bucks Way’ on our left but instead came to a road junction. Realising straight away that we had taken the wrong path from the monument, we then went back up the hilly road and thus met ‘the girls with the OS map’ coming down towards us. We let them get ahead of us, whilst we faffed about a bit. Eventually overtaking them in the woods, after avoiding another bum steer from our instructions to take the right hand downward path.

Finally we came into the public right of way access through Chequers dissecting the (private no admittance) sign that leads up to Chequers. The grounds were beautiful, although the helicopter buzzing over head and the various signs left one in no doubt that a swift response would follow if one happened to take one step off the path. The best view of Chequers, which was always at a long distance came when we had the wooded area of Great Kimble to our left and a fence of railway sleepers marshalling the path on our right. Here we messed about taking more photos while ‘the girls with the OS map’ caught us up and did likewise. Eventually we left them and all that behind, passing through a field with some cows on open access land, and did as instructed by the cut out to ‘climb to the top for glorious views’.

Unfortunately the planned route completely fell apart at this point, as unbeknownst to us the ‘climb to the top for glorious views’ instruction wasn’t an instruction at all but merely an optional extra. Thus having reached two stiles at the mini summit we wrongly (the cut outs fault not ours) believed the route continued from this point. Whilst we faffed about trying to find the so called field to cross, matters were further confused by ‘the girls with the OS map’ who gave us the benefit of their wisdom for the walk they were doing, which of course was not the same as ours. Now this was a case where two heads (and bodies) were not better than one, as both me and Helen served merely to confuse each other. If we had been on our own then I am sure either of us would have eventually figured it out. However after three attempts in different directions all drawing a blank, the stress of the heat of the day was finally starting to tell on me at least. Thus rather than spend more time on this when we had wasted around an hour and a half to keep ending up in the same spot, I decided that the only option was to turn this into a straight out and back walk and return the way we came.

Now I have to admit that unlike Helen, and many other walkers, I do not like wasting inordinate amounts of time working out where to go next, let alone spending time heading up blind alleys. I like to walk walk so to speak, only stopping for refreshments and photos. So once we hit back on the return trail, I was able to settle down and enjoy matters again. Helen did want us to pick up the route again where it dissected as a figure of eight, but I decided that the cut out’s instructions had just too many holes in it thus far, and I could certainly live without some more in the heat of this day. So although we were now at peak humidity for the day, the return journey of about 4.5 miles was a lot quicker back than how we had got out to that point. Thus we eventually stopped again at the Coombe monument for some more refreshments, which was by this time being occupied by some wild ponies sheltering from the sun. Initially they did keep out of our faces, but once I tried to eat my apple we found ourselves surrounded, and I decided to surrender it before it was taken off me. They were a cross between sweet and pushy (classic mugging tactics really) with one stamping on Helens foot, and others trying to chew her trousers and my rucksack. Thus fed up of their attention we left them to it and continued on the ascent to Wendover station. Once on the platform, we were soon joined by ‘the girls with the OS map’, who once again were able to put us straight ! More to the point however was once in the cool calm of the air conditioned railway carriage, we were finally able to agree where we went wrong (and where the cut out had clearly misled us).

So not a disaster by any means as it was 4.5 miles out and then the same back, of walking in attractive countryside. However a few issues that have come out of this are:
1) These cut outs are a useful guide/suggestion for walks, but are not definitive and are clearly open to interpretation. Therefore they should not be attempted without the relevant OS or Landranger map, which should be studied beforehand.
2) A compass is an essential as that alone could have got us out of jail here.
3) If the option exists to go to the walk by car, take it. As having been baked on the walk all day, once off the nice air conditioned train, we found ourselves being microwaved this time on the London Underground.

Walks since last blog entry:

1 x 7.5 mile Grand Union/Osterley Park.

Balcombe to East Grinstead – (Sussex) – 06/06/10 – 11Miles – IVC

Summer must be here then, as this was the first walk this year where I decided I could crack out the shorts again. Unfortunately my first choice pair from the wardrobe seem to have been shrunk by the washing machine, and so I had to go with the faded black ones. Anyway the forecast thunderstorms stayed away for the first half of this walk which found us walking through the rolling countryside of the Weald. Topics of conversation ranged from one member’s recent pilgrimage to the Holy Land, through to my forthcoming exam, with the link between the two being of course the Romans. One interesting moment found us walking along a path with a wire fence on either side of us, with the adjoining fields full of young deer. Continuing on from that we then came through the Royal Botanical Gardens at Wakehurst Place, which by the signage are some type of offshoot of Kew.

Thus the first half of the walk did drag on to the extent that we didn’t make our lunch stop, The Black Cat in West Hoathly, until 1345 (we started at 1115). Anyway I thought I would try the fish and chips, which were fine as lunch goes, but the small portions and £12 price tag were not so acceptable. Thus with the puddings all at a £5.50 minimum, even the regular pudding scoffers (and I don’t just mean myself) decided to give them a miss. Thus having finished dinner and with us all sat in the garden, the sky started to darken followed by a sudden downpour. Now I am not sure what I was thinking at this point, but whilst everyone in the garden rushed inside I decided to first put on my full waterproofs and then come in.

With the rain having eased off, we set off again. However I was determined to prove I hadn’t been too hasty in putting the waterproofs on, and continued on in something of a sweat. Although there was the odd rumble of thunder about there was no more rain, save for the water dripping on us from the trees. Thus by the time I eventually decided I wanted to take them off again we were negotiating a particularly long and muddy downward trail, and there was no mud free place in which to do this. By this time the temperature had gone up, and with the evaporation of the downpour, one felt as if one was going through a rainforest.

Thus for much of the second half of the walk, we alternated between dense forest trails and open fields, which thankfully had no cattle after last weeks run ins with them (but do watch out for the sheep). We also crossed over the Bluebell railway line, but somehow conspired to miss two train photo opportunities there in quick succession. We also skirted along the Wier Wood Reservoir, before taking a trail to bypass the bulk of the town in East Grinstead, before finally arriving at the station. So overall a good but scenically unspectacular day’s walking.

Chatsworth (Circular) – (Derbyshire) – 30/05/10 – 6 Miles – Helen (Luther & Molly)

Those of you looking for glorious pictures of Chatsworth House can forget it; I didn’t get to see it on this walk so neither do you. Which basically means this walk was in the grounds of Chatsworth and beyond, but with the house just that tantalising way out of sight (ask Helen she planned it). What wasn’t out of sight of the car park however was a group of some 40 to 50 Muslim youngsters (many in traditional dress + flags and banners) doing some sort of aerobic warm up. We thus speculated on whether they were a walking group or not, before they eventually disappeared in the direction of some sort of flower show at the house. Whilst one isn’t always pleased to encounter large groups of walkers or anyone for that matter, there is a school of thought that says ethnic minorities are under-represented in the countryside, and that it shouldn’t be just the preserve of the white middle class. However this tiny and humble blog is not the place for such a debate (just highlighting the issue doncha know).

Anyway our walk began with a long and steady climb, with the signs on gateposts telling us (for that part anyway) to keep Molly and Luther on a lead. The weather was bright and sunny, however there was a chilly and gusty breeze which at one point blew my hat off. When we finally reached the summit we found ourselves crossing the must luscious field of new grass (not readily apparent until one looked backwards). Thus the silver tips of each blade appeared to both flow and ripple down the gradient, as lab dogs Luther and Molly frequently disappeared in it. It is views like this that really makes Country Walking such a special activity. The picture of me above is at that exact spot (but without the movement of the grass, it loses much of its effect).

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Having made a circular pass round some water we then came into a wood, where we stopped for some brief provisions among the bluebells. There was then a long descent through the wood, within earshot of some sort of dog show (didn’t have the time to enter Luther and Molly), before we picked up the Monsail Trail. Unfortunately you can’t completely follow the disused railway track, as most of the tunnels are sealed up, although the way to circumnavigate them is of course marked.

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As we began our descent we spotted a Chicken in the hedgerow wearing a large elastic band round its middle. Meanwhile I managed to get one of the most vicious set of stings on my hand from some nettles, that I have ever had in my life (they really blistered up and fizzed away for the rest of the evening). Yet being the hero that I am I soldered on regardless. Having come onto the road my hero status was soon deflated when we had to come through a gate of a tunnel that was being blocked by three enormous cows. Now me and Helen will have to agree to differ on how much room and respect to give these creatures (the dogs don’t appear to like them much either). So lets just say I wisely hung onto Molly, not so much for protection, but rather to prevent Helen from buggering off and leaving me whilst I worked out a safe passage. To be fair she did come back to retrieve me (at least I hope it was for me).

From there it was back alongside the river and eventually the green wide open spaces of the grounds of Chatsworth, before finally relocating the car. So the cow issue aside this was a rather splendid little walk on yet another excellent Spring day.

Lathkill Dale (Circular) – (Derbyshire) – 28/05/10 – 6 Miles – Helen (Luther & Molly)

Firstly this little walk is straight out of Country Walking Magazine’s Spring 2009 edition (for those of you who fancy trying it for yourselves). So as luck would have it we had a perfect and sunny spring day that wasn’t too hot, given what the weather had been a few days prior. Anyway having parked at Over Haddon, and enjoyed watching (?) some grotesque guy make a near full change of clothes in the car park (after his walk), we picked up the river Lathkill and made our way past a variety of weirs and caves before reaching our first landmark: Batemans House. This being part ruin and part disused mineshaft. So having taken turns to make our way down the steps, read the signs and turn the mineshaft lighting handle we were off again.

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Our next landmark was apparently Carters Mill (as it sounds). However even with the help of a pair of portly walkers (who probably said the same about me) we somehow missed the fact that it was actually a line of bricks in the riverbed. Helen by now was keen to try out her new camera, so a fair amount of time was spent faffing about on that, whilst throwing assorted dogs into the river (my photography as always, was of course sharp, concise and to the point). Thus when we finally reached the 2.25 mile point where the wooden bridge crosses the river, we seemed to have been going for an awfully long time. By this time however more photography and faffing about was in order, which I seemed to suspect was the reason why the two couples sitting there thinking they had a quiet spot, choose to move off.

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Our next task was to climb a very long flight of stone steps (as if the mineshaft wasn’t enough) before passing through a couple of fields in the direction of some farm buildings. From there we continued into Low Moor Wood before emerging into another large and clear field. There we encountered a group of young community walkers who made a fuss of Luther and Molly. Yet although we started to leave them behind, they soon caught us up again when Luther started panicking about the best way to get over a stile. However with their encouragement he finally did it.

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We then continued down a road before picking up a signpost on our left to head us back towards Over Haddon via a local farm. Unfortunately we had to pass through a field of cows who seem to be becoming a real nuisance presence in the countryside these days (or is just me?). Anyway we passed them without incident, went through a field, and then headed downwards via a twisty wooded path. There we encountered the river again, and some curious dogs peering out of a car window, before we embarked on the final short but steep road climb back to the car.

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Walks since last blog entry:

1 x 7 mile Osterley Park loops.

Richmond Park Outer and Inner Loops – (via Richmond Station) – (Surrey) – 10/05/10 – 12.5 Miles – Myself

Is there anywhere more glorious to walk than Richmond Park on a sunny Spring day? Well of course there isn’t, I know that, you know that, stupid question really. Anyway there was a slight change to how I normally do this one, in so much as I started the walk from Richmond Station, and reached the Park via: Richmond Green, The Thames Towpath, Petersham Meadows, and finally entering the park via the gate by the Dysart Arms.

So nothing new to add here from my previous write ups around these parts. Lot’s of trees, lots of grass, lots of deer, and lots of other people out walking, cycling, pushing prams, and walking dogs. One of the things about this walk is that despite the popularity of the park, there are plenty of areas where you find yourself completely on your own (well certainly on a weekday). Lunch was again at the café next to the golf club, consisting of a sausage baquette and a bottle of orange juice (and yes that’s right there was no cake involved – are you listening Chesterfield ?).

Now there is a world of difference between walking at full throttle (as I was doing here), and the pace I am normally forced to go at with my walking group (bless em). In fact for a short period there was a (albeit elderly) jogger in front of me, who was unable to open up any sort of gap. This of course made me start to walk even faster, as I started to have visions of overtaking him, and then giving him a mouthful of verbal abuse just because I was faster (ha – only joking on that one). Anyway he turned off, so I was denied that small victory. However by the time I was back at Richmond Station, every muscle ached from the waist down, and I felt slightly ill, and borderline depressed (the way I used to feel in the good old days after a Half Marathon). Plus I had three small blisters to pop when I got home.

Anyway a great days walking, with the Sun out and the weather not resembling anything near chilly, that the weather-morons said it would be on the telly. By late afternoon it did eventually become overcast, but I still remained fully committed to my floppy hat.

Dorking (Circular) – (Surrey) – 03/05/10 – 11 Miles – IVC + Helen

There was a fairly impressive turn out for this Bank Holiday Monday walk, with around 17 (or 18) people including Helen. The weather for its part served up some bright sunshine, but there was a fairly chilly and random breeze, which was interspersed with the occasional quick shower.


After some brief road walking from Dorking station we found ourselves walking through some beautiful rolling vineyards, which as you looked at them in the distance, betrayed a purple tint. Having eventually left those we made our way up onto the North Downs, and I was fairly certain I recognised the view below, which I would have seen from Gatton Park in Reigate where my last National Trust holiday was. That said we were walking in the opposite direction. However one of our party produced a pair of binoculars and we were able to spot Leith Hill tower far away in the distance. There was also an abundance of bluebells around, virtually everywhere we went. Eventually we began the descent from the Downs with more impressive scenery including spotting a World War 2 pillar box (currently unmanned), and some white belted cows in a valley below a chuch.


Time was moving on however and we were all getting hungry, so it was with some relief when we arrived at our projected lunch stop, The Wotton Hatch, at about 1325pm. Unfortunately this hadn’t been checked out beforehand and was completely unsuitable for a walking group, as it turned out to be a very upmarket gastropub. Basically they pounced on us as soon as we tried to sit down telling us we needed to have booked a table, and there wouldn’t be any food for at least an hour. The fact that it was now raining and there didn’t appear to be any better options meant we had to try and make the best of it with a pint and some poncey type crisps. Actually this is only the second time in three years walking with IVC where we have failed to buy any lunch. Unfortunately for Helen, a lady who likes her lunch, they happen to be the last two times she has been walking with us. Anyway there was some type of sustenance offered by some ladies fate taking place next door, who sold me three highly impressive cakes for £2.40. Thus with a pint, a bag of crisps, and thanks to those nice ladies, a slice of coffee walnut cake, suddenly I had something resembling a proper meal.

Much of the second half of the walk involved walking along the Greensand Way, and included more bluebells, as well as passing the a field full of the distinctince yellow of oil seed rape. Unfortunately however, as can often happen on a lot of these type of walks, the post lunch second half of the walk was nowhere near as good as the first. A lot of the time we did seem to be walking along lanes and roads, with civilisation a little too close to think of matters as pure country walking (some of these roads were actually the Greensand Way itself). This ended with a long urban trail through the town of Dorking before we reached the station. So for my money I believe this should have been a straight out and back walk, (with obviously a better lunch stop). However for a club that is run by volunteers, everyone does their best, and one has to be grateful that people are willing to put themselves out and take the responsibility to lead walks in the first place.

Walks since last blog entry:

1 x 7.5 mile Grand Union Canal / Osterley Park.
1 x 6 mile Osterley Park loops.

Leith Hill (Circular) – (Surrey) – 05/04/10 – 9.5 Miles – IVC

My heart nearly stopped at Clapham Junction station, when it showed on the board three trains departing at 1038, with not one of them stopping at Holmwood. ‘Oh my God’ I thought, ‘the bank holiday is a Sunday service after all’ (as trains don’t stop at Holmwood on a Sunday). After standing there for something near ten minutes contemplating should I resign or just wait to be expelled from IVC, thankfully the board moved up a line and the 1038 to Horsham appeared (stopping at Holmwood). Just as well then as including myself we had 14 people along for this walk (sadly not 15), which I was pleased to see included an old friend from The Arts Group.

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Now the logical lunch stop on this walk (as you know from my two previous blog entries on it) is the Plough in Coldharbour, and after three quarters of an hour of walking: down a lane, across fields, and through a farm, we were there. Sadly the food didn’t seem quite as exciting as when I was last there, probably not helped by our decision to sit in the garden whilst the chilly weather constantly threatened to suddenly throw it down. Anyway for the record I had two eggs, ham and chips, and no one had any pudding.

Having regrouped we set off up towards Leith Hill, passing to the left of Coldharbour cricket club. It’s amazing when walking in a group, how quickly everyone becomes strung out when going up any sort of gradient; and this was to become quite a feature of the day. The problem was compounded whenever I stopped to make sure no one took a wrong turn, as everyone else would then come to a halt to have a natter. Once at the National Trust tower on Leith Hill, various members of our group then stopped for refreshments at the Kiosk, which I found perplexing considering they had only left the pub about 50 minutes prior to that. One older member did drop out at this point however (which he had previously warned me that he was likely to do).

So moving on we carried on through Wooton common and Abinger Bottom, finally arriving at the Stephan Langton Inn, where two other members (who had been the slowest ones in the group) decided they were going to make an afternoon of it there. For my part I was busting for a leak, which is a bit difficult to go off and do discreetly behind a tree when you are leading a walk, and everyone is behind you. So it was with some relief (geddit) that I saw a sign pointing to the outside toilets at the pub. At this point a new member said she had blisters and wanted to know was there a way she could drop out early. However as she didn’t want to phone for a taxi at the pub, and didn’t want any plasters from my first aid kit, the answer was basically no, given that Holmwood is the only logical station. In the event however she soldiered on to the end.

More climbing by Broadmoor and subsequently some steady gradients along the Greensand Way, meant the group kept getting strung out again (you should see the dots in the background of the picture) all of which made fast progress difficult. Now I had said that the hourly 1719 train should be the one we caught, and I had also said in the flyer that we might stop for late afternoon tea when we got back to the Plough. By the time we got back there however, it soon became apparent we couldn’t do the latter and still achieve the former, which thankfully didn’t present a problem for anyone.

Thus the muddy descent back to Holmwood station took a complete hour (which I assumed we should have been able to do in 45 minutes) meaning when we arrived at Holmwood station we had made it with 10 minutes to spare. Thus everyone congratulated me on my perfect timing (sheer bloody luck) as well as saying how much they had enjoyed the walk (after moaning most of the time about how uphill it was, and latterly about how it must be more than 9.5 miles). Anyway everyone seemed pleased with their own individual efforts, apart from me after I forgot to put on my gators.