Sunday walk: Cookham to Maidenhead

17.0km (10.6 miles)
Toughness 3 out of 10.
This figure-of-9 walk passes artist Stanley Spencer’s former house then ventures into the surrounding hills with views over the Thames Valley. The area inspired the Wind in the Willows and author Kenneth Grahame lived locally. After dropping down to the Thames, the route returns you to Cookham for lunch. The afternoon follows a pretty stretch of the Thames Path to Maidenhead. En route, you could, if you’d rather, cross the river and finish in Taplow. Nothing to stop you finishing in Cookham either - maybe after a visit to the Stanley Spencer Gallery.
Trains
 Take the 09:43 Tfl Reading train (Ealing Broadway 09:51). Change at Maidenhead (arr. 10:24, dep 10:29) onto the Marlow train, reaching Cookham at 10:36.
Return from Maidenhead at xx:05 and xx:35 (both Tfl) or xx:27 (Great Western).
Return from Taplow at xx:08 and xx:38 (on the same Tfl trains).
Return from Cookham at xx:10.
Get a return to Cookham.
Freedom Pass holders can travel free on Tfl trains as far as Maidenhead but need to buy a ticket (either single or return) from there to Cookham.
Lunch: Before Cookham, the Bounty pub (tel 01628 520 056), by the river, serves basic pub grub.
The suggested place for lunch in Cookham is the Kings Arms (tel 01628 530 667) in the High Street. Alternatives include The Ferry (tel 01628 525 123), and the Bel and the Dragon (tel 01628 521 263),
Tea On the way into Maidenhead a particularly attractive place to stop for tea is the up-market terrace bar at Boulter’s Lock (tel 01628 621 291), which serves cream teas (this would also suit defectors to Taplow) or later, the more prosaic Jenners Café.
Directions here
T=1.24