Ascent/Descent:
400/385m; Net Walking Time: 4 ½ hours
Toughness: 4/10
Take
the 10.13 Aylesbury train from Marylebone (Wembley Stadium 10.22, Gerrards
Cross 10.35), arrives Little Kimble 11.08.
Return
trains from
Saunderton are on xx.50. Just missed
it? Take the xx.54 in the other direction and change at Princes Risborough…
Buy a Little
Kimble return.
This is a little gem of a walk, showing
all the characteristics of the Chiltern range of hills. In particular, there
are lots of fine beech woods on the walk. The walk is not all wooded, however,
and has some good open stretches and a number of fine views. Though the terrain
is gently undulating most of the time, gradients are in general not taxing.
Note:
there are many paths in the woods, more than on the OS maps, so taking a
compass is recommended.
Lunch: The Pink & Lily in Parslow's
Hillock (7.8 km/4.8 mi, last food orders 14.45), a favourite inn of the poet Rupert Brooke (1887-1915). This pub has gone through a welcome transition to
a walker-friendly, yet nicely refurbished bright pub with an interesting good
quality menu. The Plough at Cadsden
is an early option (famous for a recent British PM forgetting his small child
there).
Tea: The Golden Cross, which usually has a
fine selection of cakes and serves proper tea.
For
summary, map, height
profile, some photos, walk
directions and gpx/kml files click here.
T=swc.10
1 comment:
n=14 walkers (4 of those had driven to Saunderton and left their cars there) in w=dry-and-warm-for-the-season-but-greyish weather.
This is one of my favourite short walks, so you won't hear anything negative from me.
Today it was also virtually mud-free and with the benefit of being able to peek through the leafless trees from the wooded ridges into the valleys. Quite a bit of up-and-down en route, but despite that almost all kept together to the lunch pub (bar SWC's most regular backmarker). Upon calling The Pink & Lily, the pub had already given us the dreaded "we're fully booked and don't really fancy 8 lunchers turning up w/o a reservation and further clogging up the orders for the kitchen on a very busy day"-message, but upon arrival there - magically - was a table for 6 and another small one in a snug in the bar, and enough space also for the picknickers to sit around it.
We reached Saunderton just after 4 and - with the 15.50 just gone - most retired to The Golden Cross. All bar the car drivers were then on the 16.50 train.
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