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This Week's Walks - Archive

Please see the Saturday Walker's Club This Week's Walks page.

This is an archive of walks done by the Saturday Walker's Club. You should only need to use this page if the SWC website is down.

Saturday 1 February 2020

Saturday Walk Tring Circular or on to Berkhamsted


Tring Circular or on to Berkhamsted T=2.5

Length: 16.3km (10.1 miles), five hours walking time. To Berkhamsted 20.6km (12.8 miles).
4 out of 10
Although featured on Wednesdays & Sundays quite recently, it hasn't had a Saturday outing for some time.

"The first part of this route - following the Ridgeway along the Chiltern escarpment to Ivinghoe Beacon - is exhilarating, offering downland scenery as fine as anything on the South Downs. From the Beacon itself, it seems as if you can see half of England on a fine day. Then, by way of contrast, you are plunged into the ancient beechwoods of the Ashridge Estate. "

A Berkhamsted variation: After the pub, take an alternative route, carrying straight on along the Chiltern Way, eventually picking up the directions on Berkhamsted Common by going leftwards rather than a right turn towards Tring. This is shorter than the written up route.

Trains: Get the 0934 Tring train from Euston arrives 1017 (Harrow & Wealdstone 0946, Watford 0955). There is also a train to Tring from East Croyden (to Milton Keynes) with various stops in London but the timings mean either a wait or a later start. Frequent return trains.
An oddity of these lines is that Harrow & Wealdstone is the zone 6 boundary.

Lunch: The Bridgewater Arms in Little Gaddesden, tel 01442 842 408, located 11.2km (7 miles) from the start of the walk. For a picnic, you need to stop before the turn off to the pub.

Tea: For Tring: The excellent Valiant Trooper pub in Aldbury is well worth a stop. For Berkhamsted: "I love Food" at 25 27 Lower Kings Road and 200m or so past the station is recommended by Pete B.


2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Bridgewater Arms. Friendly staff. Mediocre food.

Mr M Tiger said...

N=13 W=mild-some-sun-dry-windy Fairly mud-free, except for the bits that weren’t. Strong winds on exposed hill-tops. Mr Tiger, who was trailing from the start, seems unable to resist the allure of this walk’s shortcut these days. The faster 12 will have to comment on the main walk. The café at Bridgewater Monument had large queues. Mr Tiger contemplated the extension to Berkhamsted, growled “nah” and returned to Tring station instead, without stopping at the Trooper. Nice walk, don’t get me wrong.