Official Stage Statistics Route distance – 14.07 miles Duration - 5 hours 25 mins Total ascent – 719 feet Total descent – 798 feet Highest point – 444 feet Fly-through of this stage Logistics Drive to Rustat Avenue Cambridge & park car - JustPark Walk to Cambridge Station Catch train to Royston Station Walk to Great Chesterford via Littlebury avoiding the M11 footbridge Catch train to Cambridge Walk to Rustat Avenue Cambridge & pick up car Drive home My Walk On stage 4 of my Icknield Way Path walk, my irrational fear of narrow, high footbridges (gephyrophobia) would result in my longest detour to avoid having to cross the pedestrian bridge across the M11 and its slip roads at Junction 9. Due to the shape of the county boundaries, in the space of just a few miles today’s walk would pass through Hertfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Essex. I chose Great Chesterford as my finishing point because it has a railway station with direct trains to Cambridge. After leaving Royston, today’s stage would be very much a case of walking alongside large arable fields for much of the route, interspersed with passing through a number of quaint Essex villages like Crishall, Elmdon and Strethall. The official route beyond Strethall would take me over the dreaded footbridge, crossing 7 lanes of M11 motorway traffic and into Great Chesterford. For me this was never going to happen, so whilst crossing the M11 couldn’t be avoided, I decided I would use a less intimidating road bridge near Strethall. This bridge would bring me into the village of Littlebury and from there I would walk roughly parallel to the M11 into Great Chesterford. My diversion would cost me almost 2 miles of additional walking but the peace of mind it would give me would be priceless!! Not on your life! As I was making my way eastwards along the Icknield Way, the landscape would become less and less hilly as I said goodbye to the Chilterns and this would be quite noticeable today with just one climb of any note into the village of Heydon. To get to the start of today’s walk at Royston, my day began with a drive to Cambridge railway station. Rather than fork out £15.80 for the pleasure of parking in the NCP car park at the station, I’d pre-booked a parking space belonging to a property in Rustat Avenue using the Just Park app. I paid less than half of what NCP wanted. As this was the first time I’d ever considered parking at an individual’s property I was slightly wary. Would there be another car in ‘my’ space when I got there? I needn’t have worried because everything worked out fine. My space was empty and was less than 10 minutes walk from the station. Great start to the day. I stopped off at the Sainsbury's Local to buy a sandwich for my lunch. My reason for choosing Cambridge station was that I could get a Thameslink train to the start at Royston and at the end of the walk I could catch a Greater Anglia train from Great Chesterford back to Cambridge. By just after 8:30 I emerged from Royston Station and walked down into the town to start my walk. It was yet another gorgeous day with not a cloud in the sky. The Greenwich Meridian runs just to the east of Royston marking 0° of longitude Within less than a mile I was out of the town and in the countryside. The OS map told me that I was walking along the ancient Icknield Way at this point. The landscape was relatively flat and dedicated to arable farming. The path mainly followed the edges of large fields although at times it was sandwiched between hedgerows – all very familiar stuff but still most enjoyable. Having crossed the county boundary into Cambridgeshire, the path took a 90° turn to the right and began a gentle at first climb towards Heydon along the line of Bran Ditch (AKA Heydon Ditch). Most of the ditch has been lost to agriculture over the years. Bran Ditch - just about dead straight Just before the end, the ditch climbed quite steeply Having emerged from the 'black hole', I'm looking back from the top of the hill. At 444 feet, the village of Heydon was the highest point of this stage; in fact, it’s one of the highest places in Cambridgeshire. Heydon has many attributes of a quintessential English village – village green ✔ church ✔ village pond ✔ pub ✔ thatched cottages ✔ Holy Trinity Church in the centre of the village was bombed by the Germans in 1940 and sustained a lot of damage. The north side of the nave and the tower were destroyed. In the 1950s, the church was restored. You can see from my photo that the tower was rebuilt using bricks rather than the original stone. Beyond Heydon, the Icknield Way Path crossed into Essex – the 5th of the 7 counties the trail passes through. Over the next 3 miles the path passed through 3 more quaint villages – Crishall, Elmdon and Strethall. This cottage in Elmdon was formerly a pub named The Carrier. Original pub sign still standing Cottage in Elmdon Heading towards Strethall In Strethall, the official path took a left towards the dreaded, narrow footbridge over the M11, although there was no waymarker on the fingerpost. In any case, I’d already planned my route to carry straight on instead and follow the road to a wider and much shorter bridge over the motorway. It's not even clear that this is the route of the Icknield Way Path! Road bridge over just 4 lanes of the M11. I can deal with this After crossing the motorway, the road dropped down into the pretty village of Littlebury. For the next 2 miles I walked along the verge of the quite busy B1383 towards Great Chesterford. It wasn’t ideal but I’ve walked on much worse & dangerous verges than this one. Eventually I reached the outskirts of Great Chesterford and a proper pavement. By now it was about 14:15. I was hot & sweaty and in need of a ‘proper’ drink, especially as I’d drunk all my water. With trains back to Cambridge every 30 minutes I was in no real hurry to walk to the station. Littlebury Littlebury View from the verge! Naively, I assumed that as Great Chesterford had a railway station, it would undoubtedly have a number of shops and pubs. I did find the Crown & Thistle pub but it was closed for the afternoon. I could have walked a further 400 yards to the Plough but I really couldn’t be bothered as I’d have to walk all the way back again. As I couldn’t see any shops, I asked a lady if the village had any. She kindly directed me towards Days Bakery and Food Hall – the only shop in the village. There I bought an overpriced bottle of water. Closed! I made my way to the station and waited in the sunshine for my train back to Cambridge. Back at Cambridge Station I walked over the Tony Carter Bridge back to my car. The Tony Carter Bridge, named after a former councillor who championed the construction of this iconic bridge, was the longest covered cycle bridge in the world at the time it was completed in 1991. At 780 feet, it is still the longest covered cycle bridge in the UK. It crosses 16 railway tracks at a height of 21 feet and was built to improve road accident statistics involving cyclists. I can quite happily walk over this bridge without any qualms which doesn’t make too much sense. I suspect it’s because a) the bridge is covered b) it’s wider than the narrow footbridges that freak me out! Anyway, back at my car, it was undamaged, not clamped and didn't have any rude messages stuck on the windscreen. I therefore deemed my first Just Park experience a big success and would repeat it for the next stage. Tony Carter Bridge According to the OS map, I had now completed 60 miles of the Icknield Way Path, so had just another 50 miles to go. My next stage would take me back into Cambridgeshire, finishing in the village of Stetchworth. The good news is that I wouldn’t have to take any more detours to avoid pesky narrow footbridges!

Official Stage Statistics Route distance – 17.67 miles Duration - 6 hours 55 mins Total ascent – 1108 feet Total descent – 1065 feet Highest point – 549 feet Fly-through of this stage Logistics Drive to Hitchin & park at Woodside Long Stay Car Park SG4 9SG Walk to Ickleford or catch bus 9B, 9D or 89 to Burford Grange stop & walk to Ickleford Walk to Royston Catch train from Royston to Hitchin Walk to Woodside Car Park & drive home My Walk The 3rd stage of the Icknield Way Path would begin with a short walk to Letchworth Garden City and from there on to Baldock. Beyond Baldock the path would rapidly become rural in nature with a mixture of walking alongside arable fields or alongside the familiar corridors of tall hedging either side of fields. The path would pass the villages of Clothall and Wallington where it would merge with the Hertfordshire Way as far as Sandon. From beyond Sandon the Hertfordshire Way would go its own way whilst the Icknield Way Path would head for Therfield and the highest point on today’s walk. The final 2½ miles to Royston would continue in much the same vein as the rest of this stage but just towards the end it would emerge onto Therfield Heath Nature Reserve, a 350 acre SSSI featuring Neolithic, Iron Age and Bronze Age archaeological artifacts. At more than 17½ miles this would be my longest walk along the Icknield Way Path. My day began with an early morning drive from home to the Woodside car park in Hitchin. Today was going to be another hot, sunny day. I caught the bus back to the nearest stop to Ickleford and walked into the village. Ickleford is one of those places where there are different Icknield Way routes depending on your mode of propulsion and you have to be careful which signs to follow. In this case, the Icknield Way Equestrian Trail took a different route to walkers and cyclists, resulting in the crossing of railway lines over different bridges. I carefully followed the signs and on a tree-lined path crossed a small wooden bridge over the River Hiz. Almost immediately was a bridge taking me across the East Coast main line and Thameslink local line railway tracks. Horses take a different route to walkers & cyclists Bridge over the River Hiz East Coast & Thameslink tracks Once across the railway tracks the path carried on for a mile or so alongside fields. The path emerged onto Stotfold Road which it crossed onto Wilbury Hill, before reaching the residential streets of Letchworth Garden City Despite its name, it is only a town with a population of about 34,000 people. Letchworth is famous for being the world’s first Garden City. Based on the ideas of Ebenezer Howard, construction began in 1903 under the ownership and control of First Garden City Ltd. Garden Cities were seen as a solution to the squalor and poverty of urban life in Britain in the late 19th Century. One consequence of this was that all houses should be built on relatively large plots resulting in bigger than average gardens. The tree-lined streets I was walking along reinforced this ethos. There were also to be plenty of green spaces around the town. An aerial photo of the town shows how compact the town is and how much green space there is. Letchworth Garden City The Lido was opened in 1935 with a 50 metre heated outdoor pool Central to the company’s ethos was a commitment to repatriate all profits back into the estate. Today the estate is managed by Letchworth Garden City Heritage Foundation. Any proposed changes to properties have to be approved by the foundation and changes need to stick to the published guidelines. One other thing that Letchworth is famous for is the UK’s first roundabout, built in around 1909. Unaware of this fact before my walk and not on the route of the Icknield Way Path itself, I went back in November 2025 to visit Sollershott Circus for myself. It was originally built as a pedestrian refuge at the intersection of 3 roads. Twenty years later, a decision was taken to direct all traffic to move in the same direction and a roundabout, as we know it today, was created! Sollershott Circus Sollershott Circus As I reached the town centre I couldn’t help but notice what looked like a pair of identical art deco buildings each emblazoned with the name The Spirella Company of Great Britain Ltd In fact, together with a building at the rear connecting them, they were formerly a factory manufacturing corsets from 1912 until 1989! The owners fully embraced Ebenezer Howard's vision of healthier living for workers. Referred to as the "factory of beauty", it offered a wide array of employee amenities including "baths, showers, gymnastics classes, a library, free eye tests and bicycle repairs". The building was Grade II listed in 1979 and acquired by the town in 1994. Following an £11 million regeneration project by Letchworth Garden City Heritage Foundation, the building is now leased out as office space. Anyway, history lesson over at last. After walking past the Spirella Building, the path took me along more tree-lined residential roads with traditionally designed houses and each house had a bit of green front garden. The streets and houses were just as I imagined. Industry was confined to an area on the north east of the town and the path took me through this area before veering off to the right down a narrow pedestrian footpath. I then crossed a footbridge over the A1(M). I’d looked at this bridge on Google Maps at the planning stage for this walk and decided that as it was relatively wide and not too high or long, I’d be able to cross it without getting totally stressed out. Whilst not desperately pleasant for me it was OK. Houses & streets just as I'd imagined The industrial area Footbridge over the A1(M) The A1(M) The bridge brought me into Baldock, a small, historic market town of about 11,000 people. Despite its size, it has a railway station. The Icknield Way took me down the High Street where there were a number of cafés with people sitting outside enjoying the Sunday sunshine. Set slightly back from the road was an impressive, large building and I was keen to see what it was. I got quite a surprise when I saw the large ‘Tesco Extra’ sign attached to the façade! It turns out that in 1924, inspired by Howard Carter’s explorations of Egypt, a giant art deco factory was designed by architects PHS Burditt and built in Baldock to house a film processing company called Kosmos. Only four years later in 1928, the building was taken over by the Full Fashion Hosiery Company. As with Spirella in Letchworth, the company's management fully embraced the ethos of looking after its workers, providing them with a swimming pool, bowling green and tennis courts which were located in what is now the Tesco car park! During World War II, the building was requisitioned for parachute manufacturing, just as the Spirella factory in Letchworth was. After the war the company went from strength to strength until finally closing in 1983. Tesco took the building over, retaining the art deco frontage, although I assume this was a requirement of planning consent. I did go inside to buy a sandwich for my lunch but sadly there were no signs of the building’s history. This is turning into quite a history lesson and I’m only 5 miles into the walk! The trail continued down Baldock High Street to a roundabout. Crossing the roundabout, it carried on along a residential street before narrowing to a tree lined footpath that led to a narrow footbridge over the busy A505 dual carriageway. Eek! I hadn’t noticed this bridge when I surveyed the route on Google Maps, which was possibly a good thing as I didn’t have any time to get pre-match nerves about crossing it. I have to say that unpleasant as it was, I looked straight ahead and crossed it. With the A505 out of the way, the landscape quickly changed from urban to rural with the now familiar sight of large, recently harvested fields bounded by hedgerows. The path climbed slowly but steadily towards the village of Clothall and the top of Bird Hill provided some nice views across to Baldock. The top of the hill was also covered in an impressive mass of purple coloured flowers. Google Lens told me that these were Phacelia Tanacetifolia and who was I to disagree! Continuing to climb, the path headed towards the village of Wallington. The author George Orwell lived at 2 Kits Lane Wallington between 1936 and 1940. His most famous book Animal Farm was written between November 1943 and February 1944 and published in 1945. The village of Willingdon in his book is widely believed to be based on Wallington. In real life, the farm that served as the primary inspiration for the book was Manor Farm in Wallington. There was a rival claim made on behalf of Bury Farm in the same village and some believe the fictional farm was an amalgam of both. Sunflowers at Bury Farm Goats resting in the shade Which path should I take? The Hertfordshire Way joined forces with the Icknield Way just before and beyond Wallington. After a couple of miles, I entered the village of Sandon where I stopped to eat my sandwich at All Saints Church. The 14th century church is memorable for its, let’s face it, pretty ugly 17th century buttresses that presumably were built to support the tower! The brick courses of these buttresses aren’t horizontal but instead slope inwards, confirming they were built to add strength. The Hertfordshire Way is waymarked in 2 directions! After passing through the churchyard the next 3 miles of walking continued through the churchyard with mostly all too familiar paths sandwiched between fields, shielded by a parasol of trees. This was pleasant enough on a warm afternoon but not very inspiring. Now that's a busy waymarker post! Eventually, I emerged into the really pretty village of Therfield, the highest point of today’s stage. Therfield is located on the northern edge of the Chilterns, specifically on a chalk ridge that forms part of this range, with its famous Therfield Heath known for being on the "final slopes of the Chilterns" and offering classic Chiltern landscape views. I’d read about Therfield’s village green pub, the Fox and Duck and this was proving very popular today. With less than 3 miles to reach Royston I was drawn towards the pub and decided to stop for a quick pint. Beyond Therfield the tree lined paths finally opened up to give almost unbroken views of the landscape. It was downhill almost all the way now. Just before reaching Royston, I emerged onto Therfield Heath, although it’s so close to Royston town centre that it’s also called Royston Heath. The heath contains a long barrow, thought to be Neolithic and several Bronze Age round barrows. I decided I’d have to come back to the heath to explore it more fully as it was so big. On a freezing, windy day in early January 2026 I came back with my drone. January 2026 The Neolithic Long Barrow in January 2026 - the oldest standing monument in Hertfordshire Bronze Age round barrows - January 2026 The Long Barrow & 5 Round Barrows - January 2026 Royston The path descended into Royston town centre, marking the end of today’s walk. The railway station was a short walk away. From there I caught a Thameslink train back to Hitchin, walked to my car and drove home. A long but interesting and enjoyable day! I allowed myself 4 days back home before embarking on the next stage from Royston to Great Chesterford. You guessed it - a former Post Office now a pub The Jolly Postie St John the Baptist Church in Royston

Official Stage Statistics Route distance – 15.20 miles Duration - 6 hours 1 mins Total ascent – 1083 feet Total descent – 1175 feet Highest point – 609 feet Fly-through of this stage Logistics Drive from Premier Inn Hitchin to Harlington Station car park LU5 6LD - £3.50 at weekends Walk down Sundon Road for 1.2 miles to pick up Icknield Way Path Walk to Ickleford Catch bus 9A from Church to Hitchin OR Walk to Bedford Road & catch 9B 74 or 89 bus to Hitchin Walk to Hitchin railway station and catch train to Harlington Pick up car and drive home My Walk The 2nd stage of the Icknield Way Path would begin with a tiny bit of cheating. I wasn’t going to allow my irrational fear of crossing any of the M1 bridges at Toddington to spoil my walk. I’d done a lot of research before starting the Icknield Way Path and using Google Maps, had evaluated and rejected all the M1 crossing points in the vicinity. So, instead I would start today’s stage on the other side of the motorway at Harlington Station and walk from there down Sundon Road to join the Icknield Way at the point the alternative route from Toddington met it. With that out of the way, today’s walk would start with a climb to the top of Sundon Hills Country Park, a beautiful chalk grassland ridge with extensive views. The Sharpenhoe group of hills comprise Sundon Hills, Moleskin and Markham Hills, Sharpenhoe Clappers and Smithcombe Hills. The Icknield Way would follow this ridge before dropping into the village of Streatley. After running parallel to the busy A6 and eventually crossing it, the path would climb again up Galley Hill with its views over Luton and then climb to the top of Telegraph Hill, the highest point of this stage and part of the Pegsdon Hills landscape with its magnificent views. Beyond Pegsdon the path would descend slowly alongside fields to the pretty village of Pirton and then on to the end of the walk at Ickleford. The shape of the Bedfordshire Hertfordshire boundary means that I’d be popping in and back out of Hertfordshire during the day before finishing in Hertfordshire; that’s 3 counties so far that the Icknield Way would have passed through. My day began at the Hitchin Premier Inn with a full English. I helped myself to a banana and a couple of pain au chocolat to see me through the day. I then drove to Harlington railway station and parked my car. I set off down Sundon Road and in less than a mile I picked up the Icknield Way Path. Like just about every stage of the Great Chalk Way, today was going to be a sunny and warm day. Immediately, the path started to climb to the top of Sundon Hills Country Park via a small disused pit. From the top were views across the ridge towards Sharpenhoe Clappers, site of a promontory fort ( a particular kind of Iron Age hillfort ) situated in a commanding position in the area that provided the best defence. These days it is covered in tall beech trees. Start the day with a climb Thankfully some steps Small disused pit Views across to Sharpenhoe Clappers The Icknield Way followed the ridge towards Sharpenhoe but after entering the Sharpenhoe Clappers car park, rather than taking you to the fort, instead it cut across the hill towards the next hill, Smithcombe Hill. The geology of the land meant that I was doubling back on myself due to some steep escarpments below. I'd keep seeing these communication masts almost as if I was going round in a circle The Icknield Way doesn't go round the Clappers but heads off to the right After Smithcombe, the path descended towards the A6 but rather than crossing it here as I would have expected, instead it entered the attractive village of Streatley. I stopped at a bench by the side of a tree-covered pond in the village and ate my banana and the pains au chocolat I’d taken from the Premier Inn at breakfast time. Blackberries were in abundant supply all summer It's those masts again! Perfect spot in Streatley for a break Moving on, for the next mile or so I walked alongside a number of fields that were themselves roughly parallel to the A6. Eventually I emerged onto the A6 and crossed it, literally on the northern edge of residential Luton. Pheasants Welcome to Luton The path took me onto South Beds Golf Club with Warden Hill right in front of me and Galley Hill to the left. The path took me up Galley Hill which forms part of the Galley & Warden Hills Nature Reserve. The top of Galley Hill provided panoramic views of the town of Luton and the more attractive countryside to the north of it. View over Luton from top of Galley Hill - December 2025 After crossing one more fairway, the path carried on in an almost dead straight line along what some people label ‘proper Icknield Way’ i.e. the original ancient trading path rather than the collection of modern day footpaths comprising the Icknield Way. I like to imagine the cobbled bricks I walked over had a reasonable amount of age to them, if not thousands then maybe hundreds or tens at least!! As is often the way, the path was sandwiched between dense vegetation comprising hedges and trees, with openings here and there. In summer, the vegetation cover is at its greatest. This is the excuse I’m using for walking straight past the Pegsdon Hills and Hoo Bit Nature Reserve! The Pegsdon Hills are known for some of the best panoramic views in Bedfordshire and I missed them. To partially remedy this, I returned in December 2025 to see what I had missed. In particular, Deacon Hill, apart from being an SSSI has ancient earthworks as well as a trigpoint pillar. I think I really out to return next summer to fully appreciate these hills. As pleasant as it is, the vegetation in summer can hide important things left and right Pegsdon Hills December 2025 Pegsdon Hills December 2025 Deacon Hill December 2025 Deacon Hill December 2025 Having unknowingly walked past the Pegsdon Hills, the path continued with hedges and trees on both sides and a bit of road walking – pleasant but not inspiring. I passed another nature reserve, Knocking Hoe National Nature Reserve. The views were fabulous and I’m certain were not too dissimilar from the Pegsdon Hills views. Re-entering Hertfordshire Views from Knocking Hoe National Nature Reserve Views from Knocking Hoe National Nature Reserve I was getting closer to the village of Pirton which was a good thing as I’d run out of water. Pirton has the remains of the earthworks of a medieval motte and bailey castle that was called Toot Hill but I missed them. I didn’t realise this at the time but I probably walked past the earthworks without realising what they were! On the other hand, I did pass a pub called The Motte & Bailey in the village! The wrong Motte & Bailey! St Mary's Church in Pirton. The earthworks are behind both the pub and church on the Icknield Way! I settled on stopping at the other pub in the village, The Fox, for a soft drink, a packet of crisps and a top up of one of my water bottles. Duly refreshed I set off for the last couple of miles alongside the hedges of fields that had either recently or were being harvested. Again, pleasant but not too inspiring. Having said that, there is something to be said about photos taken on a sunny day of landscapes featuring harvested fields and natural hedge borders. The colours go very well together and the photos make for better photos than those of fields with green crops! The path eventually reached the busy main road between Hitchin and Henlow Camp. I crossed the road and continued for a few hundred yards into the village of Ickleford. This is where this stage finished. Ickleford I could have walked into Hitchin from here to get back to my car in Harlington but I was rather hot and sweaty. Instead, I walked back to the main road and a bus turned up almost straight away. Back in Hitchin I walked to the railway station and caught a Thameslink train to Harlington where my car was. I then drove home. Perfect timing! Hitchin Today’s walk was enjoyable but not as interesting as I’d been used to. The landscapes were outstanding however. I’d been really spoilt up to now in terms of history and hill climbing. I accepted that much of the Icknield Way from here on would be all about the landscapes. Tomorrow's walk was going to be longer than today's and take in 3 towns - Letchworth Garden City, Baldock and Royston.

Official Stage Statistics Route distance – 16.43 miles Duration - 6 hours 28 mins Total ascent – 1103 feet Total descent – 1500 feet Highest point – 765 feet Fly-through of this stage Logistics Drive to Ivinghoe Beacon Car Park, Beacon Road HP4 1NF (OS SP963159) Walk to Toddington Get bus 42 or E back to Dunstable Get taxi to Ivinghoe Beacon Car Park £25 OR Get bus 61 61A or X61 to Ivinghoe Beacon stop on B489 and walk to car park Pick up car Drive to Portmill Lane Hitchin car park SG5 1DJ - free between 18:00 and 08:00 Walk across to Premier Inn and stay overnight My Walk This was my first stage of the Icknield Way. I used to live and work in Dunstable and was therefore familiar with much of the route. I even lived in Icknield Street, so ‘Icknield’ has always meant a lot to me! However, having moved away from the area more than 30 years ago I was keen to see what if anything had changed. I was really shocked to see the massive housing and industrial developments that have taken place to the north of Dunstable and Houghton Regis and the A5-M1 Dunstable Northern Bypass and junction 11A of the M1 that opened in 2017. Dunstable town centre has also changed significantly and not necessarily in a positive way I’m afraid to say. From my experience of having now walked this stage I’m assuming slight changes were made to the route of the Icknield Way in the light of the Dunstable Northern Bypass back in 2017. The Icknield Way doesn’t actually start from the top of Ivinghoe Beacon as you might think it should; instead, there is a green Icknield Way sign about 600 yards before the top pointing you towards the start of the trail. The Icknield Way is the only trail of the 6 that comprise the Great Chalk Way that greets the walker at both the start and the finish with a fanfare. The fanfare in this case is a stone milestone at Ivinghoe Beacon and a similar one at Knettishall Heath – although at Knettishall Heath it’s well camouflaged! There is also one at Balsham which is where the official opening ceremony of the Icknield Way Path was carried out in 1992. The start of the Icknield Way Path is also the start of the 7 mile section of the trail known as the Ridgeway Link. The link path follows the Icknield Way to Dagnall, Whipsnade and then across Dunstable Downs to the Chilterns Gateway Centre. This visitor centre, managed by the National Trust, provides the facilities lacking at Ivinghoe Beacon and has outstanding views for miles around. Beyond the visitor centre I’d descend the downs into Dunstable, walk around the outskirts of Houghton Regis and eventually cross the Dunstable Northern Bypass at Thorn. Beyond Thorn, the landscape would quickly become more rural again. The path would pass through the hamlet of Wingfield before passing Chalgrave Manor Golf Club. Beyond the golf course I’d have 2 options for crossing the M1, both of which filled me with dread due to my irrational fear of high, narrow bridges – gephyrophobia! Option 1 would be to bear right and cross a narrow pedestrian footbridge over the motorway. This would eventually bring me out in Upper Sundon. Option 2 would be to bear left, walk into Toddington and then cross the motorway using the narrow bridge at Toddington Services reserved for emergency services vehicles and Travelodge guests. This option would bring me out close to Harlington. Option 1 is the official route, whilst Option 2 is the official alternative route. Having viewed the 2 bridges on Google Maps I’d already decided there was no way I’d be crossing either of these with 8 lanes of fast moving traffic underneath me! So, what did I do? Read on! My day began with a 60 mile drive from home to the Ivinghoe Beacon car park off Beacon Road. This is where the Great Chalk Way information board is located. It was a beautiful start to the day and as it was only 9 o’clock I treated myself to a climb to the top of the Ivinghoe Beacon to admire the 360° views including the Whipsnade chalk lion in the distance. I’d been to the top a couple of days ago but you can never tire of the views from up there. Back down at the start of the Icknield Way, the path initially descended alongside a couple of large fields before entering some woodland that led into The Coombe, a wooded valley known for its muddy paths and steep steps. Fortunately, in August it was bone dry. It was certainly a steep climb and I was grateful for the steps. At the top the path opened up to give views of the Whipsnade chalk lion and the Downs. What a gorgeous day! The path brought me down into the village of Dagnall and of course, a climb up towards Whipsnade then followed. This included crossing a few of Whipsnade Park Golf Club’s fairways. Beyond the golf course the path continued climbing as it passed between the high fenced edges of Whipsnade Zoo to the left and high hedges to the right – so not a great deal to see and certainly not the huge white chalk lion that everyone associates with the zoo. The lion, which was carved between 1931 and 1933, is about 160 yards long nose to tail and is believed to be the largest chalk figure in England. In fact, it's so big it was covered during World War II as it would have been a very useful navigation aid to enemy planes. A band of volunteers is needed to keep it weed free. The zoo is on the left. Not much to see on the right! Looking well groomed. About 480 feet long. The tail is 13 feet wide! Eventually I emerged into Whipsnade itself with its village hall, green and Tree Cathedral! I’d been to the Tree Cathedral before but couldn’t make out the outline of the Cathedral. Similarly, this time but maybe it’s because all the trees were in full leaf and I was too impatient to explore it fully. I therefore decided to return later in the year with my drone to help me get a better idea of the floor plan. I did this in December 2025 on an incredibly cold but very sunny morning. Whipsnade Revisit December 2025 Revisit December 2025 You get a better idea from 120 metres in the air - December 2025 Emerging from the ‘Cathedral’ I was soon walking along the Dunstable Downs, one of the highlights of this walk. At almost 800 feet, the Dunstable Downs are the highest point in Bedfordshire and this 2 mile section provides fabulous views of Buckinghamshire and Bedfordshire countryside, if not further. Halfway along, the Chilterns Gateway Centre, managed by the National Trust provides a café, toilets, shop, visitor information and car parking. As it was about lunchtime I stopped here for a coffee and a sandwich I’d brought with me. As it was in the middle of school summer holidays and it was a gorgeous day, it was lovely to see so many families enjoying the downs with picnics and flying kites. There was no excuse to be stuck indoors playing computer games today. Kites (including the red variety) weren’t the only things in the air; down below was the London Gliding Club and to the right, away from most of the families, a number of brave souls attached to their paragliders, were launching themselves from the top of Pascombe Pit. Pascombe Pit Another Great Chalk Way information board has been placed on the path As I came to the end of the Downs, the path began to descend slowly into Dunstable. I passed what I thought at the time must be a BMX track – a number of grass mounds with an exposed chalk track running down the middle of each. It was only after I got home that I realised these mounds were anything but a BMX track! They were in fact the Five Knolls burial chambers – what an idiot!! The National Trust explains the history of these 4000 years old chambers, now recognised as a Scheduled Monument. It’s a shame though that people weren’t respecting them. As I hadn’t thought anything of them at the time I didn’t bother taking any pictures, so I went back in December 2025 with my drone as part of an Icknield Way ‘mopping up’ exercise of things I wish I’d photographed. There are in fact seven chambers - three bell barrows, two bowl barrows and two pond barrows. As I'm not sufficiently well versed in types of barrow, I have no idea which is which in my photos! Beyond the BMX track and having crossed the main road between Dunstable and Tring, the walk continued on a track at the side of the Beecroft housing estate. After walking along 4 virtually straight paths and tracks for almost 1½ miles I arrived at a bridge that carried the former Leighton Buzzard to Dunstable railway line that closed in 1967. Today with the tracks lifted, Sewell Cutting is not only used by walkers and cyclists along its firm and flat path but it is also a narrow wildlife haven. A big success story! Incidentally, Dunstable is in the top 20 largest towns in England without a railway station! Having reached this bridge at Sewell Cutting I hadn’t realised that I’d walked past Maiden Bower, a Neolithic hillfort. Again, I hadn’t done my homework before setting off on this walk. In my defence, unlike other hillforts I’d encountered along the Great Chalk Way, Maiden Bower isn’t exactly by the side of the path and you’d have to know what you were looking for as you passed by the turn off leading to it. Feeling guilty about missing the fort in August, I returned in December 2025 with my drone as another part of my mopping up exercise. Having found it, from the ground you might not realise that what you were looking at was a hillfort. What remains of the rampart is covered in hawthorn bushes and trees and brambles. This is certainly a good thing since it deters people from vandalising it. One side of the rampart has collapsed into a former chalk quarry right by the side of the fort. The ditch has been filled in and is no longer visible and much of the interior has been under cultivation in recent times. The site has been subject to vandalism over the years. One of the worst was about 20 years ago when vandals used a stolen mechanical digger to damage the rampart and cut a number of holes from the centre of the fort. The fort has also been used as a dumping ground for stolen cars after the drivers have had their fun driving round the fort and then torching them. Sure enough, there were two torched cars on the site when I visited in December 2025! There was also evidence of people riding off-road motorbikes around the fort. I'm guessing this is what happens when towns expand so close to historical artifacts like this. Maiden Bower - much of the interior has been used for cultivation over the years Continuing under the Sewell Cutting bridge I passed through the pretty hamlet of Sewell and then after walking along the side of a couple of fields I emerged onto a busy roundabout on what in my day was the A5 Thorn Turn but is now the A505. After crossing the A505, the path continued between a huge warehouse and a large Amazon Fulfilment Centre and then on through a development of new houses towards the Dunstable Northern Bypass. Wow! These buildings and houses certainly didn’t exist when I lived in Dunstable – everything is so new. An Icknield Way waymarker directed me onto a footbridge over the busy 4 lanes of traffic. The height and width of the bridge made it bearable for me to cross it without my stomach churning! Sewell This is all brand new A reassuring sign Safely on the other side of the bypass, the path initially continued parallel to the bypass but then took a left away from it and peace and tranquillity returned. I continued walking on the edge of a number of fields before entering the hamlet of Wingfield. More edge of field walking brought me to Chalgrave Manor Golf Club. Not sure I was meant to cross a couple of fairways but nobody told me off. Just beyond the golf course I hit Luton Road and this is where I was given the option to turn to the right to follow the ‘standard’ Icknield Way or bear left towards Toddington. The ‘standard’ way would take me onto the narrow footbridge over the M1; well, that was a non-starter for me. The alternative route would take me onto the emergency vehicles bridge over the motorway at the Toddington service area; the lesser of 2 evils for me. I followed the Toddington route across a field and through some woodland and eventually emerged in the centre of Toddington. The village was much bigger and prettier than I remembered from when I worked for Barclays in Dunstable and we had a sub-branch in Toddington. Both the branch and sub-branch have now closed. Dunstable closed in October 2023 and is now a slot machine and online bingo paradise! I suspect Toddington sub-branch closed many years before. 146 miles left to reach Hunstanton I walked the extra mile to the motorway bridge…..took some photos…….and walked back into Toddington! I knew all along I wouldn’t be able to walk across it and had already decided that I would start the next stage of the Icknield Way tomorrow on the other side of the M1 at Harlington. The bridge over the M1 So, back in Toddington I caught a bus back to Dunstable and got a taxi to take me back to my car at Ivinghoe Beacon. From there I drove to the Premier Inn in Hitchin. I chose Hitchin because tomorrow’s stage would finish at Ickleford, just a short bus ride or walk from Hitchin town centre. By the time I got to the Premier Inn it was gone 8 o'clock. I really couldn't be bothered getting showered and then go out to find somewhere for my tea, so I settled on eating in the hotel's restaurant. The poor girl who checked me in was also having to man the bar as well as cook and serve the food. I say 'cook' the food. I did ask her and she confirmed that what I ordered was simply microwaved! I didn't feel so bad after she told me that. After leaving my house at 7:30 this morning, today had been a very long but thoroughly enjoyable day. Tomorrow should be an easier day and I hope it will be as good fun.

Official Stage Statistics Route distance – 18.57 miles Duration - 7 hours 55 mins Total ascent – 2371 feet Total descent – 1979 feet Highest point – 846 feet Fly-through of this stage Logistics Drive to the Mount Car Park Princes Risborough HP27 9AN and park car - £3.70 all day - RingGo Location - 5251251 Walk to Ivinghoe Beacon Get picked up and taken back to Princes Risborough to collect car Tea at pub Drive home My Walk It was more than 8 weeks since I completed the Mongewell to Princes Risborough stage but finally the moon and stars aligned and my sister Nicky and I set off to complete the final stage of The Ridgeway. We’ve done this walk 3 times before by taking part in the annual Rennie Grove Hospice Chilterns 3 Peak Challenge, so we knew exactly what to expect – except this time we wouldn’t have lots of volunteers along the route cheering us on and providing us with water, cakes and sweets! Today would be very much an up and down day, this stage providing the largest ascent and descent figures of the entire Great Chalk Way. The walk would begin in the town of Princes Risborough with a steep climb up to the top of Whiteleaf Hill. This would set the tone for the rest of the day with drops and climbs through woodland and downland. Coombe Hill would be the 2nd of the 3 peaks with the path then dropping down into Wendover. Another climb up through woodland would be followed by a long and steady drop down into Tring. Finally, we’d do a steady climb up towards Ivinghoe Beacon, the 3rd peak, culminating with a relatively steep climb to the top. I regard this stage as one of the very best of the whole Great Chalk Way. It offers some spectacular views of the Chilterns. My day began with a 60 mile drive to Nicky’s house to pick her up. We drove to Princes Risborough and parked the car. Within a few minutes we were out of the centre of town and climbing up through Brush Hill Nature Reserve towards the top of Whiteleaf Hill. The views from the top were truly fabulous on what was a glorious day. The climb through woods to the top of Whiteleaf Hill Nice to have my sister's company today View from the top Whiteleaf Cross is a cross-shaped chalk hill carving with a triangular base, cut into the slope of the hill that faces the town. Whilst you can walk down the steep slope to see the cross, like all such chalk carvings, it is best viewed from the air. I hadn’t brought my drone with me on this walk to save bulk and weight in my backpack. I did however do a revisit a few weeks later with my drone and full-size camera to get more pictures and I’ve added a few of these to this post. Whiteleaf Cross - September 2025 Panorama from Whiteleaf Hill - September 2025 From Whiteleaf Hill we descended quite steeply through woodland, emerging in the village of Cadsden at The Plough. This pub is quite famous, being the ‘local’ for Chequers, the Prime Minister’s country residence, which we would pass further on. David Cameron (remember him?) famously took the Chinese President Xi Jinping there for a pint of IPA during his state visit in 2015, at a time when we were friends with China! There are numerous photos inside the pub of the occasion. A year later, a Chinese company bought the pub! The pub became famous in Chinese circles following the visit of the President and it has become quite a tourist attraction for Chinese visitors ever since. The Plough is the same pub where in 2012, the Cameron’s left their daughter Nancy – albeit only for about 15 minutes. Mr Cameron had left the pub in one car with his bodyguards, whilst Mrs Cameron left in another car with their other children. Mrs Cameron assumed Nancy was with her dad and it was only when they got back to Chequers that they realised Nancy was missing. She dashed back to the pub and found Nancy helping the staff, so all was well! The Plough at Cadsden Cameron & Xi Jinping in 2015 Cameron & Xi Jinping in 2015 It has to be done! From Cadsden, naturally, the path climbed through a mixture of woodland and downland. It levelled off as we approached the fencing surrounding the Chequers estate. There were plenty of stern warning signs advising us that it would be best not to climb over the fences. You have been warned! Chequers - the Coombe Hill monument can be seen in the background Chequers Further warning! After skirting around Chequers the path continued its climb through woodland before we emerged onto Coombe Hill and more spectacular views. The summit of Coombe Hill is 852 feet high. The National Trust, who maintain the site, claim it’s the highest point of the Chilterns. However, Haddington Hill, less than 3 miles away is 876 feet high and has a series of large stones bearing the inscription 'The Chiltern Summit'. I think the National Trust’s claim might be a case of a little wishful thinking! Heading towards the top of Coombe Hill Chequers from the side of Coombe Hill The viewpoint on Coombe Hill is marked with a monument dedicated to the men of Buckinghamshire who gave their lives in the Boer War. The monument is an iconic Buckinghamshire landmark and is Grade II listed. There are always people there taking selfies against the backdrop of the monument. We always stop here for a snack, admiring the views. The monument at Coombe Hill Perfect place to sit and take a break Cows holding a mothers meeting! From the top of the hill, the carnage inflicted by HS2 on Wendover was plain to see. Rather than tunnelling deeper down, which local people were less unhappy to accept, it was decided by HS2 to construct a 1 mile ‘green’ tunnel for Wendover. A green tunnel comprises shallow concrete tunnels that are built on the surface before being buried, with trees, plants and shrubs planted on top to blend into the landscape. HS2 claim that building green tunnels helps reduce the impact on people and nature. This cut and cover approach is also claimed to be considerably cheaper than bored tunnels using tunnel boring machines. Despite huge local opposition, work finally began in earnest in 2021. HS2 workings As we descended into the town and crossed the temporary metal bridge over the excavations, the scale of works could be seen at close quarters. It looks so awful now and goodness knows how many years it will be before people can finally say “You’d never know that there are HS2 railway tunnels below us!”. 'Cut & Cover' HS2 tunnel sections - eventually all the earth on the left will cover them 'Cut & Cover' HS2 tunnel sections There are still people living in these houses Temporary bridge over the workings If you are ever in Wendover and in need of coffee and cake I can thoroughly recommend calling in at Rumsey’s Chocolaterie at number 26 High Street. They sell some divine cakes and many chocolate products that are made on the premises. They have plenty of tables and also do take-aways. As it was the height of summer, we decided to carry on without stopping today and anyway, I’d brought cake from home for us to eat at some point. Wendover - such a pretty town Rumsey's in Wendover The kind of yummy cakes you get at Rumsey’s Chocolaterie! At the end of the High Street we turned right down an alleyway and began a gentle climb along footpaths and narrow lanes into woodland. After about 3 miles of mostly woods we emerged at Hastoe, where after a bit of road walking we entered Tring Park, a 330 acre SSSI comprising a mixture of woodland and grassland, with plenty of footpaths. The wide, main path through the wooded area is at its best in autumn after the leaves have turned. Woods provided some pleasant shade Another Grim's Ditch Crong Radio Site Tring Park Tring Park A carved bench in Tring Park that overlooks the town and beyond provided the perfect excuse to stop to eat our cake that I’d brought with me. It’s a tradition for whenever we do a walk in the Chilterns that I provide coffee and walnut cake. Lovely bench It's definitely time for cake! Definitely a favourite Ridgeway fingerpost in Tring Park On exiting Tring Park, my heart rate started to increase because I knew what was coming up very soon. The path descended alongside fields towards the A41 and the railway, with lovely views of the countryside. There is a narrow concrete footbridge across the A41. I don’t know how high above the road it is but it’s very high is all I can say. I read somewhere that it’s about 100 feet high. As I mentioned much earlier when I was having to cross a similar bridge over the A303 at Amesbury, I suffer from an irrational fear of narrow bridges – gephyrophobia! I’ve crossed this particular bridge many times in the past when walking with members of my family and each time it puts the fear of God up me! Knowing that the bridge is coming up sets off my anxiety. You’d have thought by now that it wouldn’t bother me but every time I cross it I feel exactly the same. That's Ivinghoe Beacon in the background Heading towards that bridge! It's got to be done! Off we go. Just keep looking ahead and don't stop! Yikes! It looks even worse from this angle. © Cathy Cox Anyway, once across the bridge, my heart rate dropped and I could start to enjoy the walk again. The path carried on downhill before reaching Tring Station. Just beyond the station we turned off to the left and began our final 3 mile climb up towards Ivinghoe Beacon at the top of Beacon Hill. If you’re doing this walk and you have some time to spare, it’s well worth making a short (about 0.7 miles) detour into the village of Aldbury by continuing along the Tring Station road, rather than turning off for the final climb. Aldbury is a picture prefect village complete with village pond. This explains why it’s been used as a filming location for countless films and TV programmes. It goes without saying that Midsommer Murders has used Aldbury in the past; it’s acted as the villages of Midsomer Worthy and Binwell! It also has 2 pubs and a village store. What’s not to like! Tring Station. The Posting House used to be a hotel but is now apartments Aldbury Aldbury So, back to the walk. This was a bit of a slog after walking all day but so worth it for the views all the way up and of course, on reaching the trig point at the top. Ivinghoe Beacon is a late Bronze Age hillfort and the 360° views from the top explain why this was such a good location to choose to defend. Only 3 miles to go now! Up we go. Aldbury Nowers is a 50 acre SSSI home to more than 30 types of butterfly At least there are some steps! Great views on the way up You have to work to get to the top! Thankfully we didn't have to tackle Incombe Hole! 550 metres to get to the top. If you must use metric at least get the spelling right!! That's the Whipsnade White Horse in the background. The next stage will take me there You're made to work right to the very top! And we've made it! The GCW Information Board in the Ivinghoe Beacon car park Normally, we would now have to find our way back to Princes Risborough by bus or train in order to pick up my car. However, as mentioned, Nicky lives more or less on the route we’d taken today and her ever obliging husband was able to pick us up and drive us to Princes Risborough where I collected my car. We then drove back to their local pub where we celebrated our achievement and had our tea. What a great day we’d had! Ivinghoe Beacon marks the end (or start) of The Ridgeway. I’d now completed 201 of the 360 miles of the Great Chalk Way. 2 days later I’d be back here to begin the Icknield Way section with a walk to Toddington. Aerial view of Ivinghoe Beacon - frosty morning in November 2025 The Icknield Way starts before the final climb to the top of Ivinghoe Beacon A magnificent stone to mark the start of the Icknield Way

Official Stage Statistics Route distance – 19.64 miles Duration - 7 hours 59 mins Total ascent – 1786 feet Total descent – 1646 feet Highest point – 706 feet Fly-through of this stage Logistics Drive to Goldsmith's Lane Wallingford Car Park OX10 0DN - £6 for day - Pay by Phone – location 810589 Walk to Market Place & catch X40 bus to Mongewell Turn Walk to Princes Risborough Station Catch train to Oxford Catch train to Didcot Parkway Catch X40 bus to Wallingford Pick up car & drive home My Walk This was going to be my longest walk along The Ridgeway and the 2nd longest overall along the Great Chalk Way. So why on earth did I walk it twice – firstly in May and then again in September? It was for the same old reason; in May it was a pretty overcast day but in September it was a glorious day. This was to be the 3rd and last of my repeated walks. By the time I reached Princes Risborough I would be more or less at the halfway point of the Great Chalk Way. This would be the first stage that I would do as a day trip from home. Starting from Mongewell (which is really part of Wallingford), the first few miles would be following the Grim’s Ditch (AKA Grim’s Dyke) as far as Nuffield. There are a number of Grim’s Ditches in England, mainly in the South East. They are prehistoric bank and ditch linear earthworks. The purpose of them remains a mystery but as they are too small for military use, they may have served to demarcate territory. This Grim’s Ditch stretches for about 5 miles but The Ridgeway follows it for about 3½ miles. I’d come across another Grim’s Ditch on the final stage of The Ridgeway. At Nuffield the trail would turn left and cross numerous fairways of Huntercombe Golf Club. After crossing a couple of large fields and walking through some woodland, the path would climb to its highest point near Swyncombe before dropping back down. For the next 7 or so miles beyond Swyncombe the trail would level out and I’d be walking along a virtually straight path, which at times was completely open with great 360° views. At other times it would also pass through woodland and least appealing, the path would have trees and bushes on either side giving limited views of the landscape. For this 7 miles the trail would intersect numerous roads and tracks, leading to towns and villages like Watlington and Chinnor. Beyond Chinnor, the path would bear right and climb up to the top of Lodge Hill, before a final 2½ mile descent into Princes Risborough. My day began with an early morning 80 mile drive from home to Wallingford. I parked my car and caught the X40 bus from the Market Place to the ‘Mongewell Turn’ stop - 100 yards from The Ridgeway. At first the path was narrow with loads of trees and hedges on both sides but also with some breaks to allow some nice views of the landscape. After crossing a single track road, the climbing began in earnest up Grim’s Ditch along one of its banks. The ditch itself was pretty overgrown with vegetation and fallen tree branches, making it difficult to fully appreciate it. For this reason, I’m adding a photo from when I first walked The Ridgeway in February 2023. This really highlights the ditch and supports the theory that maybe it was for demarcation purposes as it would certainly be useless to keep marauders at bay! Shortly after the off - what a glorious day Odd place for a trig point Grim's Ditch - May 2025 Grim's Ditch - February 2023. Not much use as a defence! At the top of the slope, the path turned left and very soon I emerged by the church in the village of Nuffield. The fingerpost directing you onto the golf course was partially hidden by vegetation so I walked past it when I did this walk in May. I managed to find a way to get back on track but this did involve walking along a busy road. You’d have thought when I did the walk again in September that I’d be more careful not to miss the sign – but I walked straight past again! This time however I quickly realised my error and backtracked until I finally saw the sign. After walking over a number of fairways I emerged at The Maker Space – a modern craft venue, shop, café and community space in a former 17th century pub building. I didn’t really fancy a coffee at this time but it’s good to know that the place is here. Lovely view from the top of Grim's Ditch The church in Nuffield The Ridgeway crosses a few fairways The Maker Space is a multi-purpose building including a café After crossing the busy main road, the path crossed 2 very large fields before reaching a side entrance gate to the Ewelme Park Estate. From what I’ve read, the estate covers over 600 acres and the main house built in 1913 has 8 bedrooms and is Grade II listed. I believe the estate is owned by Mr Jaisal Singh. He operates his polo team from the equestrian facilities on the site – the Sujan Indian Tigers. One of the 2 large fields the path crossed An entrance to the Ewelme Park Estate Continuing past Ewelme Park, the path descended quite steeply through woodland down to Swyncombe. There had been a considerable amount of tree clearance between my walks in May and September, resulting in some really nice views. Trees have been thinned out making a great view Some of the logs from the tree felling St Botolph’s Church in Swyncombe is well known for its snowdrops and ‘Snowdrop Teas’ each year. My Ridgeway walk past the church in 2023 fortunately coincided with one of the Snowdrop Tea days and I happily stopped to avail myself! St Botolph's Church St Botolph's Church - February 2023 St Botolph's Snowdrop Tea - yummy cakes to go with coffee - February 2023 Beyond Swyncombe the path climbed steeply to the highest point of the walk, before descending through woodland just as steeply with views of the imposing Britwell House in the distance. 2025 was a bumper year for conkers! A climb to the highest point of today's walk After the climb - the descent! Britwell House in the distance At the bottom of the hill at Britwell Salome the path took a definite 90° turn to the right, marking the start of about 7 miles of flat and virtually straight walking along a restricted byway known as the Lower Icknield Way. The whole 7 miles were easy on the feet and as a stand-alone walk it was really pleasant. All the way along to the right of the path was the top of the ridge at about 800 feet, whereas The Ridgeway path hovered between about 450 and 500 feet. The Upper Icknield Way runs parallel to the Lower Icknield Way as a tarmac road along the top of the ridge. This is a good illustration of how trails such as The Ridgeway are forced to take the practical route at times (i.e. avoid the road) rather than the ridgetop route that would have been expected for a trail called The Ridgeway! On the left hand side of the path it was mainly farmland with great views beyond but as is often the case, the trees and hedges on both sides of the path obscured the views at times. Watlington Hill and a really wide path I do so like The Ridgeway fingerposts! This isn't me jogging by the way! Beacon Hill on the other side of the M40 About halfway between Watlington & Chinnor the path passed underneath the busy and noisy M40 through its own concrete tunnel. Either side of the M40 and up to the right was Aston Rowant Nature Reserve, a 400 acre nature reserve at the top of the ridge that looks down on the motorway. Very soon after the tunnel the path crossed the A40, now considerably quieter since the M40 was built. It was here that I saw the first mention of the Icknield Way on fingerposts and this confused me a little but more of that on my dedicated page for the Icknield Way section. The M40 tunnel Lovely colours of the trees Nice views to the left too At Chinnor, the path passed by former chalk quarries, although from the ground it wasn’t too easy to see all of them. The quarries were on the site of what started life in 1906 as The Chinnor Lime Company, a small company creating lime. Over the next 90+ years the site expanded to over 200 acres, was eventually taken over by Rugby Cement and became 1 of just 6 major cement production plants in the UK. Production ended in 2000 and the buildings were demolished in 2007/8 after the land was acquired by Taylor Wimpey. Today, the land & quarries on the Chinnor village side of The Ridgeway have been redeveloped and landscaped as a housing estate known as Old Kiln Lakes as well as recreational areas. One of the original lime kilns is now Grade II listed and can be seen in the housing estate near the playground. On the other side of the path, the large, extremely deep quarry has been filled with water and is strictly off limits to the public. Site of the former lime & cement plant These signs are so useful Beyond the old Chinnor chalk quarries, at Hempton Wainhill I said goodbye to Oxfordshire and hello to Buckinghamshire, as the path veered off to the right and climbed up through woods to emerge onto sheep grazing fields, about 1 mile from the village of Bledlow Ridge. This was a bit of a ‘Wow’ moment because for quite a bit of of today’s walk up to this point I’d felt relatively hemmed in compared to this. On the climb up Wain Hill in Buckinghamshire Some shade from the warm sunshine So simple but so effective! It was lovely to walk across this large, open field Now in the open I could see Princes Risborough in the distance but rather than making a beeline for the town, The Ridgeway took a more circular route via a short but steep climb to the top of Lodge Hill. It has to be said that the views from the hilltop were worth the climb. Before carrying on I checked the times of trains to Oxford from Princes Risborough. It was 3 o’clock and the next train was at 15:50. I’d have to wait another hour if I missed this one so I decided to get a wriggle on. Lodge Hill ahead The path up to the top of Lodge Hill On top of the hill Great views from Lodge Hill Lodge Hill overlooking Princes Risborough From the top of Lodge Hill, the final 2 and a bit miles to the railway station were thankfully pretty much downhill all the way. The Ridgeway passed alongside the golf course, crossed a couple of railway lines and a large field before taking to residential streets in Princes Risborough. I reached the station at 15:40 giving me 10 minutes to cool down a little before my train to Oxford arrived. More welcome shade Railway line crossing Princes Risborough Station with 10 minutes to spare Back in Oxford, I changed trains for Didcot Parkway, got the X40 bus back to Wallingford, picked up my car and drove home. A long but really successful day and I was now halfway along the Great Chalk Way! Now that was quite a walk! The final stage of The Ridgeway would be Princes Risborough to Ivinghoe Beacon. My sister, who is fortunate enough to live within a couple of miles of The Ridgeway, had said from the outset that she’d like to do a Ridgeway Walk with me. I’ve done so many Chilterns walks with her in the past, including the Rennie Grove Hospice Chilterns 3 Peaks Challenge 3 times. The 3 Peaks challenge takes the route of this final stage, so I knew we’d be able to do this brilliant walk. The problem was trying to find a suitable day when we would both be free as she is unfortunate enough to still have to work! In the end it would be 8 weeks before we’d set off from Princes Risborough. Whilst I could have started along the Icknield Way whilst waiting for her, I really didn’t want to do walks out of turn, so instead, to keep myself occupied I completed the Thames Path for the 6th time!

Official Stage Statistics Route distance – 6.02 miles Duration - 2 hours 14 mins Total ascent – 158 feet Total descent – 94 feet Highest point – 219 feet Fly-through of this stage Logistics Drive to Wheel Orchard Car Park in Goring - RG8 9HB - £6 for day - Pay by Phone – location 810584 Walk to Mongewell Get lift back to Goring & pick up car Drive home My Walk At only 6 miles, this walk was the shortest and undoubtedly the easiest of my 27 Great Chalk Way stages. I probably could have tacked it on to the end of yesterday’s walk from Letcombe which would then have become the 2nd longest. However, I was in no rush to complete The Ridgeway and I do so enjoy this particular section as it takes in my beloved River Thames! This stage and beyond would mark a change in the nature of the path. I would now be walking in the Chiltern Hills, which by definition means more ups and downs! Relatively speaking, the walks now would become less rural in nature and the wide paths along the top of the ridge, with views for miles would generally be replaced with more varied (but no less attractive) landscapes, narrower paths, more villages, woodland, large fields, even golf courses. The walk would begin in the streets of Goring-on-Thames - a picture perfect Oxfordshire village. The late George Michael owned a house in the middle of the village – Mill Cottage - and lived here for his last 15 years. He played his part as a resident and his fellow residents treated him as just another neighbour. As far as the village of South Stoke, the path would be sandwiched between the Thames and the railway with a fair amount of riverside walking. Beyond South Stoke the path would pass under Moulsford Railway Bridge and then continue mostly riverside to North Stoke. Beyond North Stoke the path would continue for a mile to the village of Mongewell where it would turn away from the river for a final ½ mile down to the A4074 Oxford to Reading road. I chose this as the end point because the X40 bus stops here; it’s called ‘Mongewell Turn’. My day began at the Swindon Town Centre Premier Inn and after breakfast I drove to Goring and parked the car. The Thames Path National Trail between Goring and Wallingford follows alongside the south bank of the river, whereas The Ridgeway National Trail follows alongside the north bank. I have to say I much prefer the route taken by The Ridgeway. Anyway, today’s walk began in Thames Road, a street of large, expensive looking houses with the river to my left and the railway to my right. Beyond this for the next mile or so, the path continued as a mixture of residential roads and bridleways with occasional glimpses of the river. Goring Thames Road where this stage starts Goring Thames Sailing Club House envy! You get a bonus front garden living here! .....but you do have trains thundering by all day at the back of your house! I soon entered the beautiful village of South Stoke. There were many posters publicising a forthcoming public meeting regarding the recent closure of the village’s pub, The Perch & Pike, after yet another tenant had thrown in the towel, having been unable to make a go of it. As of October 2025, the latest tenant is planning on reopening in early November according to the pub’s Facebook page. I wish them every luck! Please join our public meeting! The Perch & Pike South Stoke. So glad it will be reopening once again The path continued through the village and turned down towards the river. It emerged opposite the Beetle & Wedge pub which all Thames Path walkers must know. This was once a ferry crossing. South Stoke South Stoke South Stoke South Stoke The Beetle & Wedge on the Thames Path side. I now walked alongside the river towards Moulsford Railway Bridge. Just like its sibling Gatehampton Railway bridge a few miles away on the other side of Goring, this Grade II listed, brick built bridge designed by IK Brunel, is actually a pair of bridges, built in 2 phases 50 years apart. You have to admire the architecture of Moulsford Bridge in particular. Moulsford on the other side of the river Moulsford. You don't get to see this on the Thames Path Moulsford Moulsford Railway Bridge. The 2nd bridge was built to allow expansion of the line Moulsford Railway Bridge The bridge was built at a 60 degree angle across the river After walking under the bridge, the path continued alongside the river as far as Little Stoke, where it was forced to turn off to the right. For Thames Path walkers it’s opposite the Cholsey slipway and like at South Stoke, there was a ferry crossing here in the distant past. Cholsey Nature Reserve on the opposite bank The Ridgeway leaves the river opposite the Cholsey slipway Continuing along the edge of a couple of large fields, I reached the churchyard of St Mary the Virgin in North Stoke. This led to the houses and cottages of the impossibly pretty village! I was treated to a chorus of a group of whistling red kites. North Stoke North Stoke North Stoke North Stoke Beyond the village the path headed towards the village Mongewell, intersecting the Springs Golf club in a couple of places. The Springs Resort & Golf Club was previously owned by legendary Deep Purple frontman Ian Gillan. He had a swimming pool built in the shape of a guitar. The pool was subsequently filled in but until recently, the outline could still be seen in Google Maps. On the left was Mongewell Park, site of a derelict mansion which over the years had various uses. Before being closed in 1997, it was a Jewish boarding school called Carmel College which at the time was the most expensive school in England. The buildings have been derelict since the closure. Springs Golf Club & Spa. Previously owned by Ian Gillan of Deep Purple fame as a private estate Ian Gillan's guitar shaped swimming pool Somewhere to stop for a coffee 1 of the 25 photos taken along The Ridgeway by Max Writtle that has been posted on the trail At the next T-junction, had I wanted to visit Wallingford I could have turned left to cross Winterbrook Bridge over the Thames. The Ridgeway however turned right for the last ½ mile to the finish. Wendy, who I’d met the day before, had very kindly offered to give me a lift back to my car in Goring. Our paths crossed on this final stretch. In her role as a Friend of the Ridgeway, she took some photos of me at the Mongewell Turn fingerpost and then drove me to my car – what an amazing service!! Once back at my car I drove home. It might only have been a 6 mile walk but it was so enjoyable. My next stage from Mongewell to Princes Risborough would be a 20 miler but I’d wait a week before resuming my journey.

Official Stage Statistics Route distance – 14.25 miles Duration - 5 hours 23 mins Total ascent – 553 feet Total descent – 1169 feet Highest point – 750 feet Fly-through of this stage Logistics Drive from home to Portway Wantage car park - OX12 9BU - £7 for day - Pay by Phone – location 810582 Walk to Market Place & get taxi to Manor Road intersection with The Ridgeway Walk to Goring Walk to Goring & Streatley Station & catch train to Didcot Parkway Catch X36 bus to Wantage & pick up car Drive to Whalebridge Car Park in Swindon Stay overnight at Premier Inn Swindon Town Centre My Walk After all the historical sites I’d passed on the first 3 stages of The Ridgeway, today would be a bit of an anti-climax. On the other hand, I’d reach the halfway point of The Ridgeway and towards the end of my walk I’d be joined by Wendy, a Thames Path National Trail volunteer who does so much to promote this trail. I’d begin today’s stage more or less where I’d finished the previous stage at Segsbury Camp. The route would continue a slow descent, roughly west to east, along a wide, easy underfoot path with views of large fields far into the distance on both sides. After passing underneath the busy A34 near West Ilsley, the descent would continue along Compton Downs, with much of the land given over to racehorse gallops. After crossing a dismantled railway, I’d climb for the first and only time today. The nature of the path would also change from being mainly wide and grass covered to being narrower, mostly exposed stone with trees and bushes on both sides giving hardly any views. Nearing the end, the path would descend into a valley with Streatley Warren on one side and Thurle Down on the other side. The stony path would give way to a tarmacked road which I’d follow into the village of Streatley. Finally, I’d cross the road bridge over the River Thames into Goring-on-Thames. My day began from home with an early morning 80 mile drive to Wantage. The morning weekday traffic is usually lightest on a Friday morning and I had a good run. I parked in the Portway car park, walked to the Market Square and got a taxi to take me up to where the A338 intersects with The Ridgeway. I could have walked the 3 miles from Wantage but I’ve done this before and as it’s mainly uphill, it’s not much fun! So, by 9:15 I was ready to continue towards Goring. I was actually about 0.7 miles further along The Ridgeway from Segsbury Camp, which is where I’d ended the previous stage but what’s 0.7 miles amongst friends; in any case, I didn’t miss anything of note, having previously walked it in 2023. I could go to Segsbury Camp & back again....... ........but choose not to! The first 9 miles or so of this stage were going to be downhill all the way on a mainly wide, grass covered path. On a sunny day at the end of May what’s not to like about this. The Ridgeway has a habit of intersecting with roads and tracks and it wasn’t long before I crossed the B4494. Just beyond the intersection I reached the Loyd-Lindsay Monument (AKA Wantage Monument). Robert Loyd-Lindsay was a benefactor to Wantage and the first chairman and co-founder of the British National Society for Aid to the Sick and Wounded in War (later the British Red Cross Society). For being an all round good egg, he was elevated to the title of 1st Baron of Wantage in 1893. The monument was erected by his wife after his death in 1901. As they had no children, the title ‘Baron of Wantage’ died with him. April 2026 Shortly before reaching the point where the Ridgeway crosses a road down into East Hendred, I passed Scutchamer Knob - also known as Cuckhamsley Hill - an early Iron Age round barrow adjacent to The Ridgeway. It is said to be the place where King Edwin of Northumbria killed Cwichelm of Wessex in 636AD. Believing it to be Cwichelm's burial place, there were several excavations in the past that left the barrow with its misshapen form. I also passed Scutchamer Knob in 2023 and on both occasions I didn't know because it was just so overgrown. However, I'd read that valiant groups of volunteers had now cleared the area, so in April 2026 I made a special journey to visit it. Having seen photos of how it looked beforehand, on a gorgeous sunny day I have to say it looked amazing, giving great views across the North Wessex Downs National Landscape. The volunteers even created a bench out of a couple of pallets. I found it quite atmospheric and certainly very calming. As I got closer to the A34, the path left Oxfordshire and entered West Berkshire. I’d stay in West Berkshire for the remainder of today’s walk, until I crossed the Thames into Goring, when I’d be back in Oxfordshire. As I walked, the chimneys of Didcot ‘B’ Power Station could be clearly seen in the distance. I always thought it was a shame that the 6 cooling towers of Didcot ‘A’ Power Station were demolished – but then I don’t live in Didcot! For me the towers were an iconic sight whenever I drove down the A34. I could also see Harwell Campus in front of the power station. Harwell used to be the main research establishment of the United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority, built on the former RAF Harwell. Today the nuclear facilities are being decommissioned and its new role is as a science and business park. Its most striking building is the Diamond Light Source which resembles a huge silver doughnut! The Ridgeway has plenty of these helpful 'You are here' maps Heading towards the A34 Harwell Campus & Didcot 'B' Power Station not that far away On reaching the A34 near West Ilsley, The Ridgeway crossed under the road by way of a concrete tunnel. Beyond the tunnel the path initially continued as a wide grassy track over downland. The area’s links to racehorse training were to be seen almost everywhere. At Compton Downs the path took a very decisive 90 degree left turn away from the village of Compton. Tunnel under the A34 Memorial at Gore Hill just beyond the A34 Beyond the A34 Gallops everywhere Gallops Compton Gallops Bridge over the dismantled railway - February 2023 A little further on the path narrowed to a ‘standard width’ chalk track with trees and hedges either side blocking out most of the views. A 2 mile climb then ensued. As the path levelled off, I saw Wendy coming towards me. As mentioned, Wendy is a volunteer for the Thames Path National Trail and manages the social media accounts for this trail. However, to say just this is grossly understating the work she undertakes promoting the Thames and the Thames Path. She’s also very happy to get her hands dirty in the installation of fingerposts, clearing of paths etc! She’s always been very kind in promoting my walks along the Thames Path. She’s also a very active member of the Friends of The Ridgeway and these are just a few of things she gets involved with; she’s a bit of a human dynamo! Wendy had parked her car in the Thurle Down car park in Streatley and the idea was that she would start walking towards me and once we met, would walk with me to the end in Goring. You can't see a great deal when the trees & bushes are in full leaf As we began to descend towards Streatley, on our right we passed Streatley Warren, a 77 acre SSSI. In use by the Romans, it was during the Middle Ages this land was used for farming rabbits, hence the name! To our left were the slopes of Thurle Down. This short little stretch of The Ridgeway has some really stunning views! Unfortunately, we were talking so much that I barely took any photos, so me being me, I returned in late September to get some more photos! Streatley Warren Streatley Warren Thurle Down on the left & Streatley Warren on the right Thurle Down Just before reaching the Thurle Down car park is a fingerpost pointing to Overton Hill in one direction and Ivinghoe Beacon in the other direction. It’s a bit short of being quite halfway along The Ridgeway but I regard it as being quite iconic. Almost half of The Ridgeway completed Beyond the car park the path joined Rectory Road, a narrow, metalled road which for 1½ miles gave fabulous views both left and right towards Streatley. As it got closer to Streatley we passed the entrance to Goring & Streatley Golf Club and the road became more residential. Very colourful! Very well to do golf course In Streatley we crossed Goring & Streatley Bridge over the River Thames and in so doing we left West Berkshire and re-entered Oxfordshire. After taking some photos, Wendy very kindly bought me coffee and cake! We then went our separate ways, Wendy back to her car at Thurle Down car park and me to Goring & Streatley Railway Station. Wendy on Goring & Streatley Bridge Goring Lock Collection of photos by Matt Writtle taken along The Ridgeway called 'Pathways'. 25 of the 50 have been erected along the trail Looking upstream from Goring & Streatley Bridge - September 2025 I’d done this stage in February 2023, albeit in the opposite direction and so enjoyed it. I was quite excited about doing it again in May 2025 but something was missing. In winter 2023 there were very few trees and hedges with leaves alongside the path, whereas in spring 2025 I felt quite hemmed in at times by the foliage and lack of views. So, same walk but different time of year can make quite a lot of difference! Anyway, it was still a good walk and I really enjoyed Wendy’s company. I got the train from Goring to Didcot Parkway, then the bus back to Wantage where my car was. Tomorrow I was going to walk the very short section from Goring to Mongewell, so rather than driving all the way home and then back again for a short walk, I stayed in the Swindon Town Centre Premier Inn overnight, driving back to Goring on Saturday morning. Why Swindon you ask? Well, booking a room at short notice for a Friday night can be very expensive. This Premier Inn is almost always cheaper than anywhere around, so I’d rather drive a little further and feel I’m getting better value for money!

Official Stage Statistics Route distance – 8.10 miles Duration - 3 hours 12 mins Total ascent – 567 feet Total descent – 539 feet Highest point – 846 feet Fly-through of this stage Logistics Walk to Swindon Bus Station Catch bus 47 to Ashbury Hill Walk to Letcombe Regis & leave Ridgeway Walk to Wantage Catch X36 bus to Didcot Parkway - journey time 42 mins Catch train to Swindon - £9.55 - journey time 15 mins Pick up car from Whalebridge Car Park and drive home NB – Since August 2025 Swindon Bus Station has thankfully closed as buses now leave/arrive from the new public transport hub in Fleming Way My Walk This was yet another easy walk and once again the end point was determined by the availability of public transport. In this instance, I was aiming to leave The Ridgeway at the closest spot to Wantage - the rub being that this would require me to walk a further 3 miles to catch a bus! Carrying on to Wantage actually became part of the walk. This really didn’t bother me since it was downhill all the way from The Ridgeway to Wantage. Today’s walk would take me past 2 Iron Age hillforts, the oldest chalk horse in Britain and a 5000 year old long barrow. All of this and great views along the way. My residence at the Swindon Town Centre Premier Inn finally came to an end! £234 for 5 nights was a bit of a bargain I thought. After one last cooked breakfast, I loaded my luggage into my car at the Whalebridge Car Park, walked to the bus station and caught the 47 bus to the top of Ashbury Hill where it intersects with The Ridgeway. In less than a mile along the path I arrived at Wayland’s Smithy – an early Neolithic chambered long barrow, completed around 3430 BC. Various excavations over the year and restorations have resulted in how the site looks today. It is very impressive in a lovely setting surrounded by trees. Modern day Pagans still use the site for ritual purposes. Wayland's Smithy The entrance to the barrow Looking towards the front of the barrow from the rear Wayland's Smithy - April 2026 After another 1½ miles of gentle climbing I reached Uffington Castle at the top of White Horse Hill, the highest point in Oxfordshire at 856 feet. Uffington Castle is another Iron Age hillfort built around 700 BC. It covers about 8 acres. Heading towards White Horse Hill Uffington Castle - November 2025 Ditch & rampart Views from White Horse Hill are spectacular Also on the slopes of the hill is the Uffington White Horse, a 360 foot long chalk horse that is probably about 3000 years old and the oldest such carving in Britain. Unlike most other chalk horses, the design of this one is very minimalistic! Regular cleaning or ‘scouring’ of the horse is required and this is carried out by volunteers, organised by the National Trust. Because of the angle of the slope the horse is carved into, it isn’t easy to view the horse head on. The best way to view it is from the air. Even from the roads below it's not easy to see the whole horse The Uffington White Horse Below the horse in the valley is Dragon Hill, a striking natural chalk hill with an artificial flattened top. According to legend, this is where St George slew the dragon! A bare patch of chalk on top of the hill where no grass will grow is allegedly where the dragon’s blood spilled. Dragon Hill The valley over which the White Horse looks is called The Manger. The Manger is a strangely shaped valley, which is thought to have been formed by the melting of ice in the last Ice Age. Folklore suggests that the Manger is the supernatural feeding place for the White Horse which would travel from its vantage point on the crest of the hill on moonlit nights! The views from the top of White Horse Hill are absolutely stunning (well – on a sunny day anyway). Beyond Whitehorse Hill the path continued as a byway which thankfully was dry and not rutted. With the lovely views it made for very pleasant walking. I was in the vicinity of a racehorse trainer’s yard and a number of horses were training on the gallops. The next feature of note was Hackpen Hill – not to be confused with the Hackpen Hill in Wiltshire that I’d passed a couple of days ago. This is Hackpen Hill near Sparsholt Firs in Oxfordshire. In the valley between The Ridgeway and the top of the hill is a striking natural feature called Crowhole Bottom but is also known as the Devil’s Punchbowl. The top of the hill has 2 clumps of beech trees which from a distance resemble 2 caterpillars! Hackpen Hill The Devil's Punchbowl Another mile and I reached Segsbury Camp (AKA Segsbury Castle). The Ridgeway continued straight on but I chose to leave the trail here. Segsbury Camp is yet another Iron Age hillfort. This one is a bit of a whopper, covering about 30 acres. At about 700 feet above sea level, it’s not as high as some of the others I’d passed. The north of the camp has fantastic views of the Vale of the White Horse. It is so large that it has a byway running roughly north to south across it. It is this byway that I’d follow down into Letcombe Regis and then on into Wantage. Due to its sheer size, you can’t see the full extent of the fort – you can only see it properly from the air. The walk from the fort into Letcombe Regis is brilliant as it’s downhill all the way and it’s a pretty steep hill. Lower down it becomes a single track road open to all traffic. I didn’t especially enjoy walking up the hill when I walked The Ridgeway in the opposite direction a couple of years ago! The route into Wantage is well signposted with fingerposts made of the same material as the regular Ridgeway ones. I reached the market place in Wantage at about 2 o’clock. I was a bit peckish so treated myself to a Greggs sausage roll whilst waiting for the bus to Didcot Parkway. At Didcot I caught a train back to Swindon and from there I picked up my car and drove home. This is where I leave The Ridgeway today Letcombe Regis Letcombe Regis Letcombe Regis Another mile to go St Peter's & St Paul's Church in the centre of Wantage With 142 miles completed, this was the end of my third batch of walks along the Great Chalk Way. From now until I reached Holme-next-the-Sea I wouldn’t need to stay away from home for longer than I night at a time and for a number of stages, day trips from home would become practical. Also, apart from 1 more short walk, the remaining stages would be much longer than my first 3 Ridgeway walks. Happy days!

Official Stage Statistics Route distance – 9.97 miles Duration - 4 hours 0 mins Total ascent – 801 feet Total descent – 610 feet Highest point – 905 feet Fly-through of this stage Logistics Walk to Swindon Bus Station Catch bus X5 at 08:25 to Ogbourne St George Southend stop arriving at 08:57 Walk to Ashbury Rose & Crown Catch 17:17 bus 47 to Swindon Bus Station arriving 17:45 OR If early call for a taxi - Wayland Private Hire - 0800 7999682 to Shrivenham Catch S6 bus to Swindon Bus Station OR (if you have a car) Drive to The Ridgeway car park on Ashbury Hill and park car Catch bus 47 from the car park to Great Western Hospital in Swindon at 08:10 Catch bus X5 from Great Western Hospital in Swindon to Ogbourne St George Southend stop at 08:52 Walk to Ashbury, pick up car and drive to Swindon Premier Inn NB – Since August 2025 Swindon Bus Station has thankfully closed as buses now leave/arrive from the new public transport hub in Fleming Way My Walk Like the previous stage, Ogbourne to Ashbury is really just a half day walk but provides public transport at both ends for solo walkers like me which is the main thing. The first 3½ miles of today’s walk would involve a steady climb from the busy Swindon to Marlborough main road up onto the ridge. Much of this would be walking along a path with trees and high hedges on both sides so limiting the views. At this point the path would open up to give some great views of the countryside. After reaching the highest point of the walk at Liddington Hill, the site of another Iron Age hillfort, I’d make a descent from the ridge, down to the M4 which I’d cross. The final 3½ miles would involve a gentle climb back up onto the ridge followed by a relatively flat, almost dead straight walk along it to the car park at the top of Ashbury Hill. This was another stage that I walked twice – firstly in May and then in September. In May it was pretty overcast for the whole walk so I resolved to repeat it on a sunnier day and my photos are mostly from September. In May my day began at the Swindon Town Centre Premier Inn with my 4th consecutive full English breakfast. By now I’d got to know the staff quite well! The X5 bus from the bus station dropped me at the ‘Southend’ stop at Ogbourne St George on the busy A346. A short walk back along the road and there was a familiar black Ridgeway fingerpost pointing up to a path towards Liddington Castle, just over 5 miles away. The path up from the main road The path up to the top of the ridge wasn’t desperately interesting as it was relatively narrow and had trees and high hedges on both sides. There were occasional breaks however which gave good views of the landscape. After almost 3 miles of gentle climbing, the path opened up briefly at the top of Whitefield Hill where there is a tall mobile phone mast. It didn’t take long however before I was back to trees and hedges on both sides of the path, with openings here and there. It was about now that I noticed the sound of almost constant shooting going on to my left in the distance. This went on for quite a while and I assume it must be coming from a gun club. Eventually the path opened up once again to give great views as it dipped up and down before climbing up towards Liddington Castle. Liddington Castle is another Iron Age hillfort and sits at the top of Liddington Hill, 902 feet above sea level. It's the highest spot in the Borough of Swindon! There is a trigpoint within the fort and next to it is a toposcope installed by the local council to commemorate the year 2000. It’s quite a bit smaller than Barbury Castle and is one of the earliest hillforts, constructed about 700 BC. To reach it there is a very short diversion off The Ridgeway. I took a look when I did this walk in May but in September I let my drone do the hard work! Liddington Castle Hillfort - September 2025 May 2025 Continuing past the hillfort I couldn’t help but notice what looked like a pillbox under a small clump of trees. Subsequent googling revealed that during the Second World War, the hilltop surrounding Liddington Castle was used as a Starfish site - a large-scale bombing decoy designed to appear as a burning town or city. The idea of this one was to divert German night bombers away from Swindon so that they would drop their bombs over the countryside instead. Starfish sites consisted of elaborate light arrays and fires, controlled from a nearby bunker and laid out to simulate a fire-bombed town. So, what I thought was a pillbox was actually a command bunker. The things you learn! The path now descended from the ridge to a fairly busy main road, before turning down an almost equally busy road that took me across a bridge over the M4 to the village of Foxhill. This one mile second road was less than satisfactory as the verges were almost non-existent in places and it was easier to walk along the road; I expect that’s why there’s such a large warning sign to motorists advising them that the road is part of The Ridgeway National Trail. Coming down off the ridge In Foxhill, the path left the road and immediately started climbing up to Charlbury Hill. Before the climb started there was a large green sign that looked more like a road sign than the normal fingerpost for walkers and riders. In fact, it was a road sign, dating back to the time before 2006 when The Ridgeway was classified as a RUPP – a Road Used as a Public Path. It was for this reason that the Friends of The Ridgeway was first established in 1982 with a primary aim to preserve and maintain the special nature of The Ridgeway National Trail, mainly in response to its abuse west of the Thames by off-road vehicles. These vehicles were responsible for the serious level of rutting in winter, making it really difficult for walkers to enjoy the path. Tireless campaigning by the FofR and others resulted in the Natural Environment and Rural Communities Act (2006). All RUPPs, including parts of The Ridgeway (all Oxfordshire and parts of West Berkshire and Wiltshire), were reclassified as Restricted Byways, meaning that recreational vehicles could no longer drive on these parts of the trail. So, this green road sign was a throwback to when The Ridgeway was a RUPP. The top of Charlbury Hill could be seen a short distance from the path. From the path it looked like it could be another hillfort but in fact it’s been found to be 100% completely natural with no recorded archaeological discoveries. The path continues on the road past The Burj before heading off to the right Dating back to when The Ridgeway was a RUPP, I'd love to see this sign restored Climbing up the hill The great views continue Charlbury Hill looks man-made but is entirely natural About ½ mile further on and to my left, I reached the entrance to a striking, steep dry valley known as a coombe. This had been sculpted by the action of water long ago when this area still supported surface streams. Along the steep sides of the coombe you can see examples of vertical strip lynchets. Lynchets are a feature of ancient field systems in the British Isles and are found close to Iron Age forts. It is most likely that lynchets were dug to maximise the use of land for agriculture, although they may have had other, ceremonial uses. The coombe descends more than 100 feet to the village of Bishopstone. The final couple of miles of this stage were uneventful, the path being almost flat and straight. It was lovely though walking along it in the sunshine with large rolling fields either side. There is a car park at the top of Ashbury Hill where it crosses The Ridgeway. Handily, there are also bus stops here for the Lambourn to Swindon bus 47. When I did the walk in May, before reaching the car park, I turned off to my left and followed a footpath into Ashbury. At the planning stage I’d intended catching the bus from there back to Swindon. However, I finished the walk way too early, so instead of hanging about for 4 hours, I called a taxi firm in nearby Shrivenham in the hope that I could be picked up a little sooner than this – Wayland Private Hire . John the proprietor arrived quite quickly and brought me back to Shrivenham. He charged me a very reasonable £10. I then caught the S6 bus to Swindon Bus station and walked ‘home’ to the Premier Inn for my final night. In September I had a better plan not involving taxis. I first drove to the car park at Ashbury Hill and got 2 buses to Ogbourne St George. Despite this sounding rather convoluted, I arrived at Ogbourne by 09:30. I then did the walk to where my car was parked, finishing just before 14:00.