The Walks

The Time Out Book of Country Walks near London Volume 1 contains 53 walks - one for every week of the year, and one to spare. The walks:

• start and finish at train stations in Southeast England, about an hour or so from central London.
• stop at a country pub for lunch and at a tea room (or pub) for tea
• are between 7 and 14 miles in length, and are graded for toughness
• pass many gardens, churches, castles, and historical houses
• contain a map and detailed walking instructions - no OS map required.

Revised Walks

Most of these walks have been fully revised. The revised versions are available to download and print. Sorry, for copyright reasons, the walking instructions aren't online for the un-revised walks - you'll need to get the book.

The walking club is in the process of revising the remaining walks. Why? Volume 1 is now over 10 years old, and in that time, the south east has changed! Mainly roads that once were safe to cross are now too busy, but also lunch pubs that have closed, stations that have "few" trains and paths that have changed. All require the walking instructions to be updated. On a more positive note, some much nicer alternative routes have been discovered. Note however, that there is currently no prospect of a new edition of volume 1 with the revised walks being published.

Region	#	Walk	Warnings	Downloads	Description	Travel
Thames Valley	1	Henley (round walk)			A short but pretty walk. Along the Thames in the morning, and back via the hills above Henley in the afternoon.	* * *
North Downs (Surrey)	2	Wanborough to Godalming			Over the North Downs to Watts Gallery, then a ramble to historic Goadalming	*
Hampshire	3	Netley to Botley			Update: This new walk replaces the No.3 walk in older editions.
Thames Valley	4	Pangbourne (round walk)			Pretty villages, a toll bridge, fine views of the river in the morning and a serene stroll through a rural idyll after lunch.	* * *
Chilterns	5	Great Missenden to Amersham			The Chilterns	* *
Surrey Hills	6	Liphook to Haslemere			Lovely walks through the Surrey Hills Update: Many small changes - use the revised instructions	* *
Hertfordshire	7	Garston to St Albans			Update: Many changes - download the PDF	£ * *
Suffolk	8	Bures to Sudbury				* *
Thames Valley	9	Shiplake to Henley			Update: Some paths have been re-numbered.	* *
Chilterns	10	Beaconsfield (round walk)			Update: Old Jordans (Quaker Guest House that served tea) has closed.	* * *
Chilterns	11	Tring to Wendover			3 parts. A canal walk in the morning, then fields, and finally the Chilterns Major Update: Detour to cross a new motorway	£
Surrey Hills	12	Farnham to Godalming			A long but pretty walk with gentle hills via a nice mixture of river valley, forest tracks, and many beautiful country houses.	*
Thames Valley	13	Oxford round walk				* * *
Surrey Hills	14	Gomshall to Guildford				* *
Greensand Hills	15	Leigh to Tunbridge Wells				*
The Weald (Kent)	16	Balcombe (round walk)			Major Update: Detour to avoid crossing a dangerous road (the A23)	* * *
Hertfordshire	17	Bow Brickhill to Woburn Sands			Update: Red cover editions only : Major diversion around Woburn Safari Park.	* *
Thames Valley	18	Sunningdale to Windsor				*
Greensand Hills	19	Hever to Leigh				£
Surrey Hills	20	Milford to Godalming			A very pretty country ramble, with the Greensand Way, a NT Arboretum, a canal, and historic Godalming.	* *
Greensand Hills	21	Leigh to Sevenoaks			Update: Avoiding a busy road, and many small changes - use the revised edition.	*
Surrey Hills	22	Haslemere (round walk)				* * *
Greensand Hills	23	Otford to Eynsford			Update: Many updates - use the revised version.	* *
Thames Valley	24	Cookham (round walk)			Major Update: The lunch pub in Bisham is closed to walkers. Update: Lunch near the start in Cookham Dean, or detour over the Thames to Marlow.	* * *
Coastal Walks (Sussex)	25	Rye (was Winchelsea) to Hastings			The hardest walk in the book. A gentle start with the 1066 Path and Historic Winchelsea. After lunch is a coastal walk with 4 steep climbs, Fairlight Glen nudist beach, fish and chips on Hastings seafront, so one for summer. Major Update: This walk now starts from Rye as Winchelsea station has few trains - download the new start from Rye. Update: Leave earlier than the book suggests. The path to Fairlight Glen beach has been repaired. New Options: Rye to Winchelsea (new start of walk) and a Rye round walk.	* *
Cambridgeshire	26	Shelford to Cambridge			New Options: Cambridge via Granchester Circular.	* *
Surrey Hills	27	Milford to Haslemere			Its surprising how remote Surrey can be, pretty lakes, and Devil's Punchbowl as well. Update: The lunchtime pub has reopened (gastropub, nice beer garden). New Options: Keeping to the rim of the Punchbowl, and a detour to Gibbet Hill (viewpoint).	* *
North Downs (Kent)	28	Chilham to Canterbury				* *
South Downs (East Sussex)	29	Hassocks to Lewes		GPX	A South Downs ridge walk ... maximum view for minimum effort.	*
Suffolk	30	Wivenhoe (round walk)				* * *
South Downs (East Sussex)	31	Glynde to Seaford		GPX	The best walk in the book! A South Downs ridge, picture postcard Alfriston, Cuckmere Haven (beach), and cliffs with views of the Seven Sisters. Long but worth it.	*
South Downs (West Sussex)	32	Arundel to Amberley			Arundel Castle, its parkland, and the South Downs Major Update: Route blocked by closed bridge. New Options: Arundel Circular via Burpham or Offham	* *
Thames Valley	33	Mortimer to Aldermaston or Theale			New Options: Easy 4 mile extension along a canal to Theale.	*
The Weald (Kent)	34	Balcombe to East Grinstead
The Weald (Kent)	35	Crowhurst to Battle				* *
Greensand Hills	36	Borough Green to Sevenoaks			A Country House, Igtham Mote (NT), Knole Palace and deer park (NT), as well as pretty countryside, and close to London. Update: Lunch now at The Padworth Arms (as The Snail is a restaurant)	*
Coastal Walks (Sussex)	37	Southbourne to Chichester			The inlets of Chichester Harbour (best at high tide) and the historic Cathedral town.	* *
The Cotswolds	38	Hanborough to Charlbury			A long way from London, but Blenheim Palace, and its landscaped grounds, are beautiful. Update: Lunch: the White Horse is now a gastro-pub and the Black Head has re-opened. Older red/blue cover editions only: short detour around the Column of Victory.	* *
Suffolk	39	Manningtree (round walk)				* * *
Chilterns	40	Gerrards Cross to Cookham				£
Hertfordshire	41	Bow Brickhill to Leighton Buzzard				*
Surrey Hills	42	Holmwood to Gomshall			A very pretty forest walk, quite close to London, and the view from Lieth Hill, the second highest point in the Southeast.	* *
Greensand Hills	43	Otford (round walk)			Quite short, but views, forest, a pretty village, a welcoming pub, and a short train journey, so good for a late start.	* * *
Surrey Hills	44	Witley to Haslemere				* *
Chilterns	45	Princes Risborough to Great Missenden		GPX		*
Suffolk	46	Wakes Colne to Bures				* *
Surrey Hills	47	Ockley to Warnham				* *
Hampshire	48	Whitchurch to Andover			Update: Many updates : use the revised version.	* *
North Downs (Surrey)	49	Boxhill to Leatherhead			Short, 2 steep climbs and the view from Box Hill in the morning, and a gentle river valley after lunch New Options: Boxhill via Mickleham Circular (an alternate hilly afternoon route) and Leatherhead to Boxhill (the walk in reverse).	* *
Greensand Hills	50	Yalding to Borough Green			Update: Small route change to avoid walking along a private drive. Wear long trousers (nettles) in summer.
Thames Valley	51	Henley to Pangbourne			Another lovely country ramble, and the perfect pub crawl. Starts and finishes by the Thames, via forests and several country pubs.	*
Chilterns	52	Princes Risborough to Wendover			The Ridgeway, lovely views and the Chilterns.	*
North Downs (Kent)	53	Wye (round walk)				* * *

Last Updated : Mar-10