Time Out Country Walks near London Volume 1
Walk 5 : Great Missenden to Amersham
Through the Chilterns to Little Missenden
| Length | 14.25km (8.8 miles), 4 hours 30 minutes. For the whole outing, including trains, sights and meals, allow 7 hours 45 minutes. |
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| OS Landranger Map | No.165. Great Missenden, map reference SP 893 013, is in Buckinghamshire, 8km north-west of Amersham. |
| Toughness | 3 out of 10. |
| Features | This walk, in the chalk downs of the Chilterns, only 40 minutes by train from London, makes an easy brisk winter outing - although it can be slightly muddy in places. The route takes in woods, fields, four interesting churches and the ancient village of Little Missenden; it comes to a Lunch pub by the common in the village of Penn Street; and ends up for tea in Amersham's surprisingly unspoilt Old Town. Then it is a 20-minute walk up through the wood after tea to reach the station. |
| Shortening the Walk | You could call for a taxi from any of the pubs en route, whether in Little Missenden, Penn Street or Coleshill. There is an hourly bus from outside the Squirrel pub in Penn Street to Amersham. The walk also passes a bus stop in Coleshill, which has buses every two hours to Amersham. For details phone TraveLine on 08457 382 000. From Little Missenden there is a quicker footpath route to Amersham, running parallel to (and about 300 metres to the right of) the A413. This shorter route (4.5km as against the 12km of the suggested route) starts 150 metres beyond the Crown pub in Little Missenden. See the OS map for details. |
| History |
The Parish Church of St Peter and St Paul in Great Missenden was built mainly in the fourteenth century. It has a marble monument to a certain Lady Boys, for which the sculptor Nicholas Stone was paid £30 in 1638. St John the Baptist Church, Little Missenden, has a giant thirteenth-century mural to St Christopher carrying the Christ child across the waters. Part of the church was built in the tenth century. The gatepost is in memory of Dunkirk in 1940. All Saints Church in Coleshill is a neo-Gothic church designed by Street, whose work was praised by Betjeman. The stone for the church, built in 1866, was brought by river to Windsor and then by cart. The building of the Parish Church of St Mary, Amersham, started in the early 1100s. The window glass is mainly from the nineteenth century. |
| Lunch | The recommended Lunch stop is the Squirrel pub (tel 01494 711 291) in Penn Street, which serves food from midday to 2pm daily; groups of more than eight should phone to book. An alternative is the nearby Hit or Miss Inn (tel 01494 713 109) which has a broader and more gourmet menu but less atmosphere, and serves food from midday to 2.30pm daily; groups of more than six should phone to book. Slow walkers or late starters should use the Red Lion pub (tel 01494 862 876) in Little Missenden, which serves food from midday to 2.15pm daily; groups of more than eight should phone to book. |
| Saturday Walkers Club | The Saturday Walkers Club do this walk each February. |
| Warning | This text was taken from an older edition of the book, and is a little out of date. Please check the updates for this walk. |
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Walking Instructions
For a map and detailed walking instruction, please see Time Out Country Walks near London Volume 1
