Introduction • Updates & Feedback • Thumbnails • Photos

Time Out Country Walks near London Volume 1

Walk 10 : Beaconsfield (round walk)

Updates and Feedback

Summary	Old Jordans (Quaker Guest House that served tea) is closed.

Updates	No major changes to the walking instructions. This walk is close to London, however, and civilisation seems to have encroached on it over the years. The White Heart (lunchtime gastro pub) is now more of a restaurant. Merlin's Cave pub at the bottom of Chalfont's High Street serves good pub grub and is friendly to walkers. Old Jordans Quaker Guest House (tea stop) and the Mayflower Barn are closed. (they have been sold to developers). The Friends Meeting Room (temporally closed due to a fire) and the graveyard (where William Penn is buried) are still open. Tea is possible at the Jordans village shop, which has a few tables. By Car: Hodgemoor Woods has a car park. [Red edition only] The three [!] paragraphs on page 79, need changing now that the posts are mostly different. Replace the second and third of the [!] paragraphs with: 'Carry straight on. In 70 metres, keep ahead at a crossing track. In 15 metres, you pass another 'no horses' post. In 65 metres, bear right, keeping to the car-wide way, due south through a potentially muddy stretch rich with sedges and then, in 45 metres, bear left on this same wide way through a grassier area, your direction now 110 degrees. In 70 metres, keep ahead (slightly to your left) at the small crossing track, your direction now 80 degrees. In 25 metres, you pass a post with a yellow band on your left-hand side; and in 120 metres, one on your right-hand side. In 8 metres, ignore a path to the right (direction 150 degrees) marked with a post with a yellow band and keep on, your direction 50 degrees. 'In 100 metres, at a minor path crossing, by a post to your left-hand side with a 'no horses' symbol, go right, your direction 105 degrees. In 35 metres, at a T-junction, go left, your direction 10 degrees, and immediately in 5 metres, go right, on a narrow path, your direction 120 degrees, in 5 metres passing on your left-hand side a 'no riding' post.'

Updates

No major changes to the walking instructions.

This walk is close to London, however, and civilisation seems to have encroached on it over the years.

The White Heart (lunchtime gastro pub) is now more of a restaurant. Merlin's Cave pub at the bottom of Chalfont's High Street serves good pub grub and is friendly to walkers.

Old Jordans Quaker Guest House (tea stop) and the Mayflower Barn are closed. (they have been sold to developers). The Friends Meeting Room (temporally closed due to a fire) and the graveyard (where William Penn is buried) are still open. Tea is possible at the Jordans village shop, which has a few tables.

By Car: Hodgemoor Woods has a car park.

[Red edition only] The three [!] paragraphs on page 79, need changing now that the posts are mostly different. Replace the second and third of the [!] paragraphs with:

'Carry straight on. In 70 metres, keep ahead at a crossing track. In 15 metres, you pass another 'no horses' post. In 65 metres, bear right, keeping to the car-wide way, due south through a potentially muddy stretch rich with sedges and then, in 45 metres, bear left on this same wide way through a grassier area, your direction now 110 degrees. In 70 metres, keep ahead (slightly to your left) at the small crossing track, your direction now 80 degrees. In 25 metres, you pass a post with a yellow band on your left-hand side; and in 120 metres, one on your right-hand side. In 8 metres, ignore a path to the right (direction 150 degrees) marked with a post with a yellow band and keep on, your direction 50 degrees.

'In 100 metres, at a minor path crossing, by a post to your left-hand side with a 'no horses' symbol, go right, your direction 105 degrees. In 35 metres, at a T-junction, go left, your direction 10 degrees, and immediately in 5 metres, go right, on a narrow path, your direction 120 degrees, in 5 metres passing on your left-hand side a 'no riding' post.'

Feedback	[add your comment] 2 comments Posted by Tony Cantlay : Tuesday, 24 July, 2007 Hi there - I did this Beaconsfield Circular walk on Saturday 21 July, when it was down as an extra walk. There are a lot of minor changes in terms of stiles disappearing etc, but also two quite important alterations. I did make any notes, so these are from memory ... Working from my Green edition of book 1, firstly I was either too stupid or unable to follow the directions from top of p 81, col 1, from "70 metres brings you ...", through to end of folowing para "... edge of the playing fields." In summary, although there was the wooden barrier mentioned, I could see no footpath signs either for South Bucks Way or anywhere else. By following the left hand of two footpaths (as suggested) I ended up in the recreation ground, with tennis courts on my right (not left). Just after these, on the right hand side of the recreation ground, I found the "footpath between houses" referred to at point [6], which indeed leads to Boundary Road etc. Secondly, and sadly, despite the Jordans village seemingly having been built as a Quaker village, the entire site of both the Meeting House, Mayflower Barn and Guest House (on the right hand side of the route) has been surrounded by a wooden fence and looks about to be redeveloped. The graveyard is currently accessible, just. This means that from page 82 col 1 para 2 "Friends Meeting House ..." all one can really do is continue on another 50 metres or so past the fence of the site to the road junction ; then turn right and go up the hill past Barn and Guest House (300 metres or so) to join printed route at para 6 : "past the guesthouse in 100 metres turn left .." Don't know if this will assist anyone ? Keep up the good work. Tony Cantlay tony_cantlay@hotmail.com Posted by Anonymous : Thursday, 24 April, 2008 1. Jordans Guest House is definitely closed - it has been sold off, together with the Mayflower Barn and Orchard, so the update on the website is correct. The Friends Meeting House is being refurbished at the moment so is also not able to be visited. However, walkers needing a refueling stop can use the Jordans Village Shop which sells tea and coffee and fairly basic snacks, and good cakes. They have a couple of tables inside and there is plenty of space outside on the village green. 2. In Chalfont St Giles there is now a very good deli which serves food and drinks of a high standard. 4 tables inside and a couple outside. Extremely friendly and helpful owners. 3. If travelling by car (sorry) it's possible to park for free in the main carpark in Hodgemoor Woods.

Feedback

[add your comment]

2 comments

Posted by

Tony Cantlay : Tuesday, 24 July, 2007

Hi there -

I did this Beaconsfield Circular walk on Saturday 21 July, when it was down as an extra walk.

There are a lot of minor changes in terms of stiles disappearing etc, but also two quite important alterations. I did make any notes, so these are from memory ...

Working from my Green edition of book 1, firstly I was either too stupid or unable to follow the directions from top of p 81, col 1, from "70 metres brings you ...", through to end of folowing para "... edge of the playing fields."

In summary, although there was the wooden barrier mentioned, I could see no footpath signs either for South Bucks Way or anywhere else.

By following the left hand of two footpaths (as suggested) I ended up in the recreation ground, with tennis courts on my right (not left). Just after these, on the right hand side of the recreation ground, I found the "footpath between houses" referred to at point [6], which indeed leads to Boundary Road etc.

Secondly, and sadly, despite the Jordans village seemingly having been built as a Quaker village, the entire site of both the Meeting House, Mayflower Barn and Guest House (on the right hand side of the route) has been surrounded by a wooden fence and looks about to be redeveloped. The graveyard is currently accessible, just.

This means that from page 82 col 1 para 2 "Friends Meeting House ..." all one can really do is continue on another 50 metres or so past the fence of the site to the road junction ; then turn right and go up the hill past Barn and Guest House (300 metres or so) to join printed route at para 6 : "past the guesthouse in 100 metres turn left .."

Don't know if this will assist anyone ? Keep up the good work.

Tony Cantlay
tony_cantlay@hotmail.com

Posted by

Anonymous : Thursday, 24 April, 2008

1. Jordans Guest House is definitely closed - it has been sold off, together with the Mayflower Barn and Orchard, so the update on the website is correct. The Friends Meeting House is being refurbished at the moment so is also not able to be visited. However, walkers needing a refueling stop can use the Jordans Village Shop which sells tea and coffee and fairly basic snacks, and good cakes. They have a couple of tables inside and there is plenty of space outside on the village green.
2. In Chalfont St Giles there is now a very good deli which serves food and drinks of a high standard. 4 tables inside and a couple outside. Extremely friendly and helpful owners.
3. If travelling by car (sorry) it's possible to park for free in the main carpark in Hodgemoor Woods.

Older Updates	Edition	Date	Page	Location	Update
	blue	Feb-02	76	lunch	The White Hart charge approximately for main courses, with the cheapest at The Merlins Cave continues to offer a more economical, though limited lunch menu. The Feathers in High Street, Chalfont St Giles, tel 01494-581400, almost opposite The Merlins Cave, has a wider lunch menu.
	blue		76	tea	Bar Med in Beaconsfield seem geared up mainly for spicy hot meals, and alcoholic drinks. The Cafe, 6a Burkes Parade, Station Rd is by a pedestrian crossing close to railway bridge & station access roads. It has friendly staff but a small interior with limited seating. Further up the road, over the bridge, past Waitrose and a roundabout is Jungs Cafe, 6 The Broadway. The cafe is upstairs from an upmarket bakery, and has good seating capacity.
	red		78	final para	'Keep to this path, ignoring all ways off and crossings of paths' is correct. Note that this includes the first junction, in 140 metres, where you take the left fork, more or less straight on.
	blue	Mar-02	78	col 2, para 5	Hodgemoor Woods have an abundance of Bluebells growing.
	blue		79	col 2, para 3	Where this takes you out to the field, you go round a long wooden barrier.