Walk 17 : Bow Brickhill to Woburn Sands
Woburn, its park & abbey
| Length | 17.5km (10.8 miles), 5 hours 30 minutes. For the whole walk, including trains, sights and meals, allow at least 10 hours 30 minutes. |
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| OS Landranger Map | Nos.165, 153 and (for the last kilometre) 152. Bow Brickhill, map reference SP 896 348, is in Buckinghamshire, 2km east of Bletchley. Woburn is in Bedfordshire. |
| Toughness | 6 out of 10. |
| Features | Woburn is the main delight of this walk - the ancient town itself, the deer park, Woburn Abbey (for those wishing to make the detour) and the safari park (from the public footpath, without paying admission, you may be able to see lions, tigers, zebras, elephants, giraffes and hippos). The route reaches Woburn mainly through woods, with impressive sequoia (Wellingtonia) trees along the way. The route back is through the pleasant village of Aspley Guise. Note that the train service does not run on Sundays - you could instead catch a cab or bus from Bletchley to the start of the walk, or a bus to Woburn and just do the second half of the walk from there (for bus information phone 01296 382 000). Beware also that short bits of the route can be very muddy in wet weather, and that there are (relatively easy) uphills and downhills all day. Be careful not to allow dogs to disturb deer in the park, particularly when they are rutting or giving birth - the deer may leave their newborn calves or give birth prematurely. |
| Shortening the walk | Note that there are still 10km (6.2 miles) remaining to be walked after lunch in Woburn. Buses from Woburn go to Leighton Buzzard and Bletchley. Aspley Guise is a nearer station for the return journey than Woburn Sands, but has no tea place. |
| History |
Woburn Abbey (tel 01525 290 666), set in a vast park, about 16km in circumference, is the seat of the Dukes of Bedford, though it was founded for Cistercian monks in 1145 by Hugh de Bolsbec, a Norman whose father came over with William the Conqueror. Both Elizabeth I and Charles I were entertained here. The abbey was rebuilt about 1744 in Totternhoe stone. It is open daily in summer until 5pm (Sunday 4pm; closed mid-winter;and open weekends only in October and from January to about March 23rd). Woburn, the town, was almost completely gutted by fire in 1729. St Mary Old Church, Woburn, whose tower dates from the twelfth century, is now a 'Heritage Centre' (tel 01525 290 631) covering local history. From Easter to September the centre is open Monday to Friday 2pm-4.30pm, Saturday and Sunday 11.30am-4.30pm (plus weekends only in October). St Mary, the parish church of Woburn, graced with devilish gargoyles, was built by the eighth Duke of Bedford in 1868, and has a memorial window to Mary, Duchess of Bedford. The village of Aspley Guise was originally called Aepslea, meaning a clearing in the aspen, with large herds of swine kept in the surrounding woods. The Parish Church of St Botolph, Aspley Guise, has Norman and medieval traces, and a brass from about 1410 of a kneeling priest. |
| Lunch | There are many places to eat in Woburn, but the suggested lunchtime stop is the Black Horse pub (tel 01525 290 210) at 1 Bedford Street, which serves good food at medium to high prices, from midday to 2.30pm Monday to Friday, all day Saturday and Sunday. It also has a garden. |
| Travel by Train |
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| Travel by Car |
Start: Bow Brickhill Station is near : MK17 9JN [gmap] Finish: Woburn Sands Station is near : MK17 8SG [gmap] Return to your car by train:
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| OS Explorer Map | |
| Major Updates | Red cover (pre 2000) editions only : Major diversion around Woburn Safari Park. [details] |
| Warning | This text on this page is from an older edition of the book, and is a little out of date. Please check the updates for this walk. |
Walking Instructions
For a map and detailed walking instruction, please see Time Out Country Walks near London Volume 1
