SWC (Free) Walks

Walk 36 : Amersham Circular via Chalfont St Giles

An easy walk along gentle hills above the Misbourne valley to the attractive village of Chalfont St Giles.

Length	13.5km (8.4 miles)
Toughness	3 out of 10
Map	Explorer 172
Transport	There are two trains an hour from London Marylebone, and four Metropolitan Line tubes an hour from Baker Street, to Amersham.
Saturday Walkers Club	Take the train closest to 10:30 from Marylebone.
Lunch	Lunch options in Chalfont St Giles Merlin's Cave: High St. Tel: 01494 875101 Fox and Hounds: Silver Hill. Tel: 01494 872151
Tea	Tea options in Amersham Old Town Carringtons Deli & Café: 6 Market Square. Tel: 01494 432045

Walking Instructions

1. Leave Amersham station by the ticket office and turn left to go down to the main road, the A416.
2. Turn left to go under the railway bridge and cross over the road.
3. Immediately after passing under the bridge, take the footpath on the right, heading west alongside the railway embankment.
4. Where a wood appears on your left, turn left and take the left-hand path into the trees, continuing along it for 300m.
5. At the end of the wood, go into a large field and follow the path downhill along the left-hand field edge, with Old Amersham up ahead.
6. In 250m the path curves to the left and passes a memorial to the Amersham martyrs; continue along the field edge for another 50m.
7. Turn left onto a footpath and follow it down to the A416; cross over and continue up the footpath opposite.
8. In 200m go straight across a path junction, then turn right 25m after this into the end of a cul-de-sac.
9. Follow the road as it curves left and almost immediately take a path between houses on the right.
10. Go across a residential road and continue on the path opposite, which soon leads into another short residential road.
11. Just before the road comes to a T-junction, take the footpath on the left, initially along the left edge of a small green and then on a fenced path down to a residential road.
12. Cross the road and continue on the footpath opposite, which again leads into a short road; continue up to a T-junction and turn right.
13. In 60m take a footpath on the left and follow this out of the housing estate and down to a main road, the A404.
14. Cross this main road carefully and take the left-hand of two footpaths opposite; this leads into a field, heading east.
15. At the end of the field follow the path as it turns half-left to go across a large field.
16. In the next field, do not follow the path along the left-hand field edge but head diagonally across the field, heading east.
17. In the next field, go along the right-hand field edge and then continue in the same direction in the next field.
18. Continue on the track ahead, passing buildings on the left, to come out onto a lane.
19. Turn right and then immediately left onto a footpath; this goes along the left-hand edge of a large field, later passing Coke's Farm to come out onto a minor road.
20. Bear right onto this road and continue along it for 150m.
21. Where the road bends to the right, take a footpath going straight on, which soon comes out onto a golf course.
22. Continue ahead and slightly to your left, aiming for a white post on the edge of some trees.
23. Continue along the edge of the golf course for about 1km, mostly on a path just inside the trees with the course on your right, and turning left once or twice to avoid going onto the course.
24. Where the course ends, do not continue ahead on the path, but turn right to go downhill with a hedge on your left, and then onto a path leading into a copse.
25. Where the trees end, continue downhill and slightly to the right to go through a gap in the hedge alongside a main road, the A413.
26. Cross this road carefully and take the footpath opposite, slightly to your left, into a field.
27. Head slightly left towards a wooden footbridge 100m away (or go round the field edge to reach it).
28. Cross the bridge and continue along a path between a wood and a fence up to a path junction.
29. Turn left at the junction onto the South Bucks Way and follow this for 1.25km to Chalfont Mill.
30. Join a road for a short distance and then continue ahead for another 600m on the South Bucks Way to reach Chalfont St Giles for lunch [after 7.5km].
31. The onward route here is to turn sharp right into Up Corner road, with the Fox and Hounds pub 150m up this road on the right; alternatively, the (larger) Merlin's Cave pub is across the small green to your left.
32. After lunch, continue along Up Corner road past the Fox and Hounds, later continuing straight ahead on a minor road where Up Corner road forks off to the left.
33. At a crossroads, continue straight ahead onto a lane, marked as a public footpath, and follow this for 750m as it winds past a few houses.
34. After passing Hill Farm House, continue ahead on a potentially muddy path between fences (if you walk along the left-hand field edge to avoid the mud, you can rejoin the path at the bottom of the field).
35. Continue downhill towards Upper Bottom House Farm and turn right onto the lane in front of the farm.
36. In 50m take the footpath on the left which leads up past farm buildings and then along the left-hand edge of a field.
37. In the next field bear left to go along the left-hand field edge, veering right at the top to leave the field via a stile a little way in from the corner.
38. Follow the path half-right across the next field, heading north and soon going under pylons.
39. At the end of this large field, turn half-left and follow the path for another 750m through several more large fields to a wood.
40. Follow the path through a corner of the wood, then diagonally down several more fields and eventually under the A413.
41. Go through a small field onto a lane which soon comes out onto the A355 opposite Tesco's (which has a Starbucks coffee shop) and Fox's Outdoor shop.
42. Turn left and cross over the road junction to go along Old Amersham's High Street, with St Mary's church visible up ahead.
43. In 250m, where a road goes off to the left, the onward route is to cross over the High Street and turn right onto a path leading into the churchyard; if you want to stop for tea, Carringtons Deli & Café is just ahead in the parade of shops on the other side of this road junction.
44. After tea, take the path towards the church, bearing right onto a tarmac path after 75m and following this up to a T-junction.
45. Turn left and then follow the tarmac path round to the right as it climbs through a large open area towards a wood.
46. Inside the wood, continue in the same direction to stay near its left-hand edge, with a road just beyond it.
47. As you near the end of the wood, bear right onto a short cut which leads down to a tarmac path at the bottom of the railway embankment.
48. Turn right and follow this out to the A416, retracing your outward route under the railway bridge and up to the station.

Driving	Start: Amersham Station is near : HP6 5DW. [gmap]
Train Travel	London to Amersham