Pete's Walks- Cowleaze Wood and Radnage (page 2 of 6)
If you are considering walking this route yourself, please see my disclaimer. You may also like to see these notes about the maps and GPX files.
I crossed the road through Ibstone and continued along a path that went down a track to a gate, then continued along the track as it followed the right edge of a field to reach Hartmoor Wood. I stayed on the track as it descended through the wood (another path went-half-left where I entered the wood) - I was still feeling a buzz from seeing the Cuckoo-flower when I spotted some lovely little Wood Sorrel, another of my Spring favourites. There were many more Primroses here too. Beyond the wood the path followed a hedgerow on my right to reach the wooded bottom of a valley called Twigside Bottom (at least that's the name on the OS map a little further south along the valley).
The path from Ibstone to Twigside Bottom
The path from Ibstone to Twigside Bottom
The path from Ibstone to Twigside Bottom
The path from Ibstone to Twigside Bottom
I turned left along the path that runs through the bottom of the valley - there were yet more Primroses here. After three or four hundred yards I turned right on a path climbing steeply up through Penley Wood (I was now starting a long section that I'd only walked in the opposite direction before). I puffed and panted my way up the hillside, until I reached a gate on my left, where the path went across a large empty pasture (there are sometimes cows here). On the far side the path turned right and followed that side of the pasture to the top of the hill and a gate - Penley farm was now over to my right. Within a few yards I went through a second gate and then continued along the path as it ran between fences - along here I was delighted to spot my first Greater Stitchwort of the year, yet another of my favourite wildflowers.
The path through Twigside Bottom
The start of the path from Twigside Bottom to Penley Farm (note the many Primroses) - I've somehow made it look flat, but it 's actually steeply uphill
The path from Twigside Bottom to Penley Farm
The path from Twigside Bottom to Penley Farm
The path from Twigside Bottom to Penley Farm
Looking back over Twigside Bottom from near Penley farm
The path continuing past Penley farm
The path continuing past Penley farm (if you look carefully you can see a road bridge across the M40 on the left)