Pete's Walks- Kensworth and Ivinghoe Beacon (page 1 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 did this circular walk of about 15 miles on Saturday, April 15th, 2017. It was a route I've walked many times before (see here for when I did it on a wintry day in January 2009), but I was surprised to find that it's very close to five years since I last walked it. In fact the last time I did any long (12-15 miles) walk from Kensworth was in August 2012. Since I had those viruses that limited my walking for almost three years, I've always gone further afield for my long walks in the Chilterns.
I started walking about 10:05am, following the road to Whipsnade out of Kensworth - the verge on the left of the road wasn't as clear of vegetation as it used to be, and I had to pause a couple of times to let traffic go by before stepping on to the road for a few paces. After about a quarter of a mile I turned left through a metal kissing-gate next to a painted field gate. The path went straight across a large field of grass, then continued along a track beside a small meadow to reach Dovehouse Lane. Here I turned right and followed the lane to its end, where it met Buckwood Lane.
The road out of Kensworth, heading to Whipsnade Heath and Whipsnade
The path to Dovehouse Lane, after I turned left
Approaching Dovehouse Lane
Dovehouse Lane
A few yards to the right, I took a path on the other side of Buckwood Lane, almost immediately going left at a path junction and following a path uphill, with the gardens of some properties at Holywell on my right. There was initially on old hedge on my left, but this ended more or less where the path levelled out and I then had an arable field on my left. Further on I had a small wood to my left, and beyond this the path left Holywell and ran between fences for a while to reach another wood. The path continued through the wood (where I saw Bluebells and Wood Anemones) to reach a minor road between Holywell and Studham.
The footpath beside the gardens of Holywell
The footpath beside the gardens of Holywell
The footpath continuing from Holywell
The footpath continuing from Holywell
I went a few yards left then took a path on the other side of the road, which followed a hedgerow on my right. After passing through two fields (close to where I entered the second field there was a nice view on my right towards Studham church), the path went through a gate and continued ahead through a long narrow enclosure, at the end of which I reached a road in Studham. I turned right, the road soon turning left (it was now called Valley Road) and dropping downhill into a small valley. At the bottom of the valley I took a bridleway going half-right, rising up the other side of the valley through an arable field to reach Common Road, Studham.
View towards Studham church
The footpath after I crossed the road
The footpath continuing through the enclosure near Studham
Valley Road, Studham
The bridleway going half-right from Valley Road
Across the road, a bridleway started down a drive. It then continued beside a hedgerow, with another large arable field on my right. Further on, the bridleway carried on past Ravensdell Wood on my right.
The bridleway continuing after crossing Common Road, Studham
The bridleway continuing from Common Road
The bridleway continuing past Ravensdell Wood
The bridleway continuing past Ravensdell Wood