Pete's Walks - Chenies and Latimer (page 3 of 3)
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 took a footpath on the other side of the road, and after a few yards reached a fork in the path were I kept right. The path rose gently through a meadow to reach West Wood, sloping uphill in front of me. I went a few yards right along the edge of a field, then the path started up through the wood at an angle. When I reached a broad track, I started to go right but then noticed a white arrow on a tree opposite so continued along the faint path there. I soon reached another path junction where I turned left to go straight up the rest of the slope. At the top of the slope, I turned left again, following a bridleway just inside the top edge of the wood.
The path fork after crossing the road (I took the right fork)
The path rising up through West Wood
The path rising up through West Wood (after I turned left at a junction with another path, not shown on the map)
The path along the top of West Wood
After about a quarter of a mile I went straight on at a slightly staggered path crossroads, staying just inside the edge of the wood. On reaching a lane, I went a short distance right (there was a small car park here) and then took the bridleway continuing on the other side of the lane. This ran for a short way through Walk Wood, then continued eastwards between fences and hedges.
West Wood
West Wood, approaching the junction where I went straight on
West Wood, approaching the lane
Walk Wood
View left, towards Latimer
The path continuing from Walk Wood towards Chenies
View left, over the Chess Valley
The bridleway ran straight on for several hundred yards. When it eventually went right (only to immediately go left, to continue in the same direction as before), I went straight on through a wooden gate, and followed a path through a wood. This was initially new ground for me, but when I went straight on where a path went left I was on a path I'd walked a couple of times before. On reaching a path T-junction on the far side of the wood, I turned right, now on one of my usual routes in or out of Chenies. This path was soon running between high brick walls, with the church to the left and Chenies Manor ahead and to the right. On reaching a gravel drive at the entrance to the manor, I turned left to return to the village green.
The path through the wood near Chenies
The path through the wood near Chenies, approaching the path T-junction where I turned right
Chenies Manor
Chenies Church
This was a beautiful day for a walk, and the Chess Valley was as charming as ever. It's certainly a route I'd be happy to walk again, if I'm ever again restricted to only walking five miles or so. The only disappointment for me today was that there were so many other people out walking, I must have seen a 100 or more! I'm just not used to that, I normally might see a dozen or so. I can only think there was a large walking group that had organised a walk here.