Pete's Walks - Kensworth and everywhere (part 4)
Start of the path from Roe End Lane
I then turned left onto a footpath, following a hedge on my right through a large meadow - there were fairly extensive views around here which showed just how well-wooded this part of the Chilterns are. Through a kissing-gate in a field corner, I took the leftmost of two paths, following a straight but intermittent hedge line through more arable fields, heading gradually downhill to reach the edge of the village of Markyate.
The path approaching Markyate
I turned left along Buckwood Road, almost immediately leaving the village, and after a few hundred yards turned left onto another path (starting at the drive of a house).
Buckwood Road, just outside Markyate. The walk takes a footpath beside the driveway visible on the left.
I only walked this particular path for the first time about three years ago, and it is one of my favourite local paths. It followed a hedgerow on the left through a couple of grassy fields, continuing along a small headland between two more fields (the one on the left was being harrowed). The path then joined a wide farm track, going on ahead between more fields and passing a very remote farm shed on the right.
Near the start of the path from Buckwood Road
The path from Buckwood Road
The path from Buckwood Road approaching Dedmansey Wood
The farm track ended here, but the path carries on, now running alongside the edge of Dedmansey Wood on the right. I followed the edge of the wood for about half a mile, as it gradually curved left beside a huge ploughed field.
The path beside Dedmansey Wood
Eventually I turned right (immediately before a field corner), on a path just inside the edge of what was now Byslips Wood. This took me to Byslips Road (one of the main roads between Kensworth and Studham), where I turned left for a short distance before taking a path on the right (the start of the path is easy to miss, it is immediately before the first house on the right).
The path through the edge of Byslips Wood
This soon crossed part of a large stubble field, passing a solitary tree, and continued beside a small wood on the right. Beyond the wood, the stubble gave way to what had once been a decent crop of beans, but which was now a blackened scraggly mess, presumably intended for animal fodder eventually. On the far side of this very large field, my path continued through a small wood to reach the edge of Holywell.
Near the start of the path from Byslips Road
The path from Byslips Road, looking towards Holywell
Path through the old bean crop. Holywell is the other side of the wood.
I turned right, following garden fences on my left. The wood on my right soon ended, replaced by another stubble field. The path continued beside the garden boundaries, and descended through trees to a valley bottom. Here I went right at a path crossroads and immediately came to Buckwood Lane (the continuation of Buckwood Road which I’d been on earlier). I went a few yards to the right and turned left into Dovehouse Lane.
Path beside garden fences on the edge of Holywell
From the end of the path beside Holywell, looking along Buckwood Lane to the junction with Dovehouse Lane
The lane was quite shady, being overhung by the hedges either side. At the top of the small rise, by a former farm on the right, I turned left onto a footpath. This followed a rather overgrown track through a meadow, then continued across a much larger field of short grass. On the far side I reached the Whipsnade Road, and turned right to return to Kensworth.
Dovehouse Lane
Start of the path from Dovehouse Lane
The path from Dovehouse Lane approaching the Whipsnade Road (beyond the gate)
It was about 3.25pm when I got home, so allowing 10 minutes for lunch I’d been walking about five and a quarter hours. I took over 150 photos, which probably slowed my pace quite a bit. It had been a really enjoyable walk on a gorgeous day - warm sunny, almost windless, with just a few white clouds in the blue sky.
To see more photos of this walk when I did it again on 22/4/11, click here - Kensworth and everywhere.
To see more photos of this walk when I did it in very snowy conditions on 3/2/9, click here - Kensworth and everywhere in the snow.
To see this walk done in the opposite direction on 15/5/10, click here - Kensworth and everywhere, again