Pete's Walks- Chalfont St Giles and Old Amersham (page 3 of 4)
I crossed the lane and entered the wood. After a hundred yards or so a waymark indicated where the path continued through some wooden barriers, the path then staying close to the edge of the wood, a few feet away on my left. After a few hundred yards a path went left to leave the wood - I could see that it continued ahead between a fence and a hedge on the right, but as soon as I left the wood I went half-right on another path that led through the hedgerow and across a large overgrown meadow. Again I was facing into the sun and had to resort to taking photos looking back again. On the far side of the meadow the path continued between mature hedgerows for a considerable distance, eventually emerging on the gravel drive of a house on the edge of Seer Green.
Hodgemoor Woods
Hodgemoor Woods
Looking back to Hodgemoor Woods
Looking back to Hodgemoor Woods
The path going southwest to Seer Green
The path going southwest to Seer Green
The house was at a road junction, where I turned left and followed the road south-eastwards as far as the next bend. A footpath on the right then went along a drive to a stables, where dogs barked at me from behind a gate. The path went slightly right for a few yards, through the stables car park, and continued behind the back of the stables. It then carried on between the fence of some paddocks on my left and a tall hedge. Again I failed to get decent photos because of the low sun ahead of me. After a path junction I entered an arable field, where a fence cordoned off the very muddy path along the hedgerow on the left. In the corner of this field I joined a drive that led from a cottage to a road on the outskirts of the village of Jordans.
Path behind the stables Seer Green
The path from Ser Green to Jordans
I turned right and followed the road through Jordans for over half a mile - this was not the best part of the walk, and I had to keep switching from side to side of the road depending on where the best verge to walk on was. But eventually I reached the old Quaker Meeting House, on the left, where I sat down on a bench and ate my lunch (I hope eating in a churchyard isn't too disrespectful). As I ate I saw and heard a couple of bright green birds fly over the Meeting House - they were clearly Ring-necked Parakeets, the first I've ever seen! They are gradually expanding out of London, where large colonies have been established for some years.
Entering Jordans
The Quaker Meeting House at Jordans, dating from 1688
The graves of William Penn, founder of Pennsylvania, and his family
Lunch over, I took Welders Lane next to the meeting house, soon passing an entrance to Jordans Youth Hostel on the left. The lane climbed uphill for a bit before levelling out - again, not the best part of the walk as the lane was very narrow and several times I had to stop and squeeze into a hedge to let a car pass. After about half a mile I took a path on the left, going north along the drive towards Grove Farm.
Welders Lane
Welders Lane
The drive to Grove Farm