Pete's Walks- Four Hills Walk (page 5 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 then turned left along a lane for a few yards to a junction with a road. Across this I went down a private drive for a hundred yards or so and then took a footpath on the right. This went between a couple of gardens, then continued with a small wood on my left, before crossing a large corn field. I've seen many Field Pansies growing here beside the path on previous walks, and I was delighted to see some again today. Beyond the field I crossed over a farm track and went through a belt of trees. Beyond a gate I reached a path junction, where I took the path forking half-right across part of the park around nearby Hampden House.
The path from Hampden Common towards Hampden church
The path from Hampden Common towards Hampden church
Field Pansies beside the path
The path after I forked half-right
The path ended by going through a garden. I then turned right to reach a gate at the end of the drive from Hampden House and Hampden church, beyond which I took a path on the left. This crossed a large flower-strewn meadow, from where I could soon see Hampden House over to my left. I went through a gate in a fence, beyond which the path dropped downhill through another meadow to reach a road in the valley of Hampden Bottom. A path continued on the other side, running beside a hedgerow on my right to reach a second road in the valley. Across this a path continued uphill, now with a hedge on my left, to reach Warren Wood.
The path from the start of the drive to Hampden House, approaching the valley of Hampden Bottom
The path from the start of the drive to Hampden House, approaching the valley of Hampden Bottom
Small Skipper butterfly
The path across the valley bottom, between the two roads
The path across the second road, heading up to Warren Wood
The path went very slightly left to head roughly north through the wood. Just before I reached the far side of Warren Wood, I turned right at a path junction. When this path left the wood, it continued between hedgerows to reach the hamlet of Little Hampden. I went straight on along a track or drive past a few houses, then turned left along the lane through the hamlet.
Warren Wood
The path from Warren Wood into Little Hampden
The lane through Little Hampden
When I reached what used to be the Rising Sun pub (with a small parking area on the right of the lane), I took a bridleway on the right (a footpath starts at the same point, going further right). This led gently downhill through a wood for about half a mile, until I reached a valley bottom.
The start of the bridleway going northeast from Little Hampden
The bridleway going northeast from Little Hampden
The bridleway going northeast from Little Hampden
The bridleway going northeast from Little Hampden