Pete's Walks- Maidensgrove Common, Ibstone, Middle Assendon (page 6 of 7)
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.
As always it was a delight to follow the clear path through the deer park. After a while I could see Stonor House and its chapel over to my right, and there were fine views ahead towards the area around Pishill church, where I'd been much earlier on the walk. This is another of my favourite paths in the Chilterns, and I never tire of walking it (as least not in this downhill direction, its less pleasant going uphill and with the views behind you!).
Stonor Deer Park, looking towards Pishill Church
Stonor Deer Park, looking towards Pishill Church
Stonor Deer Park
Looking back at Stonor House
Coming to the end of the path through Stonor Deer Park
On finally reaching the end of the path through the deer park, I turned left along the road through Stonor. I went straight on where a lane went right (towards Maidensgrove), then a little further on I took a bridleway going left. After passing between gardens this rose uphill through Almshill Wood, with the tall boundary fence of the deer park on my left. This is quite steep by the standards of the Chilterns, but I don't remember struggling for breath quite as much as I usually do when I come this way - and near the top of the slope I was rewarded by the sighting of my first Speckled Wood butterfly of 2017. At the top of the hill I left the wood and reached a bridleway junction, where I turned right and followed a track to Coxlease Farm.
The road through Stonor
The start of the bridleway up through Almshill Wood
The bridleway up through Almshill Wood
The bridleway up through Almshill Wood
The bridleway up through Almshill Wood
I followed the track through the farmyard to a gate, then turned right and went through another gate. The path now followed a track, passing the farmhouse on my right and then turning left. This is another favourite path of mine, as the track was soon running close to the top of a hillside with attractive views along the Stonor Valley on my right. After almost a mile the track ended and the path continued along the left edge of a large arable field, curving right alongside a hedge and soon bringing me to a stile that took me into Paradise Wood.
The path passing Coxlease Farm
The path from Coxlease Farm to Middle Assendon
The path from Coxlease Farm to Middle Assendon
The path from Coxlease Farm to Middle Assendon
View back along the Stonor Valley from the path from Coxlease Farm to Middle Assendon
Looking ahead along the Stonor Valley
Approaching Paradise Wood