Pete's Walks - Shortened version of Ashridge Estate Boundary Trail (page 5 of 5)
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.
Just beyond Coldharbour Farm the Ashridge Estate Boundary Trail turns right, but I'd decided the heat was getting to me a bit and so shortened my walk by going straight on, following a bridleway along a roughly-surfaced drive, that curved slightly left as it descended slightly through the trees of Berkhamstead Common (that's the spelling on the OS map, whereas it's marked Berkhamsted (one 'a', as in the name of the nearby town) Common about a mile to the east). Just past Woodyard Cottages I reached the corner of a large pasture (there are sometimes a few cattle in it) surrounded by trees. Rather than take a footpath that runs through part of this pasture, I followed a roughly parallel path just inside the trees, to take advantage of the shade. These two paths met near another corner of the pasture, where I followed the footpath through the trees until I reached a track, where I turned right and fairly soon reached a drive as it approached Ashridge House.
The drive between Coldharbour Farm and Woodyard Cottages (after I left the route of the Ashridge Estate Boundary Trail)
The drive between Coldharbour Farm and Woodyard Cottages
The start of the path from Woodyard Cottages (I took the path just inside the wood, rather than the one across part of the enormous pasture)
The path from Woodyard Cottages
The path from Woodyard Cottages
The track after I turned right
I followed the drive straight on, with the impressive Gothic fantasy of Ashridge House over to my right, until after about a quarter of a mile I reached a drive junction by a white gate, where I turned right towards the grand house. After maybe one hundred yards I took a footpath going left, which followed a fence past a car park and then entered more woods. The path then dropped downhill slightly into Golden Valley.
Ashridge House
The drive crossing in front of Ashridge House
Ashridge House, after I turned right by the white gate
The path from Ashridge House to Golden Valley
I now rejoined the route of the Ashridge Estate Boundary Trail by turning left along a path running through the long grass at the bottom of the valley. After a few hundred yards, the path curved right and gradually approached another drive from Ashridge House. I then followed the drive to the right for a few yards, before another path forked left from the drive. I then just had to follow this path (not shown on the OS map) through the woods for about three-quarters of a mile. After a while I had a fairway of Ashridge golf course on my left, and just beyond this I reached a road near Ringshall, opposite the car park where I'd started.
Golden Valley (now back on the route of the Ashridge Estate Boundary Trail)
The start of the path after crossing the drive from Ashridge House
Further along that path
Further along that path
The same path continuing beside the golf course, as it approaches the road and the car park where I'd started
It was a beautiful day with wall-to-wall blue skies, but it was just a little too hot for me, I've never been able to handle the heat too well. But I thoroughly enjoyed the walk - it's funny, every time I walk the Ashridge Estate Boundary Walk I'm surprised at just how good it is, and the shortcut I took today was just as pleasant as the rest of the route, I'll definitely use it again if I ever need to shorten the route by a few miles.