Pete's Walks - Pitstone Hill and Grand Union Canal (page 4 of 4)
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.
At the bottom of the slope, the bridleway continued between hedgerows, passing a large Ash tree. Shortly after the hedge on my right ended, I turned right and followed a path across a field to a hedge gap, beyond which the path went half-left across a larger field to reach the drive from Duncombe Farm. I went left for two or three hundred yards, then took a path on the right. This went down a short track to a gate, beyond which it turned left and then curved right as it rose up Clipper Down. I followed the path all the way to its end, where it met the track from the Bridgewater Monument to Ivinghoe Beacon (with the kennels on Clipper Down just on the right).
The bridleway descending through the woods of Ashridge
Ash tree, near where the bridleway levels out
The path after I turned right
The path after I turned right
The drive from Duncombe Farm
The start of the path up Clipper Down
The path up Clipper Down
The path up Clipper Down
The path up Clipper Down
I turned left (towards the Beacon), but after about a quarter of a mile I took a path forking left and dropping down hill through anmother bit of the Ashridge Woods. Over a stile, the path continued between bushes, before curving right and then following a fence on my left to reach a path crossroads at the foot of Steps Hill. Here I turned left, back onto the Ridgeway, and followed another fence on my left back to a lane and the Pitstone Hill car park where I'd started.
View left from the track to Ivinghoe Beacon, near Clipper Down
The track to Ivinghoe Beacon
The track to Ivinghoe Beacon, shortly before I forked left
The path descending to the foot of Steps Hill
The path descending to the foot of Steps Hill
The path descending to the foot of Steps Hill
The path descending to the foot of Steps Hill
The Ridgeway heading back to the Pitstone Hill car park, after I turned left at the crossroads at the foot of Steps Hill
This was a pleasant and fairly undemanding walk, though I prefer it the other way round so as to get most of the uphill bits out of the way at the start of the walk rather than have them at the end. It served my purposes well today, a shorter walk of about three hours was all I felt up to after having slept so badly the night before.