Pete's Walks - Lilley to Barton-le-Clay 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.
Through a gate, the path flattened out as it followed a hedge on my left. I went through a gate in the hedge to take advantage of a seat, so I could have my lunch admiring a view along Barn Hole (this is probably my favourite lunch stop in the Chilterns). I then continued along the path, but when the hedge turned left I turned alongside it and soon came to a corner where I went through a pedestrian gate (NOT the field gate in front of me). A very charming path continued round the head of Barn Hole, then curved right and descended a little way as it passed the head of another short valley. A little further on it went through a gate and passed a few Beech trees, before continuing on to reach the top of Deacon Hill. Almost all the way along this path there were good views left, out over parts of Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire (though on such a grey day the views were not as good as they can be).
The path up Pegsdon Hills
Near the end of the path up Pegsdon Hills
The view from my lunch spot, looking along Barn Hole
The start of the path from Pegsdon Hills to Deacon Hill
The path from Pegsdon Hills to Deacon Hill
View left from the path from Pegsdon Hills to Deacon Hill
The path from Pegsdon Hills to Deacon Hill
View left from the path from Pegsdon Hills to Deacon Hill
The path from Pegsdon Hills to Deacon Hill
I turned right at the top of Deacon Hill, finding my way round some bushes and following a path steeply down hill to a couple of gates that brought me to another part of the Icknield Way, here running as a broad track between hedges either side. I turned left along it and followed it for a quarter of a mile or so to reach a small car park and the B655 again. I went right, along the verge, for two or three hundred yards, then turned right along a bridleway that followed a tarmac drive (virtually a lane) towards Wellbury. After a quarter of a mile or so, the bridleway passed a house on my left and continued through trees a short way, before running alongside a small wood with a field to my right. On reaching a junction at the next field corner, I stayed on the bridleway as it turned right, the 'lane' now replaced by a more roughly surfaced track.
The top of Deacon Hill
The path descending from Deacon Hill to the Icknield Way
The Icknield Way (again)
The Icknield Way
The short section along the road, after I turned right
The bridleway to Wellbury
The bridleway to Wellbury
The bridleway to Wellbury
The bridleway to Wellbury