Pete's Walks- Cholesbury, Kingsash, Chartridge (page 3 of 5)
On the far side of the pasture I crossed a drive close to a white cottage and entered a small field, almost immediately leaving it at a gate or stile on the right. I then walked past both the old and new churches at The Lee to reach a road where I turned right. At a junction I went right, to walk to the right of the large village green. I saw a couple of vintage cars here, perhaps there was some sort of rally. On coming to a road junction (by the Cock And Rabbit pub), I went a few yards right and continued down a drive on the other side (the OS map shows it is an 'other route with public access') - there were a scattering of mature trees in the grassy field to my right. After a few hundred yards a footpath went left (going to Ballinger Bottom). It went through a wood for a while, then ran a short distance along the edge of some parkland, before re-entering the wood, all the while following a valley bottom. After about three-quarters of a mile it reached a road at Ballinger Bottom.
The old church (13th century and Grade 1 listed) at The Lee
The new church (1860s) at The Lee
The Lee
Manor House, The Lee
The drive (an 'other route with public access') at The Lee
The start of the path to Ballinger Bottom
The path to Ballinger Bottom
The path to Ballinger Bottom
The path to Ballinger Bottom
The path to Ballinger Bottom
I went a few yards right and then took a bridleway going down a drive or track on the other side. The bridleway soon turned right (there was a gate across the drive continuing ahead), only to immediately turn left. At the end of the drive, I took the leftmost of two bridleways that continued on (a footpath went left here). This was new to me, though I've walked the other bridleway and the footpath. This bridleway ran along the bottom of a wood sloping up to my right, with large paddocks in the valley bottom to my left. At the end of the wood, the bridleway continued between a thick hedgerow on my left and a fence on my right with paddocks now on that side.
The drive at Ballinger Bottom
The end of the drive at Ballinger Bottom - I took the bridleway on the left (to right of the metal farm gate)
The bridleway from Ballinger Bottom
The bridleway from Ballinger Bottom
The bridleway from Ballinger Bottom
On entering Bellows Wood, the bridleway turned left, but I turned right on a path going quite steeply up hill (I'd walked this path a few times before). As I reached the top side of the wood, I turned left onto another path (which I'd not walked before). This level path ran through the wood (lots of Holly initially, like the previous path) for maybe a quarter of a mile. On leaving Bellows Wood, the path curved to the right, running between a fence on my left and a hedge.
The path up through Bellows Wood
Mushroom in Bellows Wood, possibly Common Puffball
The path through Bellows Wood, after I turned left
The path through Bellows Wood
The same path after it leaves Bellows Wood