Walk 18 - From Amersham at the Western End of the Metropolitan Line to Beaconsfield
Walk Distance 13.5Km (8.5 miles)
Underfoot Tracks, paths and woodland, muddy in parts
Journey Time (from Central London to Amersham by Metropolitan Line) 55 minutes
Getting Back to Central London Return from Beaconsfield Railway Station
Points of Interest Amersham Old Town, Beaconsfield Model Village
Refreshments - Cafes and pubs near the start in at Amersham Old Town, shops near Beconsfield Station
Opportunities For Shortening This Walk - None
Route Details
1. Come out of Amersham Station and turn left. Descend to the main road and go left under the railway bridge. Immediately cross the road and take the path between the railway and some houses. Turn diagonally left uphill and left again at the top with a road visible through the trees on your right, This is Parsonage Wood. Continue parallel to the road and start to go downhill. Take the right hand fork (almost straight on) and emerge from the trees with a nice view ahead. Descend on a paved path. At the bottom swing left around a cemetery wall and then turn right to cross the first bridge with a church ahead.
2. Before reaching the church, turn left on a churchyard path and emerge in the attractive main street of Amersham Old Town with many cafes and pubs. Take advantage of the refreshments available as there are no more en route. Turn left and walk for about 200m on the right hand footway to a roundabout. Go straight across. After the first house there is a signposted path to the right. The sign on the gate is “Bury Farm”. Follow this as it swings left and go through a kissing gate into a field. Cross to the far corner and go under an underpass beneath a busy road.
3. After the underpass, walk for about 150m and then turn right through a gate. Take the diagonal path (left) leading uphill. Climb through two fields and enter the woods at the top, Emerge from the trees and continue ahead in the same direction with a prominent farm on your right. (Quarrendon Farm) Walk to the distant hedge where there is a marker post. Swing left and follow the hedge-line towards a small wood. 100m short of the wood go through a gap so that your are now walking with the hedge on your left.
4. Continue past the wood. Reach the field end and turn 90 degrees right. There is a low hedge on your left. After about 100m the hedge finishes with a post. Stop and look diagonally left across the field to see a gap in the far hedge about 200m away. Follow the indistinct path which leads to the gap. Enter another field and walk to the far right hand corner. Descend towards Lower Bottom House Farm which you can see ahead in the valley. Pass through the farmyard and reach a small road. Turn right and then left after 75m to enter a track which climbs the opposite side of the valley.
5. Walk up the track, ignoring a left fork, and near the top reach the wall of a house. Continue with the wall on your right. About 100m after the wall finishes go through a kissing gate on your right and walk ahead to reach a road. Route-finding over the next section is difficult. Please follow the instructions carefully.
6. Cross the road and enter Hedgemoor Woods. This is quite a large area of forest but your route sticks closely to its eastern perimeter. Where a path comes in from the right follow it to the left. Within 30m swing right on another path coming in from the left. You are now walking in the same direction as when you crossed the road. Go ahead through a gap in a fence signposted with a yellow arrow.
7. There are many paths in this section of wood. Continue in the same direction with the edge of the wood visible on your left. Where there is a choice of paths take the left one but stay within the trees. After about 200m see see a low multi-arrowed signpost on your left. Turn left for just a few paces and reach a prominent hollow tree. Turn right still within the wood. Follow this path to emerge in a meadow.
8. Take the right hand of two broad grassy tracks across the meadow. Where you meet a crossing path go ahead and 20m further on pass through a gap in a hedge to arrive at another meadow. Turn right. At the top corner of the meadow go ahead to find a footpath post with a yellow arrow which directs you left to a path within a narrow band of trees. Follow this path between the trees for 500m ignoring any crossing paths. Emerge on a driveway which leads out to a lane. This is the end of the difficult section.
9. Turn right and follow the quiet lane for more than a kilometre. At Rawlings Farm ignore a signposted pointing left to “Chilterns Heritage Trail”. Continue on the lane past Widmer Farm to arrive at a junction with a track on the right. Turn sharp left and continue on the lane. After 250m look for a signed footpath going right. When I did this walk in July 2017 the start of this footpath was very overgrown. However, please persevere. After 250m the nettles and briars subside and the path opens out and descends to become a broad woodland track which swings right beside a fence. Follow it out to a main road. Cross carefully and enter the quiet road directly opposite.
10. Walk up this road for 800m to reach Wood Cottage where there is a signposted junction of psths. Turn left on a paved track and pass to the left of the cottage. After 250m leave the track and go ahead to the right of some large fir trees on a grassy path. Where the fir trees end, turn sharp right and cross a field towards some woods. Enter the woods and proceed in the same direction (due west) along a generally clear, but sometimes muddy, path until you reach a crossing track with a marker post. Turn left and walk until you see a tall wooden fence. You have reached the outlying houses of Beaconsfield.
11. A sign tries to direct you right but, go straight ahead and walk for about 1 kilometre with a fence on your right (and later on your left as well) to emerge on a suburban road. Cross and go ahead into Wilton Road. Follow it as it jinks to the left and when it reaches a T Junction, turn right on Caledon Road. Follow this road as far as it goes and then descend on a footpath to reach Beaconsfield Railway Station.
