Henley, Hambleden and Remenham Hill

Date: Sunday 6th May 2012
Distance: 10.8 miles (although could be done in 9.3 miles - see below)
Route: Hambleden to Henley via Remenham Hill and back along the Thames

As you might have noticed, Henley-upon-Thames features quite regularly in this blog - mainly because it is easily accessible from West London and there are some beautiful walks in the area, combining easy and flat riverside walking with rolling hillsides, pretty villages and ancient woodlands.

The walk that we did today is from the second Time Out Book of Country Walks Near London and although it takes in both Henley and Hambleden is a little less strenuous and less well-trodden than Henley/ Hambleden the walk from the first Time Out book.

If you follow the route as detailed in the book, starting from Henley, you will need to grab lunch at the Flower Pot Hotel in Aston (with good food but slightly terrifying stuffed fish in glass cases), as the Stag & Huntsman in Hambleden is still closed for renovation at the minute. Their website says that they will be re-opening in May, however there still looks to be plenty of building work to be done before this happens.

The other alternative is to park up in the free car park on the road to Hambleden and start the walk by walking back to the main road and crossing Hambleden Lock. If you do this, the walk will be 9.3 miles and you get a choice of pubs and restaurants (Zizzi, Cafe Rouge, Strada etc) for lunch in Henley. Because we had forgotten the route and weren't in a massive hurry today, we added an extra 1.5 miles by walking to Hambleden and back at the start and end of the walk - but this is really not necessary!

Assuming that you start at the Hambleden car park, you cross a slightly vertiginous metal walkway over the swirling waters of the Thames (higher than usual today, thanks to the recent rainfall), then the lock, before walking on the wide footpath up the hill on the other side and up to Aston. From there you walk across fields and onto Remenham Hill, including paths through a field of slightly smelly shoulder-height oilseed rape, a bluebell-strewn wood and alongside green fields, which have obviously benefitted from the recent frequent downpours.

After crossing the lawn of a grand house with obscenely covetable views over the countryside and Thames, you find yourself on the outskirts of Henley and cross the bridge into town. After lunch, the next section of the walk is all along the Thames bank, but rather than the tarmac path alongside manicured grass on the other bank, this section is much rougher walking, including slightly soggy marshes and a succession of narrow footbridges. The advantages of this are that it is much quieter and less busy than the path on the other bank.

Once the path regains the road, there is a slight climb across fields and into woodland, then an easy wide track through the woods, which allows you to look down on the village of Hambleden (former home of W.H. Smith and picturesque location as seen in Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, The Avengers) - today we were also lucky enough to spot a herd of deer grazing on the hillside below. The route then loops back into the village of Hambleden, crossing the churchyard and passing the Post Office & Store (a good place to grab a drink to go or tea and cake), before heading up the hill past the Stag & Huntsman, along a ridge through fields and wooded areas and finally descending down the road signposted "Rotten Row" to arrive at the car park.

This is an easy walk, with lots of variety, beautiful views and straightforward paths - one of the reasons why we can't help but return to Henley so often.