Wendover, The Ridgeway & Chequers

Date: 19th January 2014
Route: Wendover to Chequers along the Ridgeway, returning on the Aylesbury Ring Path
Distance: 9.3 miles

Going walking at the moment feels like a battle against the elements - most of the "old favourite" paths seem to either be alongside rivers or through valleys, so are either flooded or distinctly soggy underfoot.

Today's choice was another hillside walk, within 10 miles of last week's Tring walk and including another section of the Ridgeway National Path. Our route was taken from the Rough Guide to Walks in London & Southeast England and began and ended in the medieval market town of Wendover, although following a slightly different route to the Wendover walk from the Time Out Book of Country Walks.

This is a good walk in the Chilterns, easy to follow, with most of the more difficult climbing at the start, however today wasn't really the best day to do it - despite the blue skies and sunshine, there were some very muddy sections, especially through the fields and wooded sections. Every stile seemed to be accessed through a sucking muddy puddle!

The other great strength of the walk used to be the lunch stop at The Bernard Arms in Great Kimble (which, due to its proximity to Chequers, boasted press clippings about a visit from Boris Yeltsin!), but unfortunately, like many country pubs, it is now boarded up - if you fancy doing this walk, take sandwiches!

From Wendover it is only a few minutes walk to the Ridgeway and the climb up to Bacombe Hill and Coombe Hill, the highest viewpoint in the Chilterns, home to a Boer War Monument and far-reaching views. The path continues over the hillside and down into woodland, before passing over the drive to Chequers, the PM's country retreat, which you skirt from a distance, accompanied by CCTV cameras and dire warnings about trespassing. You can tell that you're in the Chilterns and close to Chequers on the drive to Wendover, as you pass multiple signs addressed to David Cameron and with the general theme of "No to HS2"!

Once past Chequers you pass through the small villages of both Great Kimble and Little Kimble, then effectively follow a straight path back through the Vale of Aylesbury, past Cymbeline's Mount, Ellesborough Church and multiple sheep.

In summary, this is a decent walk in better weather and with a few supplies (unless the pub reopens!).

The Ridgeway and the Ashridge Estate

Date: Saturday 11th January
Route: Tring Circular via Ivinghoe Beacon and the Bridgewater Monument
Distance: 8.3 miles

For our first country walk of 2014, we opted for an old favourite from the Time Out Book of Country Walks Volume 2, which starts on the outskirts of Tring, passes through woodland and over (sometimes steep) chalky hillsides along the start/ end of the Ridgeway National Trail to the windy hilltop that houses Ivinghoe Beacon and offers great views across the surrounding countryside.

Leaving the windswept hikers, dog walkers, kite fliers and model plane enthusiasts behind at the top of the hill, the route heads through a small wooded area onto a very easy path into the National Trust's Ashridge Estate and ahead to the Bridgewater Monument (and a popular cafe, where curried parsnip soup and mug of tea are on offer, alongside multiple willpower-testing cake options).

Once you've had the opportunity to refuel your batteries, there is another easy path (mainly downhill) to the pretty village of Aldbury, which was mentioned in the Domesday Book and still has stocks and a whipping post on the village green, alongside a pond. From Aldbury it is a simple stroll along the hedgerows back to Tring Station.

The Time Out book also includes an alternative, longer walk (11 miles as opposed to the 8.3 miles we completed today) -  this is also a fantastic walk, with a great pub for lunch en route - but is a better option for days when you get up earlier than we did today!

Although today's walk was pretty muddy in places (especially in a couple of the early woodland sections), it is still highly recommended, a walk that blows away the cobwebs, gets your heart pumping and rewards you with fantastic views along the way.  

Walking and the Winter Wonderland

Date: 5th January 2014
Route: Notting Hill to St Paul's Cathedral through the parks and along the Thames
Distance: About 6 miles

Keen to make the most of the only dry weather forecast for the whole weekend, we decided to avoid the water-logged countryside and take a semi-improvised tourist-friendly stroll through Central London as our first walk of 2014.

This route is very flat and takes you through three different parks, past lots of historical buildings and monuments and along the South Bank, finishing up with a stroll across the Millennium Bridge to finish at St Paul's Cathedral.

The walk starts at Notting Hill station, from where it is only a few minutes to Kensington Gardens. We cut through the Gardens diagonally until we reached the pond in front of Kensington Palace then turned left to go into Hyde Park, passing the Royal Albert Hall and Albert Memorial, the Serpentine Gallery and the Serpentine and heading towards Hyde Park Corner.

The final day of the Winter Wonderland gave us plenty of opportunities to buy Christmas decorations, candles and candy floss, have a go at winning huge cuddly toys or scare ourselves stupid on fairground rides - luckily, we managed to emerge unscathed at the Wellington Arch, where our progress was slightly delayed by the Household Cavalry filing past on horseback.

We then headed down to Buckingham Palace, across Pall Mall and into Green Park and up towards Westminster, passing the park's slightly incongruous pelicans (descendants of the ones gifted by the Russian ambassador in the 17th century?), before cutting through to Whitehall near the Cabinet War Rooms.

Once at Westminster, we dodged the crowds taking photos of the Houses of Parliament and Westminster Abbey, passed the statue of Boudicca and crossed Westminster Bridge. On the far side of the bridge we turned left and followed the Thames Path past the London Eye, various street performers, the Festival Hall, the National Theatre and NFT and carried on walking until the former Bankside Power Station, Tate Modern, where we crossed the Millennium ("wibbly-wobbly") Bridge and past Sir Christopher Wren's St Paul's Cathedral to reach the Central Line station.

This is one of those walks that reminds you of how beautiful London can be in the winter sunshine and is largely traffic-free. A great way to spend a couple of hours without the need for walking boots, wellies or walking sticks, with lots of distractions and attractions along the way.