Pete's Walks - The Chess Valley Walk

Post-walk comments

I must admit that I was a little disappointed with the Chess Valley Walk. I'd already walked about half of the route before on various walks, and I really liked the area between Chesham and Sarratt Bottom - I think it's one of the most attractive parts of the Chilterns. Unfortunately I found the rest of the walk, from Sarratt Bottom to Rickmansworth to be less enjoyable. It was obvious that I was entering the outer reaches of suburbia, and for much of that section it was clear that there were built-up areas nearby. The section beside the M25 and the long section between garden fences were rather dull, though there were still occasional attractive sections, basically whenever the route came back to the charming river Chess.

It's certainly not a bad walk - I've tried to make allowances, but perhaps if I'd done it on a sunnier day (or been in a happier mood) I'd have liked it more. I'll certainly walk parts of it again, but on circular routes that will include some of the nearby villages such as Chenies, Sarratt and Flaunden.

The river Chess, from the footbridge east of Sarrattmill Bridge - note the Water Crowfoot in the river