Pete's Walks - Kensworth and everywhere (page 3 of 3)
At Beechwood Home Farm I turned left at a track crossroads and followed a surfaced farm drive up and down a small valley to reach the end of the surfaced part of Roe End Lane. Here I turned right, and followed the lane for a quarter of a mile through part of the hamlet of Roe End, before taking a field path on the left. This followed a right-hand hedgerow for some distance to a field corner, where the path went half-right, following a headland with an intermittent hedge between two large arable fields, gradually descending to finally emerge on Buckwood Road on the edge of Markyate.
The track from Beechwood Home Farm to Roe End
The path from Roe End to Markyate
The path from Roe End to Markyate
I followed the road left out of the village. After a few hundred yards a footpath started on the left beside a solitary house. Beyond the gardens of the house the path followed a hedgerow on the left, and then another headland between more arable fields. It then joined a farm track that led on through more fields to some isolated farm buildings at Buckwood Stubbs. The path then continued for over half a mile with extensive woods on my right - Fareless Wood, Dedmansey Wood and Byslip Wood are all adjoining and the map doesn't seem to make clear the boundaries of each.
The path from Markyate to Dedmansey Wood
The path from Markyate to Dedmansey Wood
Approaching Buckwood Stubs and Fareless Wood
The path from Markyate to Dedmansey Wood
The path from Markyate to Dedmansey Wood
Eventually I turned right and followed a short path on the edge of Byslip Wood to reach Byslips Road (no, I don't know why the road has one more 's' in its name than the wood). I little way to the left, a path started on the other side of the road. This made its way across a huge arable field, passing a small wood called Ashen Grove on the right.
The path in Byslip Wood
The path from Byslips Road to Holywell
The path from Byslips Road to Holywell - the wood on the right is called Ashen Grove
On the far side of this huge field I went through another small wood on the edge of Holywell, then turned right along a path with some gardens in Holywell on my left. This eventually led me to Buckwood Lane, with Dovehouse Lane starting a few yards to the right. I followed the latter lane up a small hill, then turned left on a path opposite an old farm. A track led along the edge of a meadow, then I crossed a large field (currently half of it a sheep pasture) to reach the Whipsnade Road, where I turned right to return to Kensworth.
Looking towards Kensworth from the eastern edge of Holywell
Dovehouse Lane
The path from Dovehouse Lane to Whipsnade Road
Approaching Whipsnade Road
I had been in two minds about walking today, having overslept after a very poor night's sleep. But I was glad I went in the end, even though this is a very familiar route to me. It was very bright and sunny day, though a stiff north wind made it pretty chilly. The views from Dunstable Downs were as impressive as ever, and once more the walk reminded me of the quality of the countryside right on my doorstep.