Pete's Walks - Cholesbury and The Lee (page 1 of 6)

If you are considering walking this route yourself, please see my disclaimer. You may also like to see these notes about the maps and GPX files.

Google map of the walk

I did this circular walk of about 11.9 miles on Saturday, 9th June 2018. It was basically a repeat of a walk I first did in December 2008 - I've done it a couple of times since, but not for a few years now. I varied the route slightly, starting at Cholesbury rather than Buckland Common (just because of easier parking) and then taking a different path from Dundridge Manor Farm which I'd never walked before (this last change wasn't planned in advance, I decided to do it on the spur of the moment during the walk). NOTE: I have since walked the route again from Cholesbury in August 2022, when I modified the route slightly by replacing an unnecessary road section (that had been due to originally starting the route at Buckland Common) with some footpaths. I have shown this as Alternative 1 on my Google map, and think it is definitely an improvement. It reduces the length of the walk slightly to about 11.7 miles.

I parked by the cricket ground in Cholesbury (Grid Reference SP 933071) and started walking about 9.40am. Instead of walking past the cricket ground, I followed the road in the opposite direction. Just after passing the Village Hall on my right, I took a footpath on the left. This ran between garden boundaries, and then followed the left edge of a meadow of long grass as it dropped down into a valley. I turned right in the valley bottom, following a path along the valley past three fields. On reaching a field corner close to a wood, I turned right, following a short path to reach a road (the same one I'd parked by, but now in Buckland Common). I turned left, and followed the road - I passed a junction where Bottom road went right, then I took a lane going left at a bend. After a hundred yards or so I reached the start of the drive to Dundridge Manor on my right. A very short way down it a footpath went left, following a dry moat around the manor on my right. I soon came to a path junction, where I turned right and crossed a field to reach Dundridge Manor Farm.

Picture omitted

The path I took from almost opposite Cholesbury Village Hall - I turned right along the bottom of the valley

Picture omitted

The path along the valley bottom

Picture omitted

The path along the valley bottom

Picture omitted

The road past Buckland Common

Picture omitted

The lane, just before the start of the drive to Dundridge Manor

Picture omitted

The path passing near Dundridge Manor

Picture omitted

The path after I turned right, passing Dundridge Manor Farm

A few yards past the farm I took a spur of the moment decision to try a new path (I've been aware of this path for years, but have been dubious about whether it actually existed on the ground or not, but I could clearly see it crossing a field about a quarter of a mile way). I turned left at a track junction, but only for a short distance before turning right at a waymark post. The path crossed a very flinty field of stubble, following a row of trees. At the fourth tree, the path turned left and continued across the stubble field to a hedge. It then continued along the left edge of a corn field, turning right in the field corner to continue along another side of the same field. Shortly before reaching the next field corner, the path went through a gap in the hedge, and followed the edge of a wood past another corn field, dropping gently downhill. It then followed a drive to pass in front of a house and reached Arrewig Lane (I'm not sure if the house is the Three Gates Farm shown on the map or not, the OS map is a little unclear).

Picture omitted

The start of the path after I turned left - it goes right by the post (I'd not walked this path before, this was the start of a slight variation from my original route)

Picture omitted

The path following the line of trees

Picture omitted

The path turning left by the fourth tree

Picture omitted

The path continuing across the stubble field

Picture omitted

The path following the edge of the large meadow

Picture omitted

The path after it turns right in the corner of the meadow

Picture omitted

The path continuing along the edge of a wood

Picture omitted

The path approaching Three Gates Farm