This area comprises that part of the region within the RG and SL postcode areas, plus the GU25 postcode district (Virginia Water) and postcode districts OX10, OX11 and OX12 (Wallingford, Didcot and Wantage).
Neighbouring regions and areas are
Note also some of the most convenient hubs for multi-day walking on different routes.
Routes
Use the alphastrip below to jump to the appropriate initial letter for a selected route within the list. If there are no routes with a particular initial letter, the jump will have no effect.
0-9 A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
Chiltern Railway Walk
Length >60km
Max transport gap > 30km
A 288km walk between London Marylebone and Kidderminster.
Image: Denham
Chiltern Way
Length >60km
Max transport gap >20km
The core walk loops its way through the varied landscapes of the Chiltern Hills in a 221km circuit. The route has spawned three extensions — in Berkshire (via Cookham and Henley: 45km), in the south (via Goring and Woodcote: 51km), and in the north (via Great Offley and Chapelfoot: 44km).
Image: Sarratt
Coal Tax Circuit
Length >60km
Max transport gap <20km
A 315km walk which links up the markers which delineate the 1860s boundary, within which imports of coal and wine were taxed by the City of London Corporation.
Image: Coal Tax marker on the Slough arm of the Grand Union Canal
Colne Valley Trail
Length <60km
Max transport gap <10km
A walk of 25km between Rickmansworth and Colnbrook.
Image: Heron on the route between Rickmansworth and Harefield.
Colne Valley Way
Length <20km
Max transport gap <10km
A 10km walk between Colnbrook and Staines-upon-Thames.
Image: The River Colne at Staines-upon-Thames.
Get out of London: west to Maidenhead
Length >60km
Max transport gap <20km
A 61km walk from Trafalgar Square to Maidenhead via Ravenscourt Park and Stoke Poges.
Image: Gunnersbury Park
Grand Union Canal Walk
Length >60km
Max transport gap <20km
A 227km walk along the towpath of the canal between the River Thames at Brentford and Birmingham’s famous Gas Street Basin.
Image: Norwood Green
Greater Ridgeway
A 605km walk which chains the four paths which link Lyme Regis with the North Norfolk coast — the Wessex Ridgeway, The Ridgeway National Trail, Icknield Way Trail, and Peddars Way.
Kennet and Avon Canal Path
Length >60km
Max transport gap <20km
A walk of 157km along the towpath of the Kennet and Avon Canal between Reading and Bath.
London Loop
Length >60km
Max transport gap <20km
A 277km circuit of the capital which follows close to the outer boundaries of the London boroughs, sometimes extending into neighbouring areas.
Image: Ingrebourne Valley Country Park
London Summits Walk
Length >60km
Max transport gap <20km
A 320km circuit taking in the highest point in each London borough (plus the summit of the City of London).
Image: Trent Park
The Ridgeway
Length >60km
Max transport gap <20km
A walk of 136km between Overton Hill and Ivinghoe Beacon.
Image: Goring Bridge, crossed by the route
Ring around the Underground
Length >60km
Max transport gap <20km
This 302km route takes you in a grand circular multiple-stage walking tour connecting all the outer termini of the London Underground, the Tube.
Image: Uxbridge High Street
Shakespeare’s Way
Length >60km
Max transport gap >20km
A 288km walk between Stratford-upon-Avon and the Globe Theatre in Southwark, commemorating the life of William Shakespeare (1564-1616), poet and playwright.
Image: First Folio, engraving by Martin Droeshout
(public domain)
Test Way
Length >60km
Max transport gap <20km
A 77km walk following the River Test between Inkpen Beacon and the Solent.
Thames Down Link
Length <60km
Max transport gap <10km
A 24km waymarked walk between Kingston-upon-Thames and Westhumble.
Image: Sunrise on the path, Hogsmill Valley
Thames Path
Length >60km
Max transport gap >20km
A walk of 440km between Greenwich and the river’s source.
Image: Whitchurch from the bridge
Vale Way
Length <60km
Max transport gap <20km
A walk of 44km between Abingdon and Longcot.
Wayfarer’s Walk
Length >60km
Max transport gap >20km
A walk of 113km across Hampshire between Inkpen Beacon and Emsworth.
Wey-South Path
Length <60km
Max transport gap <20km
A 57km walk linking Guildford and Amberley station, roughly following the line of the Wey and Arun Canal.
Image: heraldic bridge-plate, Guildford
Writers’ Way
Length <60km
Max transport gap <10km
A 22km horseshoe-shaped walk between Chawton and Four Marks, via Alton and Selborne, commemorating Jane Austen (1774-1817), William Cobbett (1763-1835) and Gilbert White (1720-93), each of whom had local connections.
Hubs
Some places lend themselves to being hubs, where you may pitch up for a few days’ car-free walking, fanning out on a different route (or part of a route) each day. The hub becomes a walking-place for recreation at walking pace. Hubs in this area include
| Ascot | Ascot may be a local hub for the eastern corner of the area. |
| Newbury | Newbury is a useful hub for those concentrating on the downland in the south-west of the area. |
| Reading | Reading is the pre-eminent hub for the whole area. |
Guided and group walks
Saturday Walking Club
This online-driven group has been well established in the London area for some years, but the reach of their walks goes far beyond the M25. Their walks are all free (the word “club” may be a bit misleading) and there are walks on other days of the week. You may download a route from their extensive catalogue to enable you to walk on your own — you are expected to carry your own copy of the route-map if you join a group walk.
Image: Sheffield Park
Disclaimer and advisory notices
Note that the greenwalks.uk team can accept no responsibility for content on an external site or in an external publication, nor for any action by an external site which renders our content or link outdated or unworkable. Furthermore, the team retains the liberty to unlink external content if, in its opinion, there have been changes which mean that a route may no longer be able to be considered a Green Walk (e.g., following changes to public transport services).
The responsibility for safety and security is vested in the walker alone: greenwalks.uk can take no responsibility for any inconvenience, damage, loss or injury sustained while using a route or other information from this site — many things can change without warning.
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