CHILTERN SOCIETY WALKS spring walk Pegsdon to Apsley End

Wood Lane Pegsdon Common Farm Knocking Hoe Green End National 3 With Andrew Clark Farm Nature Reserve B Bury Chiltern Way The Live and Let Live pub, Pegsdon, Farm Start: Start/ Beds SG5 3JX Finish 2 Grid ref TL120 303 Pegsdon A 1 Icknield Way We have the landlord’s permission 9 B655 Hitchin Road 6 to park at the pub to Hexton to Hitchin Distance: 5 miles 5 A moderate walk, with c600ft of Terrain: Deacon D 4 Hill 7 C ascent over its length. No stiles. Old Wellbury There is a more strenuous

option which adds an extra Pegsdon Hills E 160ft of ascent & Hoo Bit Icknield Way Nature Reserve Maps: OS Explorer 193 and New Wellbury Chiltern Society 26 Refreshments: None on the walk, Wellbury 8 House pub at start and finish! North 0 0.5 1km Route 0 ½ mile From the pub entrance in Pegsdon Way, turn Here there are two options. For the more Beattie. The Wildlife Trust has reminded us that right up to the road junction. strenuous option go to description after point 9. there is livestock on their Reserve at Pegsdon 1. Turn left on the Chiltern Way Extension 7. From the information board go left through all year round; signs are posted round the site towards Pegsdon Common Farm. Just after a gate and then right up the often muddy giving instructions to protect animals and aid conservation management. the lane bends to the left, turn right uphill Icknield Way. Climb steadily for about 3/4 mile on a path between fields. Go through the and then go right through a wooden kissing A Pegsdon: A small hamlet, which is part of hedgerow and then up the steps ahead. gate and into Pegsdon Hills Nature Reserve. Shillingdon parish. At the time of Domesday it belonged to Ramsay Abbey and was worth Follow the path to the right of a wood and a Walk straight ahead past the information 8. ten hides. field to the top of the hill. board on a wide path that runs to the left B Knocking Hoe: A National Nature Reserve 2. Here, turn left on a wide grassy strip between of a small wood. Ignore the wooden gate which contains large populations of rare fields and continue on this undulating path. At on the right and continue to the next one. plants. These include such chalk downland the end of the field turn right uphill on a wide Go through it and turn right. The path then varieties as rock rose, dwarf thistle, clustered path. At the top go past, but not through, the descends by the edge of a dry valley. Stay in bellflower, lady’s tresses and hoary plantain. entrance to Knocking Hoe Nature Reserve and the same direction through two further gates There are also large populations of pasque- then straight on past a farm gate to a crossing and then all the way down to the last gate by flower, fleawort, burnt-tip orchid, and the very bridleway. Turn left along it for just over 100 the main road. Taking care, cross over to a rare spotted catsear and moon carrot. yards, then bear left and follow the bridleway lane. Turn right, and at the junction turn left. C The Icknield Way: One of Britain’s most for about half a mile. 9. Walk along the lane and then turn right on important ancient tracks, said to be the oldest 3. Turn right on The Chiltern Way Extension Pegsdon Way to finish the walk. road in Britain. It pre-dates the Romans and and stay in the same direction along the left For the more strenuous route: may have extended from Norfolk all the way down to the Devon coast. hand edge of a field, past a wood on the right Go past the information board and into the and then straight uphill to a wooden gate. Go next field. Turn right to climb to the trig point D Deacon Hill: A Site of Special Scientific Interest and a fine example of chalk downland. through it and ahead to a gate and a road. Go at the top of Deacon Hill. Follow the ridge On the slopes there are medieval cultivation left along the path by the side of the road and around to the left and, without losing much terraces, known as strip lynchets. after a few steps cross it, taking extreme care. height, continue to a wooden kissing gate at the E Pegsdon Hills and Hoo Bit Nature Reserves: Take the wide grassy track ahead for just over entrance to Pegsdon Hills Nature Reserve. Go Part of the Deacon Hill SSSI, they belong 200 yards. through it and follow the track as it contours to the Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire and 4. At a junction of tracks turn directly right round the hill. The path drops down to the Northamptonshire Wildlife Trust. They are towards the middle of a copse. Go through head of a dry valley and then climbs steeply one of the jewels of the Chilterns AONB and the middle of it and then straight across a to a wooden kissing gate just after the top. Go have some of the most stunning views in field to a lane. Turn right and walk along to the through it, then bear half left to the information the area. Look out for birds such as buzzard, main road. board by the gate at point 8 (above). fieldfare, grey partridge, lapwing, meadow 5. Turn left along the path at the road edge and pipit, redwing, skylark, turtle dove, wheatear continue to a small parking area. History and and yellowhammer. You may also see brown 6. Ahead is the ancient Icknield Way Trail. Do argus, dark green fritillary, green hairstreak not go along it, but look for a wooden kissing Points of Interest and small heath butterflies, and glow-worms, as well as plants like autumn gentian, fragrant gate to the right. Go through it into a field and The walk goes through a number of important orchid, milkwort, rock rose, common spotted then follow its left hand edge as it runs parallel wildlife sites and has stunning views. Part of it is orchid, cowslip, eyebright, harebell and wild to the Trail. At the end of the field, stop and featured in the book Wild Flowers and Where to thyme. study the Natural England information board. Find Them in The Chilterns by Gay

The Chiltern Society is a local charity with 6,800 members. It is one of the largest environmental groups in England directly associated with the conservation of some of the country's finest protected landscapes. The objective of the charity is to care for the Chilterns, to encourage people to explore this beautiful landscape and to conserve it for future generations. It has over 400 active volunteers who protect the Chilterns' heritage landscapes, buildings and rivers, maintain Chiltern footpaths and bridleways, publish footpath maps, lead walks, cycle rides and photographic trips, and do conservation work on ponds , commons and woodland. For details of the charity’s work and its programme of walks, cycle rides and conservation groups open to all www.chilternsociety.org 01494 771250