Wendover Circular: A Walk In The Chilterns AONB

As we were training for our trip to the Lake District, one of my friends and I decided to go on a long day hike every weekend leading to the holidays. This is how we ended up on a rainy day on a 17 miles (27km) walk from Wendover in the Chiltern AONB. As much as this walk takes you up and down hills, it did not help in any shape or form to train me for Scafell Pike ascension, where I failed miserably and had to turn around – but that is a story for another post.

Logistics for Wendover walk

Distance: 17 miles (27km)
Ascent: 460 m
Walking estimate: 7 hours and 45 minutes
Difficulty: Intermediate
How to get there: Trains from Marylebone Station
What to pack: Comfortable clothing and footwear, waterproof jacket and over-trouser, water (2 litres recommended)

Highlights of the Wendover walk

Chilterns Hills
Wendover village
Ellesborough village
Hampden House
Great Missenden village

Wendover Circular walk

Start of walk

The Chilterns are a chalk escarpment of 660 square miles (1709km²) stretching from Oxfordshire to Buckinghamshire. The tallest point is Handling Hill (267m). The Chilterns are designated as an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. The walk in the Chilterns Hills starts in the market town of Wendover, 35 miles (56km) from London, accessible by train from Marylebone Station (approximately a 45-minute journey).

Ellesborough village

We get straight onto the scenic hills and under the rain that day. We encounter horses and ponies as we walk across the fields towards Ellesborough. We then stop at St Peter & St Paul Church nested at the top of a hill in Ellesborough village.

St Peter & St Paul Church, Elleborough — St Peter and St Paul Church, Ellesborough

Woods and cornfields

After we leave the Church, we then come back down to the fields and walk alongside Whorley Wood and Maple Wood. We enter Chirley Wood and follow the trail to Little Hampden, then we walk across cornfields until we reach Great Hampden.

Hampden

We walk past the Hampden House. This country house was named after the Hampden family who continuously lived on the property until 1938. King Edward III and the Black Prince are said to have stayed at the house. Nowadays, the house is a wedding venue.

Great Missenden

We continue our walk towards Great Missenden and meet some sheep on our way. The affluent village is well known to have been the house of the late Roald Dahl, author of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and Matilda. He lived there from 1954 until he passed away in 1990.

Back to Wendover

We then start to walk back to Wendover. We pass through Hampdenleaf Wood and the village of Dunsmore before reaching our final destination. Exhausted from this long and challenging walk, we jump on a train back to London.