12 out of the station on a sunny and very warm day. The group stuck mostly together until the White Horse where a few decided to test the leftovers from last week’s beer and ale festival. The ales proved too much for one of the walkers who needed to regain their balance. The ale group caught up with three others just before diverting to Blackwood Arms for lunch, where later they were joined by two picnickers. Three others arrived earlier already. Lunch arrived relatively quickly and got generally good reviews with one from the ale group personally thanking the chef. Four planned to walk back to Gerard’s Cross, scouting a new route, while five intrepid ale drinkers marched on to a Cookham. After a long stretch in the sun we arrived at Cookham where some confusion about train times and a no-show bus meant the group took a train one hour later than planned. But that created just a perfect opportunity for some to enjoy cake and tea and others some cold lemonade. Off we got on a local train and later home from Maidenhead.

Group cohesion factor: 3 out of 10. Weather: hot and sunny. Flora and fauna report: A lot of sweet blackberries; heather in bloom; one cute kitten on a train and multiple horses with foals throughout the walk.

Future walkers please call lunch places ahead as some appear closed.

12 hot and sunny

As one of three picnickers on today's walk, I can confirm that the Jolly Woodman is no more. All references to it should therefore be removed or walkers should be warned that it is permanently closed.

I updated the on-line, written directions with news of the closure of the Jolly Woodman before this walk took place !

Sigh apologies for not spottting the updates. In my defence, I did check their website beforehand. This hasn’t been closed and still gives the impression they are alive and well. So if anyone deserves a spell on the naughty step , it’s them.

10 of us got the Bicester Village Express at 10.06 and 2 got the next one and caught us up (though not till after the drinks stop), so a very cheerful 12 on this walk. The weather was cheerful too, at least initially: sunny to start , then cloudy: not raining till we were safe in the pub at the end.

The sun was still out when we stopped in Hedgerley churchyard to toast the New Year. Here there was a battle of the champagne bottles, almost everyone producing at least one. In the end we deferred to our walk poster and drunk the two he had brought. A bottle of sloe gin also slipped in under the radar. But the top salesperson of the day was the supplier of a truly heroic amount of very delicious homemade Romanian cake, all of which eventually found a home.

Two melted away at this point, presumably walking back to Gerrards Cross. The rest of us splashed on through sometimes waterlogged woods and fields, generally enjoying being out and about, and having happy chat about this and that. We had a last little paddle in the final field before Cookham and got to the King’s Arms at about 2.45pm.

Four went straight to the station. Five of us had a cosy meal and one had his trademark cider and chips (the rustic chunky ones, not the posh parmesan ones…). Two got the 4.13 train and four of us lingered over coffees to get the 5.35. More alcohol was produced on this, which yours truly drank a little of, just to be polite you understand….

Chaos at Marylebone with no ticket machines working so big queues . 5 still reached Gerrard’s Cross at the appointed time. 3 sped off 2, slightly slower, held back to let a 6 th late starter catch up. The front 3 weren’t seen again. A hot sunny day

The back 3 succumbed to temptation and stopped at the White Horse. (The excuse being that we could let any more late starters catch up. Not that we’d have seen them behind the hedge but hey ho). Readers, the beer was good. Especially the porter. Can definitely recommend it as a stop. We didn’t linger long, though, we were soon off again. Didn’t do the detour. After a picnic in Egypt Wood, the next stop was the Woodnan (hic) where the choice was more prosaic. Then on to Cookham. We stopped again at the Swan Uppers (hic hic).

There was some talk of the walk being posted in reverse with the White Horse being a late lunch or early tea stop. But I don’t know, do I?

Hi Ian - glad you had a good day on Sunday.

As I am one of the main "Backwards Walking " researchers / promoters in the SWC, I can advise there is no merit in doing this walk in reverse. Whilst the White Horse pub in Hedgerley makes for a very pleasant Elevenses stop, the two pubs on Littleworth Common are good, particularly the atmospheric Blackwood Arms . And methinks finishing the walk by the River Thames in Cookham is much nicer than concluding the walk at Gerrards Cross railway station !

Ooh! You could make some Gerrards very cross! One of our number spoke of an experimental figure of eight that had included somewhere near GC station. But it’s not my axe and I’m not going to grind it. Happy with the existing direction.

8 on a sunny day. Firm underfoot, apart from a mysteriously gloopy stretch along a fenced-in path. Snowdrops out in force, especially in the churchyards.

Just the basic walk today - no stop at the White Horse, no deeper delve into Burnham Beeches. But we did see a field full of little baby lambies. And their mummies.

The Woodman was fine. From there, one of our number sped on to get the 15:16. The rest of us had just entered Cookham by then. What to do for an hour? Some of us ended up in the Swan Uppers where Mr Tiger had the unenviable task of explaining swan-upping to an overseas visitor. He gave it his best shot.

My ultra-sensitive listening station has picked up a communication regarding this walk.

“ 3 walkers alighted from the 10.13 train from Marylebone. The weather was Sunny with some cloud cover After very quick introductions we got walking to the White Horse where, would you believe it, a beer festival was taking place (Moon Tiger what did you miss)! We had to pause so one walker indulged himself and had a pint of Porter (7.2%) whilst the other two satisfied themselves with a soft drink.

Fortified and lubricated, onward we walked to lunch at the Jolly Woodman, arriving at 13.15, where a good meal (and beer) was had by all. At about 14.30, luncheon over, we walked onward to Cookham where we all had tea and cake before boarding the 17.32 to Maidenhead and then by Elizabeth Line to Paddington.”

Detour to Burnham Beeches now incorporated in to the on-line Walk Directions.

Intend going

Hope to make walk. Weather looks to improve. However, if it doesn't the White Horse Hedgerly usually has enough beers to keep the weather nice and relaxing.

16 set off in changeable weather, mostly sunny with occasional short showers About 7 went for the detour. It was agreed to be worth doing, even if the directions need a few tweaks.

About 7 stopped at the Blackwood Arms for lunch. There were favourable reports. Another 4 stopped at the Jolly Woodman where they also liked what they got. The Jolly Woodman was only accepting cash. Someone had spilt some drink in the server or something. It has to be said that 3 of the “Woodman 4” were already a bit jolly, having paid an extended visit to the White Horse. The two factions combined for the final push to Cookham. Near the end, I had arranged for a local farmer to plough a field to provide a little more texture to the walk. This worked a treat. It’s a long time since there was so much boot kicking and scraping at walk’s end. We arrived in Cookham too late to make the 16:15. At least 2 went in the museum. A sizeable number congregated in the Crown – a pub with no beer! Most had tea. 2 had cider. Most got the 17.32. No sign of the churchyard snake.

8 turned up on a mostly cloudy occasionally rainy day. An attempt to divide into 2 staggered groups of 4 was only partly successful. 6 shot off leaving just 2 behind. This later settled into 5, 2 and one slow one. 3 ate at the Woodman. Lots of conkers. Saw an old man collecting them –claimed they were for his daughter to ward off spiders. (What does she do? Throw them at them?) Not known if the faster ones stopped anywhere in Cookham. The slower 2 got the 4:15.

Another good Wednesday turnout, 12 today , for this pleasant walk which started in Buckinghamshire and ended in Berkshire by the River Thames in Cookham. Along the way we experienced a varied landscape which added to the enjoyment of the walk. Some snowdrops and patches of primroses were seen, plus some small pink jobbies.

It was sunny for most of the day , on the chilly side when in the breeze and in the shade, but otherwise near perfect winter walking conditions. So far this year the weather gods have shone on us for my mid-week walk postings - but will it last ?

We encountered our first splodge of serious mud at the entrance to Bulstrode Park. Mudlarks would have taken delight in wading through it. Thereafter mud levels in the morning were as to be expected on this walk in January - manageable, and never spoiling the walk.

Five of us dined at the Jolly Woodman. One went for a pint at the Blackwood Arms. The staff at the Woodman made us welcome - they were quite jolly - and we enjoyed some classic pub-grub meals. At least four of the seven sandwichers joined us for a drink. Four of them set off first on the afternoon leg of the walk, leaving eight of us to follow on some thirty minutes later. One section of the route on the Beeches Way before Woolman's Wood was challenging as we did our best to get around flooded and muddy sections, at times climbing under, over, oops upside-down barbed wire fences to avoid the worst of the mud. Once through it, the going was easy as we descended the pleasant woodland track to the level with St Nicholas church perched on the hill above us. Then on into Cookham, where we said goodbye to our long-distance voyageur, who gamely set off alone on the riverside path to Maidenhead. I hope he did not find the path flooded along the way. The rest of us either stopped for tea in the town or picked up takeaways by the railway station. We met up with the sandwicher advance party in Cookham and all eleven us boarded the 16-15 hrs train at the station, having enjoyed another SWC mid-week adventure.

The little pink jobs were cyclamens, if anyone is interested.

Thanks Marcus, great walk.

Intend to do the Gerrards Cross to Cookham to clear the cobwebs - will aim to bring "refreshments"

Am looking forward to it, and am bringing some sausages ! Should I take my own glass for the champers or will they be provided ?

10 on this walk, 8 on the specified train and 2 a bit later, though not so late that they missed the champagne stop, which took place in a churchyard. Despite our relative lack of numbers we managed to put away three bottles, as well as a large box of freshly cooked sausages. Thanks to Marcus, as ever, for lugging two of the bottles, Joe for the third, and Gabriella for the sausages. Thanks too to the various locals who reacted with equanimity to our roistering amId the tombstones.

The weather was perfect for a New Year’s Day walk - fairly sunny , ie sunny when it mattered, even if it was cloudy at times. Birds sang, green shoots thrust up through the leaf litter, and the ground was fairly dry underfoot. One could be fooled into thinking spring was around the corner.

Did anyone do the late start circular walk? If so, we never met up with them. Instead eight of us sat at a table for 14 in the King’s Arms in Cookham (thanks again to Marcus for laying out a sizeable advance deposit to secure this) and had a pleasant late lunch.

When we emerged at 4pm, the sky was still light. For four of us this proved irresistible and we set off to walk the four miles and a bit to Marlow. Our reward was a glorious dusk over the Thames (see the SWC Facebook page) and a nice ending in the gathering dark. After tea at the Marlow Donkey we got the 6.17 back to daily life.

21 walkers set off from Gerrards Cross on a lovely sunny day for walking . The conditions underfoot were very good, the late autumn colours glorious. The Jolly Woodman in Dropmore was the chosen lunch stop, where the food was plentiful and the reception friendly. A few of the walkers left the pub early enough to catch the 3.21 train from Cookham, where we met a group of ramblers and one fast walker from the Langley to Cookham walk. There was a problem with the directions immediately after lunch. It is unnecessary to turn left at the Parish church of St Anne, since doing so means walking three sides of a rectangle. It is much simpler and less anxiety-inducing to continue along the lane past the church and, on reaching the main road, cross over and turn left, soon reaching the Beeches Way signposted footpath.

bit later train nice one Sean! thanks

4 started this walk one did a short version 3 completed the full walk on a beautiful day with lovely woods and walk along the Thames in the afternoon.

4

I see there are two walks planned for Sunday 22nd Jan. I would like to know if anyone is going on either walk so I'm not alone.

Jo

I plan on doing this one

I plan on doing the Burnham Beeches one ending at the Stanley Spencer gallery

It's going to be a beatiful sunny day

Do come I don't want to be alone either !

15 plus one (well-behaved) dog (Max). Weather cold dry sunny A frost persisted all day and any available mud was frozen.

The group split for lunch, some going to the Blackwood Arms and others to the Jolly Woodman. I overheard one rave review for the former. And so on to Cookham.

A good day out, the only downside being the non-arrival of the 16:16. It disappeared off the indicators without explanation. It did eventually show up, after a worrying 10 mins at below zero temperatures, just in time for us to miss the connection at Maidenhead. :(

Just to add insult to injury, correct me if I"m wrong but I don't think the Marylebone ticket office will sell you the ticket for the return journey. They only look after their own.You either have to get it in advance or remember to buy it at Cookham from a machine. Certainly was the case unless someone's banged some sense into them by now.

9 on this walk, one of whom caught us at lunch having caught the stopping train. Hope no one else was confused by this - it was the 9.43 to Banbury stopping at Gerrard's Cross, not the 9.46 all stations to Gerrard's Cross (which I did not know about).

A nice easy walk in the woods. Not over-muddy at all, though enough somehow got onto our boots and trousers to make it look as if we had been through the Battle of the Somme. The Jolly Woodman was cosy and empty - one reason for the latter might have been the unsmiling staff and so-so food: next time we will try one of the other pubs. The weather was nothing like as bad as expected with some sunny intervals after midday - ie not much wind and only three very brief and light showers (one with some hail). The tea room in Cookham was as cheerful as the lunch pub was not and begged us NOT to remove our boots.

Six of us comtinued after tea to Bourne End, five going on to Marlow. It was a bit slippy on the Thames Path but the sun increasingly came out (shining straight in our faces, but you can't have everything). We had a drink in the Donkey and caught the 6pm train, suitably satisfied with our exertions.

Is anyone planning to go on this walk?

I am planning to go, but need someone to be on the walk with a print out of the walking directions. Printer out of action again!

Weather doesn't look at all bad, so I'm planning to go

I plan to go.

7 weather cloudy but mild . Attractive walk mainly along woodland trails. Very little mud and recent dry weather meant we waded through drifts of fallen leaves Excellent lunch at the Jolly Woodman but good reports from those who had a drink at the Blackwood Arms. We did not linger in Cookham but it is worth noting that there is now a Costa Coffee just 40m beyond the station level crossing.

dratted tube strike ! anyone braving this walk tomorrow?

intend going

I cant do any of these walks with the tube strike so I am going to do something along my train line instead (probably Sevenoaks or Haslemere)

Am going with Kingston Ramblers from Twickenham station leaving 10.45am to Hayes and Harlington. If these strikes continue to disrupt our walks there are a number of lead walks organised by walking groups to choose from that may suit.

5 overcast with sunny spells and a few drops of rain before lunch

4 walkers off the train, 1 had arrived by car (and left us after lunch to re-trace her steps to the car). mostly fine walk, if a little high on the tarmac count. the directions held up well. the morning talk seemed to be all about Bridge, as three walkers are active club players, while 1 other walker got on with reading the directions...

lunch stop at The Jolly Woodman, 2/3 into the walk; of average quality, but probably value for money, at a nice outside table, surrounded by the highest number of plant hangers and pots ever seen at a pub (and quite a few bees and wasps, inevitably).

15.21 train, home at half four!

If had known you were going to curtail walk and get an early train I would have gone!!

Maybe communication the night before would be good idea in such circumstances ?

well, we didn't curtail the walk. just walked the normal route, at normal pace, with a normal length stay at the pub. but we skipped tea in light of every1 getting home in time. 15.5 km does not a long walk make...

I see on the gpx files that we can do both walks (40 + 24) fully, which makes a 20ml one in the end. Tempting indeed.