Character Farm Cottages Langton Herring Weymouth

Weymouth is an absolute haven for anyone looking for a walking holiday in Dorset. We had the immense pleasure of staying at Character Farm Cottages Langton Herring, just outside of Weymouth, which was off-the-beaten-track enough to enjoy a truly rural retreat but only 15 minutes or so drive to all of the main sightseeing attractions and walking routes.

Hardys Monument Dorchester

An enjoyable 8 mile circular Dorset walk from Martinstown near Dorchester to Hardys Monument walking route and Maiden Castle.

Langton Herring Walking Route

Easy 3 mile circular Langton Herring Walking Route from Lower Farm Cottages to the Fleet Lagoon Nature Reserve and back via the Elm Tree Inn.

Abbotsbury Walking Route

This is an 8 mile circular walking route from our base at Lower Farm Cottages in Langton Herring near Weymouth up to Abbotsbury and a good look around Abbey Barn and Tythe, St Catherines Chapel and St Peters Abbey before heading back along the various Dorset country lanes to Langton Herring.

1. South Downs National Park Walks

Walking in the South Downs is incredibly easy – with a series of new walking and cycling leaflets that show routes for walking and cycling that are designed to link up to public transport in and around the park. The South Downs National Park has over 3,000 kilometres of Rights of Way for you to walk on. With the South Downs Way, a National Trail stretching the entire length of the National Park, as well as many Country Parks, woodlands and other countryside sites there are routes to suit everyone.

2. Top 5 Northamptonshire Walks

Includes Brixworth Walk Northamptonshire, Castle Ashby Walk Northamptonshire, Cottesbrooke Hall and Gardens, Northampton Walk, Whilton Locks Walk Northamptonshire and Winwick Walk Northamptonshire all accessible from the centre of Northampton.

3. Discover Hatfield Forest

Hatfield Forest is one of the best areas to visit in the UK for ancient trees and meadows of a Medieval Royal Hunting Lodge and is situated in Takeley, Bishop’s Stortford on the borders of Hertfordshire and Essex. Hatfield Forest is free to visit although if you park in the car park there is a small charge.

As with nearby Epping Forest, if you are lucky you will get to see fallow deer grazing amongst this historical and ecologically important Site of Specific Scientific Interest and National Nature Reserve. Hatfield Forest covers around 400 hectares of ancient woodland, grassland and magnificent pollarded trees, along with 2 ornamental lakes, stream and marsh and a unique 18th century Georgian Shell House decorated with all kinds of flints and shells.

There are activities for the family all year round and it’s the perfect place to take children. You can pick up a leaflet from the car park or shop which includes 2 walking routes of roughly the same length, at just over 1.75 miles; the Forest Walk and the Tree Walk. If you’re looking for something a little longer then you can try this Hatfield Forest Walk that I completed with the family a few weeks ago or even this 7 mile Hatfield Forest Walk I found on Google Maps. For the latest membership offers you can visit the National Trust here.

4. Cotton Traders Walking Guide

Here’s a recommended bunch of walks from Cotton Traders and their best walks for the weekend and if you suffer from sore feet then you might want to try these SOLE Insulated Response Footbeds

Autumn To Winter Epping Forest Walks

Epping Forest is amazing all year round but autumn walks in Epping Forest are particularly wonderful with the vibrant green, brown and golden colours in this ancient and very well maintained woodland. The autumn to winter period also gives better visibility through the denser areas for spotting the Fallow Deer when going on long walks in Epping Forest.

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Hertfordshire Walks Hatfield Forest Walks

Hatfield Forest is the perfect area to visit to explore ancient trees and meadows of a Medieval Royal Hunting Forest, and is owned and operated by the National Trust. This is a great place in Hertfordshire for walks and has a few way marked walking routes that are easy to follow, both of which are quite an easy 1.7 miles long. Hatfield Forest is at the end of the Forest Way from Epping Forest and also sits along a section of the Flitch Way, 5 minutes from the M11 in Takely, Bishops Stortford.

Get the full route here.

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Epping Forest Bell Common Walking Route

The general idea for today was to go back out to Cobbins Brook, where I saw some of the Epping Forest Fallow Deer a few weeks ago, and take the Canon EOS 100D camera with me to test it out again and get some good pictures.

I started at Epping Forest London Underground Station and headed up to the High Road at Bell Common before joining the yellow Essex Ramblers Way Markers to Copped Hall where I walked up to Cobbins Brook and back. This walk took me just over 2 hours and covered just over 6 miles.

Find the full walking route here Epping Forest Bell Common Walking Route

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Another interesting place to walk is Westonbirt.

Here is a selection of the Westonbirt Arboretum Walks that are available in the autumn as well as some lovely photographs of what their trees look like.

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Scotland Walks

Walks in the Cairngorms Scotland – A midsummer walk up Carn Ban Mor by Jo Woolf, freelance writer and editor with a lifelong interest in the natural world. More here http://www.walksandwalking.com/

Autumn Winter Walking Festivals 2013

September is the last big month in the walking festival calendar so here is a list of ones you can still attend this weekend as well as the others that are happening this autumn and winter. I found this list on the ViewRanger website and it also shows all of the walking festivals for 2013 so while you’ve missed most of them you can check all the links here to start planning for next year. You don’t need a walking festival to get outdoors and walk your favourite routes, like I have done with my Epping Forest walks, but if you like the company then why not try out some of these ones. You can view all of my ViewRanger walks here.

National Trust Top 10 Secret Walks

Walks And Walking – National Trust Top 10 Secret Walks – Amazing walks only accessible by foot recently made available to the public by the National Trust. Each one of the National Trust Top 10 Secret Walks can only be accessed by foot. I often find the best hidden treasures on any walking route take a little bit of effort to get to. The list has been carefully selected by National Trust experts who wanted to showcase walks that offered a unique experience whether a hidden viewpoint, newly accessible coastal paths or the story of an old legend to encourage walkers to explore and share the many special places the National Trust looks after. Read more here National Trust Top 10 Secret Walks

Walk London Autumn Ambles Walking Weekend – The Walk London Autumn Ambles Walking Weekend is an annual walking event in London that includes 36 unique walking routes over a 2 day period. This year the Walk London Autumn Ambles Walking Weekend is on Saturday 28th and Sunday 29th September 2013. More here Walk London Autumn Ambles Walking Weekend

Looking for more walks? Try this one: Bell Common Walk. One of my recent Essex Walks – A 6 mile circular walking route in Epping Forest to Bell Common from Epping Station.

National Trust Top 10 Secret Walks

Walks And Walking – National Trust Top 10 Secret Walks – Amazing walks only accessible by foot recently made available to the public by the National Trust. Read more here National Trust Top 10 Secret Walks

Each one of the National Trust top 10 secret walks can only be accessed by foot. I often find the best hidden treasures on any walking route take a little bit of effort to get to. The list has been carefully selected by National Trust experts who wanted to showcase walks that offered a unique experience whether a hidden viewpoint, newly accessible coastal paths or the story of an old legend to encourage walkers to explore and share the many special places the National Trust looks after.

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By David Knockton
Walks And Walking
@WalksAndWalking