Stroll, anyone? If you'd rather embrace the changing season rather than escape it, head out on one of these great British autumn walks Sunday Times, 21/9/2008
The ‘hangers’ are alight. It’s as if Bonfire Night has come a week early to these steep wooded scarps which run between Alton and Petersfield. Hampshire, England - not New Hampshire, New England, mind – on one of the very last days of October, and the local autumn colours are proving every inch a match for those of the much-vaunted American fall. Leaf peeping. So what if our transatlantic cousins invented the term? The fact is we Brits were admiring the autumn foliage of our own fine woods before our then-future colony even showed as a glint from the crow’s nest of the Mayflower. We knew then, just as we do now, that there’s nothing like sticking two fingers up at approaching winter by glorying in autumn’s lemon yellows, russets, oranges and reds. And what better way than on an invigorating walk?
Timing is important to catch the show at its autumn peak. You have to factor in location, with Scottish uplands turning well before southern lowlands, as well as the weather. Remember, too, the tree sequence; horse chestnuts open the show while ash trees tend to bring down the curtain. And just as there are let-downs like the scruffy sycamore, so there are also star turns, none more so than the beech. Which is what has brought me to the splendid beechwoods along the Hangers Way. I’m off on a long walk along the main stretch of this 21-mile waymarked trail – commuter country’s best kept secret – that runs south of the M3 towards the South Downs.
What this undulating trail does so well is to follow the seam where rising woods meet rolling farmland, which means that rather than choose between woodland scenes or great open views you simply have to turn your head. And the pick of the seasons is the autumn. It was, after all, a day like this in nearby Winchester – still, bright, touched with chill - that inspired John Keats to pen To Autumn. And as I pass leaf-littered ponds, oast houses, old hop orchards and woods all bright with their god-given golden bunting, I confess I’m all oded up. The dappled Oakhanger stream leads me past the church and into the village of Selborne, home to another great champion of natural Britain.
The rambling house of eighteenth-century naturalist-parson Gilbert White, lying right on the Hangers Way, proves the perfect contemplative stop. I take in the original manuscripts, family portraits and cases containing study specimens in the period furnished rooms. I wander the extensive gardens and admire the surrounding hangers of beech, ‘the loveliest of all forest trees’ in White’s considered judgement. Then, after refuelling on warming soup, nourishing date and walnut slice, and slaking pots of tea at what one visitor describes as the house’s ‘proper English tea shop’, it is time to push on.
Noar Hill, which lost its high woods to the Great Storm of 1987, rises ahead of me. Many trees still lie where they have fallen, their vertical bases hemming the path with walls of soil and root. Twenty years on, however, it feels less like a tragedy than part of the natural process, with a new generation of trees rising to plug the canopy holes. All around, vigorous saplings celebrate their first two decades with a rare display of sun-dappled rust and gold.
The light is weak by the time I climb Shoulder of Mutton Hill, with its memorial to the poet Edward Thomas who also loved these wooded chalk hills. A fox leads the way down to Lutcombe Bottom before its own tones melt into the foliage. A chill wind plucks a cloud of brittle leaves and sends them fluttering past the village church at Steep. I stop to admire the mountain of wooden palettes which awaits November 5th in the field opposite.
‘Want it for the Tate?’ a villager asks. I agree it would make quite a display. But not like the one I’ve been enjoying all day.
Jeremy Seal
Hangers Way runs from Alton Railway Station to the Queen Elizabeth Country Park, Petersfield.
A route leaflet and transport information is available at Petersfield Tourist Information Centre (01730 268829), or at www3.hants.gov.uk/walking/longdistance/hangers-way.htm. It is covered by Explorer O/S maps 133 and 120.
Gilbert White’s House (01420 511275; www.gilbertwhiteshouse.org.uk, £6.50) open 11-5 Tues-Sun, with the tea parlour from 11-4.30pm.
BEST WALKS IN THE AUTUMN WOODS
Internationally famous Burnham Beeches, Buckinghamshire (01753 647358, www.cityoflondon.gov.uk; ED; AWAITING SPECIAL URL FOR THIS) is a 540-acre site of ancient pollarded beech and oak trees, with grazing populations of cattle, pigs, sheep and ponies. Download a route map and instructions for the 5-mile circular Historical Trail at the website or pick up a leaflet at the information point next to Beeches Café (both open daily 10am-dusk). Free, but donation machines in the car park.
Perthshire is home to some of Scotland’s finest woodlands, especially on the 4-mile Pass of Killiecrankie walk (www.perthshirebigtreecountry.co.uk/index.asp?pg=27). Follow the green waymarks from the Killiecrankie Visitor Centre (open till end October, bus from Pitlochry), for a stunning descent through oak woods to the River Garry. The wooded riverside trail leads to stands of mountain-backed birch, rowan, alder, ash and aspen fringing Loch Faskally before finishing at Pitlochry. Or extend along the 11-mile circular Bealach walk which brings you back to Killiecrankie. ‘Pitlochry Walks’ leaflet and autumn colour updates available from Pitlochry Tourist Information (01796 472215, 10-4 daily except Sundays).
The 11-mile circular Derwent Valley Walk follows a clearly marked route round the shores of the famous ‘Dambuster’ reservoirs against a spectacular backdrop of heather moorland and mixed woodlands of beech, rowan, silver birch, spruce and sessile oak. Look out for ravens, rare crossbills and even ospreys. The walk starts at Fairholmes where you can pick up a free walk leaflet and check out the Dambuster display at the information centre (01433 650953, open 9.30-5.30 daily to the end of October and 10.30-3.30 in November). There’s also a (weather-dependent) refreshment stand and a free walk leaflet.
The National Trust’s recommended walk for October – details, with a downloadable map at www.nationaltrust.org.uk/walks2008; 01442 851227 – is a family-friendly 2-mile stroll on the Ashridge Estate, Hertfordshire. The walk takes in the best of the Chilterns famed beech and oak woods, with possible sightings of red kites and the annual deer rut. Open all year, with tea room open daily 10-5.
The grounds of Hafod Uchtryd (01974 282568, www.hafod.org/walks.html), landscaped in the Picturesque style in the 18th century, occupy 200 acres of the Ystwyth Valley near Aberyswyth. There are many huge beeches, red oaks and larches, and several of the original walking ‘circuits’ have been restored in recent years. The walks are signed from the church car park, with map leaflets (2 x £1) available from the dispensing machine. The 4-mile Gentleman’s Walk passes through a variety of treescapes but also climbs to offer great views over the valley.
The 4-mile circular Dove Crag walk (www.forestry.gov.uk/northeastengland) at Holystone in Northumberland National Park follows the red waymarks through oak woodland – look out for red squirrels - before rising to moorland with scattered oak and birchwoods, and the golden yellow needle display of the larches, the only conifer to ‘turn’. The upland crags are great for views over the woodlands and for sighting birds of preys.
The 6-mile circular Woodpecker Trail (www.forestry.gov.uk/salceyforest) follows the edge of Northamptonshire’s Salcey Forest, a rare remnant of medieval hunting forest known for its ancient ‘druid’ oaks and its beeches. A series of trail-side art sculptures have recently been installed and a short diversion off the trail leads to the Tree Top Way, a recent oak-built 500-metre walkway which allows visitors to enjoy the colours 20 metres up in the canopy. Open daily 7am–dusk, with a £2 parking charge. Café open daily 10am-4pm. Free walk leaflet available on site.
Somerset’s 36-mile Coleridge Way (www.coleridgeway.co.uk for transport information, downloadable instructions and route maps) traces the poet’s wanderings across the woodland-rich Quantocks and Exmoor. Particularly impressive is the 10-mile section from Wheddon Cross to Porlock, with the wonderful dells and combes of Blagdon Wood giving way to fabulous views from the moorland heights of Dunkery Hill. The walk finishes with a long and lovely descent through oaks and beech avenues to Porlock.
The Cotswold escarpment is famed for its beech trees, particularly along the 7-mile Kings Stanley-Dursley section of the Cotswold Way (www.nationaltrail.co.uk, with information on the route and available public transport). Extensive stretches of beechwood give way to magnificent view points over the Severn Vale to Wales, particularly at Coaley Peak and Cam Long Down. Finish with a refreshing glass at Dursley’s Old Spot Inn (01453 542870, www.oldspotinn.co.uk), CAMRA’s real ale pub of the year 2007.
For the latest on the state of autumn colours across the UK, visit www.woodland-trust.org.uk/woods/autumnwoodsindex.htm.
Timing is important to catch the show at its autumn peak. You have to factor in location, with Scottish uplands turning well before southern lowlands, as well as the weather. Remember, too, the tree sequence; horse chestnuts open the show while ash trees tend to bring down the curtain. And just as there are let-downs like the scruffy sycamore, so there are also star turns, none more so than the beech. Which is what has brought me to the splendid beechwoods along the Hangers Way. I’m off on a long walk along the main stretch of this 21-mile waymarked trail – commuter country’s best kept secret – that runs south of the M3 towards the South Downs.
What this undulating trail does so well is to follow the seam where rising woods meet rolling farmland, which means that rather than choose between woodland scenes or great open views you simply have to turn your head. And the pick of the seasons is the autumn. It was, after all, a day like this in nearby Winchester – still, bright, touched with chill - that inspired John Keats to pen To Autumn. And as I pass leaf-littered ponds, oast houses, old hop orchards and woods all bright with their god-given golden bunting, I confess I’m all oded up. The dappled Oakhanger stream leads me past the church and into the village of Selborne, home to another great champion of natural Britain.
The rambling house of eighteenth-century naturalist-parson Gilbert White, lying right on the Hangers Way, proves the perfect contemplative stop. I take in the original manuscripts, family portraits and cases containing study specimens in the period furnished rooms. I wander the extensive gardens and admire the surrounding hangers of beech, ‘the loveliest of all forest trees’ in White’s considered judgement. Then, after refuelling on warming soup, nourishing date and walnut slice, and slaking pots of tea at what one visitor describes as the house’s ‘proper English tea shop’, it is time to push on.
Noar Hill, which lost its high woods to the Great Storm of 1987, rises ahead of me. Many trees still lie where they have fallen, their vertical bases hemming the path with walls of soil and root. Twenty years on, however, it feels less like a tragedy than part of the natural process, with a new generation of trees rising to plug the canopy holes. All around, vigorous saplings celebrate their first two decades with a rare display of sun-dappled rust and gold.
The light is weak by the time I climb Shoulder of Mutton Hill, with its memorial to the poet Edward Thomas who also loved these wooded chalk hills. A fox leads the way down to Lutcombe Bottom before its own tones melt into the foliage. A chill wind plucks a cloud of brittle leaves and sends them fluttering past the village church at Steep. I stop to admire the mountain of wooden palettes which awaits November 5th in the field opposite.
‘Want it for the Tate?’ a villager asks. I agree it would make quite a display. But not like the one I’ve been enjoying all day.
Jeremy Seal
Hangers Way runs from Alton Railway Station to the Queen Elizabeth Country Park, Petersfield.
A route leaflet and transport information is available at Petersfield Tourist Information Centre (01730 268829), or at www3.hants.gov.uk/walking/longdistance/hangers-way.htm. It is covered by Explorer O/S maps 133 and 120.
Gilbert White’s House (01420 511275; www.gilbertwhiteshouse.org.uk, £6.50) open 11-5 Tues-Sun, with the tea parlour from 11-4.30pm.
BEST WALKS IN THE AUTUMN WOODS
Internationally famous Burnham Beeches, Buckinghamshire (01753 647358, www.cityoflondon.gov.uk; ED; AWAITING SPECIAL URL FOR THIS) is a 540-acre site of ancient pollarded beech and oak trees, with grazing populations of cattle, pigs, sheep and ponies. Download a route map and instructions for the 5-mile circular Historical Trail at the website or pick up a leaflet at the information point next to Beeches Café (both open daily 10am-dusk). Free, but donation machines in the car park.
Perthshire is home to some of Scotland’s finest woodlands, especially on the 4-mile Pass of Killiecrankie walk (www.perthshirebigtreecountry.co.uk/index.asp?pg=27). Follow the green waymarks from the Killiecrankie Visitor Centre (open till end October, bus from Pitlochry), for a stunning descent through oak woods to the River Garry. The wooded riverside trail leads to stands of mountain-backed birch, rowan, alder, ash and aspen fringing Loch Faskally before finishing at Pitlochry. Or extend along the 11-mile circular Bealach walk which brings you back to Killiecrankie. ‘Pitlochry Walks’ leaflet and autumn colour updates available from Pitlochry Tourist Information (01796 472215, 10-4 daily except Sundays).
The 11-mile circular Derwent Valley Walk follows a clearly marked route round the shores of the famous ‘Dambuster’ reservoirs against a spectacular backdrop of heather moorland and mixed woodlands of beech, rowan, silver birch, spruce and sessile oak. Look out for ravens, rare crossbills and even ospreys. The walk starts at Fairholmes where you can pick up a free walk leaflet and check out the Dambuster display at the information centre (01433 650953, open 9.30-5.30 daily to the end of October and 10.30-3.30 in November). There’s also a (weather-dependent) refreshment stand and a free walk leaflet.
The National Trust’s recommended walk for October – details, with a downloadable map at www.nationaltrust.org.uk/walks2008; 01442 851227 – is a family-friendly 2-mile stroll on the Ashridge Estate, Hertfordshire. The walk takes in the best of the Chilterns famed beech and oak woods, with possible sightings of red kites and the annual deer rut. Open all year, with tea room open daily 10-5.
The grounds of Hafod Uchtryd (01974 282568, www.hafod.org/walks.html), landscaped in the Picturesque style in the 18th century, occupy 200 acres of the Ystwyth Valley near Aberyswyth. There are many huge beeches, red oaks and larches, and several of the original walking ‘circuits’ have been restored in recent years. The walks are signed from the church car park, with map leaflets (2 x £1) available from the dispensing machine. The 4-mile Gentleman’s Walk passes through a variety of treescapes but also climbs to offer great views over the valley.
The 4-mile circular Dove Crag walk (www.forestry.gov.uk/northeastengland) at Holystone in Northumberland National Park follows the red waymarks through oak woodland – look out for red squirrels - before rising to moorland with scattered oak and birchwoods, and the golden yellow needle display of the larches, the only conifer to ‘turn’. The upland crags are great for views over the woodlands and for sighting birds of preys.
The 6-mile circular Woodpecker Trail (www.forestry.gov.uk/salceyforest) follows the edge of Northamptonshire’s Salcey Forest, a rare remnant of medieval hunting forest known for its ancient ‘druid’ oaks and its beeches. A series of trail-side art sculptures have recently been installed and a short diversion off the trail leads to the Tree Top Way, a recent oak-built 500-metre walkway which allows visitors to enjoy the colours 20 metres up in the canopy. Open daily 7am–dusk, with a £2 parking charge. Café open daily 10am-4pm. Free walk leaflet available on site.
Somerset’s 36-mile Coleridge Way (www.coleridgeway.co.uk for transport information, downloadable instructions and route maps) traces the poet’s wanderings across the woodland-rich Quantocks and Exmoor. Particularly impressive is the 10-mile section from Wheddon Cross to Porlock, with the wonderful dells and combes of Blagdon Wood giving way to fabulous views from the moorland heights of Dunkery Hill. The walk finishes with a long and lovely descent through oaks and beech avenues to Porlock.
The Cotswold escarpment is famed for its beech trees, particularly along the 7-mile Kings Stanley-Dursley section of the Cotswold Way (www.nationaltrail.co.uk, with information on the route and available public transport). Extensive stretches of beechwood give way to magnificent view points over the Severn Vale to Wales, particularly at Coaley Peak and Cam Long Down. Finish with a refreshing glass at Dursley’s Old Spot Inn (01453 542870, www.oldspotinn.co.uk), CAMRA’s real ale pub of the year 2007.
For the latest on the state of autumn colours across the UK, visit www.woodland-trust.org.uk/woods/autumnwoodsindex.htm.
