A Circular in the Chiltern Hills
Date: Saturday, August 18
A 10 mile circular walk in the woods of Chiltern Hills from Saunderton
to West Wycombe with a possible extension (4 extra miles) to Wheeler’s
End. The route goes by two National Trust properties – Hughenden
Manor, the country house of Benjamin Disraeli, and West Wycombe Park,
18th-century creation of Sir Francis Dashwood, the 2nd baronet,
founder of the Dillettanti Society and the Hell-Fire Club, an
exclusive clubs for high society rakes who wished to take part in
socially perceived immoral acts. The club meeting often took place in
West Wycombe or Hell-Fire Caves which are also on our route (admission
£7.50). West Wycombe village has fine examples of houses from the 16th
to 18th centuries and West Wycombe Hill has fine views and has an Iron
Age hill fort, part of the original landscape design of West Wycombe
Park. Now it is the site of St Lawrence Church and the Dashwood
Mausoleum.
Meet: Oxford Parkway Railway station
Time: 9:00 (am) to get the 9:15 Train towards London
Return: 20 pm
Distance: 16 km (+ 5 km optional) (10 miles + 4 optional)
Cost: Approx £7.65 Return ticket with Railcard
Lunch: Packed Leader: Stanislav Kikot (staskikotx”ATTTT”gmail.com)