Berkshire Circular Routes: Bradfield

Start : The start of this walk is at Rushall Manor Farm outdoor centre.

(S/E) From Rushall Manor Farm outdoor centre parking area, start along the track up the hill (North), past the pond.

(1) Turn right (North-East) at the second small bridge over a ditch beside the track, and into the field - there is a dog waste bin on the left and a 'recreational route' arrow on the gate. Half way along the top of the field, a post with another 'recreational route' arrow points left into the wood. The path curves to the right and reaches a field.

(2) Cross the field, to the left of the large oak tree, and re-enter the wood. In this wood, the path divides; at the first fork take the right path and at the second fork take the left path. You will then reach Scratchface Lane.

(3) Go through the gate on the opposite side of Scratchface Lane, which is at the right hand side of the wood. Continue downhill, inside the wood but close to its edge. The path then crosses a gap between two fields. At the bottom of the hill, there is a small amphitheatre beside the path - presumably, an outdoor classroom.

(3) If you take a wrong turning in the wood, turn left if you reach a farm track, or turn right if you reach a tarmac road (Scratchface Lane). You will then reach the continuation of the walk (3) .

Just after this, take the right fork in the path to climb diagonally up the hill. When you reach a carved tree trunk with 'recreational route' arrows, turn left and go through a gate into a field.

(4) The path continues to the left, but it is worth taking a short detour to a former chalk pit, to see a cross section of the local geology. Turn right along the edge of the field and then through the gate.

(5) The chalk pit is then on your right, with an excellent information board. Then retrace your steps to (4) .

(4) Turn left along the edge of the field. Go through a gate back into the wood, then take the right hand footpath. Continue along this obvious footpath until you reach the major track called Greathouse Walk. Turn right along this track and continue downhill to the road (Back Lane).

Go through the gate on the opposite side of the lane, then turn left around the corner of the field. Go through the gate in the hedge, then continue diagonally right across the next field on a well-trodden path (aiming for the mid-point of the large houses beyond the field). Turn right along the edge of the field, then left along the track to the road (Ashampstead Road).

(6) Turn right (South-East) along the road, then the first right into a road with a 'Byway' finger post. Opposite the church, take the footpath to the River Pang on the right, which starts between a large beech tree and a yew tree.

(7) The path follows the river bank, with the playing fields of Bradfield College on your left. After a gate, the path continues with woods on your right and fields on your left to a lane (Dark Lane). Turn right along the lane, then left after 50m to continue on the footpath.

Immediately after a kissing gate, turn right onto a bridleway, which has a footbridge to cross the River Pang. Cross over Back Lane onto the access track to Rushall Manor Farm, to return to the start at Rushall Manor Farm outdoor centre. (S/E)

Car Park : The start of this walk is at Rushall Manor Farm outdoor centre, which has public parking on the left just beyond the barn.

The minor cross-country roads to the farm are confusing. If traveling from the west (Newbury), it is best to turn left off the A4 one mile (1.6km) after the end of the dual carriageway, then turn left at the end of this road. If traveling from the east (Reading), turn right at the roundabout onto the A340 towards Pangbourne, then first left. In both cases, continue through Bradfield, going straight over the crossroads as you enter the village, then turn left into Back Lane as you leave the village. Continue along the Back Lane for one mile (1.6km), ignoring lanes on the right and the left. Then turn right onto the track with a sign for 'Rushall Manor Farm, Black Barn, John Simonds Trust'.

This route is based on the Berkshire Circular Route shown on the Ordnance Survey Explorer map No.159 (but not on the online map with this route description). Together with the longer route described separately, they cover the route options shown on the OS map. They are described in opposite directions, so they feel like different walks.

Rushall Manor Farm is near the boundary between two geologies. To the north, there are the heavy clays of the Reading Beds. Before tractors, these were difficult to work for agriculture, so for centuries has been left as woodland and permanent pasture. The highest part is overlain by Plateau Gravels (in the area named The Gravels on the map). To the south, the valley is flinty loam over Upper Chalk, which was easy to work as arable land.

(S/E) There has been a farm on this site for at least 700 years. The large barn dates from the 18th Century. The granary sits on staddlestones (stone supports shaped like mushrooms), to keep rodents out. The farm is now an educational centre, run by the John Simonds Trust, which teaches children about the countryside.

(5) This chalk pit is a Regionally Important Geological Site, with a cross section from the chalk of 85 million years ago to the present day. There is an information board which gives a good description of the geology in front of you, including the time of mass extinction of dinosaurs.

(6) Bradfield is home to Bradfield College, a public school, which occupies a large part of the village. It was founded in 1850 by Thomas Stevens, who was both Rector and Lord of the Manor.

(7) The River Pang is one of the rare chalkstreams of Southern England. Its source is normally near the village of Compton, but it can be as far up the valley as Farnborough or as near as Hampstead Norreys, depending on the rainfall and the water table in the chalk. This section of the river has been channelled above the flood plain as a mill stream.