Ewelme and Swyncombe

Start : Ewelme Recreation Ground car park (OX10 6PG). Grid ref. SU 648 912

(S/E) From Ewelme Recreation Ground car park, go through the gate at the back of the car park and follow the path to the right of the hedgerow. Shortly after the top of the rise, bear half right across the field to go through a gate in the middle of the hedgerow ahead.

(1) Turn left along the lane and after 120m, just before a road junction, turn right (South-East) along a surfaced bridleway towards Ewelme Down Farm. Follow the bridleway past the farm for over 1km then bear left 50m before the large gateposts marking the entrance to Ewelme Down House.

(2) Go through a small wood into a field, continue straight ahead to the right of a hedgerow then through the next wood to meet a wide track. Turn right and follow the main track all the way to St Botolph’s Church, Swyncombe (A).

(3) From the church, continue ahead along the lane (Rectory Hill), bearing left to a road junction.

(4) Go straight across, through a gate and follow the signs for both the Chiltern Way and Ridgeway. Climb the steep hill ahead all the way to the top, ignoring all paths and tracks to the left and right.

About 150m down from the top, the path bends sharply left and then right. Shortly after this the Chiltern Way turns left and the Ridgeway continues downhill.

(5) Turn left on the Chiltern Way and after 1km go through a gate on the left into the remains of a hillfort on Swyncombe Downs (B). Stay on the ridge and go through a gate to exit the ancient site. Follow the path steeply down through a wood to a tarmac lane on the left at the bottom. Turn right along the lane for 600m.

(6) Where it bends to the left, bear right through a gate to continue along the Chiltern Way. Bear left uphill to the right of a hedge. Stay straight ahead on this path for about 1km.

(7) Cross a farm access track and continue in the same direction to drop down to a lane (Parson's Lane). Turn left along the lane to return to the car park (C). (S/E)

We hope you have enjoyed your walk. Please remember to rate the walk and add comments. We are interested in how we could improve the instructions or the route and would like to hear about any issues with paths on the walk.

Start & finish: Ewelme Recreation Ground car park (OX10 6PG). Grid ref: SU 648 912

Alternative Start: Park at Swyncombe Church and start at Waypoint (3).

Parking: Ewelme Recreation Ground car park (OX10 6PG). Grid ref: SU 648 912

Terrain: An easy walk with one steep climb and one steep descent.

Local transport: Bus 136 runs between Cholsey, Wallingford and Benson on Monday to Saturday and stops nearby in Green Lane, Benson. Buses 137 and 137A run between Watlington, Ewelme, and Wallingford on Fridays.

Food & drink: None on the walk route except at Swyncombe Church on a Sunday, when the snowdrops are out. In Ewelme there is the Shepherd’s Hut pub and The Village Store tearoom

This walk was created for the book "50 Great Walks in the Chilterns" available from the Chiltern Society, White Hill Centre, White Hill, Chesham, Bucks, HP5 1AG Tel. 01494 771250 or fromAmazon 50GW.

(A) Swyncombe. The name comes from the Old English words Swin for wild boar and Cumb or Combe for valley or hollow. Swyncombe House was first established in the 13th century, but by the mid-16th century it was said to be in ruins. It was then rebuilt, but burned down in 1814. The current building dates from 1840. 

St Botolph’s church: Every February the churchyard has a wonderful display of snowdrops and aconites. At this time visitors on a Sunday can usually enjoy home-made tea and cakes and can also buy preserves and pickles. The church itself is named after the patron saint of travellers. It’s of flint construction and was completed in 1020. It belonged to Bec Abbey in Normandy and was probably the poorest of the local parishes. Notable features are the oldest double aumbry (a cabinet for chalices) in England that is still in use; the 14th century bell; the 17th and 18th century stained glass, and the restored medieval wall paintings.

(B) Swyncombe Downs: This is a designated Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI). It’s well known for its grassland specialities including bastard toadflax, wild candytuft, crested hairgrass, small scabious, creeping toadflax, valerian, felwort and pyramidal orchid. The ancient earthwork is known as the Danish Intrenchment and dates back to c870. It was built by the Danes during their battles with Alfred the Great.

(C) Ewelme Some say that in Anglo-Saxon times Ewelme was known as Aewhylme, because of the ‘water whelming’ up from the ground. In the Domesday Book it was called La Welme. It has a long and distinguished history, and has connections to Geoffrey Chaucer, Henry VIII and Jerome K Jerome, author of Three Men in a Boat. The highlights of a visit to the village are the 15th century cloistered almshouses, St Mary the Virgin Church and the watercress beds, which are owned and managed by the Chiltern Society as a local nature reserve. The old manor house was converted into Ewelme Palace by the Duke and Duchess of Suffolk. By Tudor times it belonged to the crown, and in 1540 Henry VIII held a Privy Council there. At the far end of the village is the King’s Pool where Henry used to bathe. The Duchess, Alice de la Pole, was the granddaughter of poet Geoffrey Chaucer. In 1437 she and her husband were responsible for rebuilding the church, and the construction of the cloistered almshouses and the school. The latter is believed to be the oldest building in Britain still in use as a local authority school. Jerome K Jerome is buried in St Mary’s churchyard. Further information on the opening times of the watercress beds can be found by going to www.chilternsociety.org.uk/ewelme. Some areas of the nature reserve are public and open all year round, free of charge.