Henley-on-Thames - Town, River & Woodland - Diverted

Start: The Town Hall, Market Place, Henley-on-Thames (RG9 2AQ) Grid ref. SU 759 826

(S/E) From Henley-On-Thames (A) Town Hall, walk straight along Market Place and Hart Street to a road junction between St Mary’s Church and the river bridge. Turn right along Thameside, cross the road to the riverbank and turn right along it (B). The route will now follow the Thames Path for 1.5 miles as far as Poplar Eyot Court in Lower Shiplake. Continue along the riverbank, pausing to read the information boards on the way.

(1) From Marsh Lock walk up Mill Lane, over the railway bridge to the A4155. Cross the road, turn right and then left into Noble Road. Walk straight ahead, past the YMCA hostel on the left and onto a Public Bridleway, Peppard Lane.

At the next road turn left onto Harpsden Way. Cross the road to a pavement and continue past houses. As the road goes downhill, there is no pavement for approximately 200m. The road bears right past Harpsden Court and Harpsden church. Cross the road at the church and continue to the next junction.

(2) Bear left on the Public Bridleway uphill into Harpsden Woods. Steep incline into the woods and bear left on Public Bridleway to walk alongside a wire fence through the wood. Cross Woodlands Road into Harpsden Woods. Bear left on a permissive path, walk past fallen trees, bear left and return to Woodlands Road. Here you turn right onto a Public Footpath with a wooden fence on the left, and then on both sides.

(3) At the end turn right onto a Private Road, with a Public Bridleway (Chiltern Way Berkshire loop). Follow it to the end at the entrance to Highwood House. Go past the entrance to the house into (E) High Wood and, after 50m, fork right. Stay on the main path through the wood for 600m and go past a gate to a road (Harpsden Road).

(4) Turn left along the road to a gravel driveway on the right on the outskirts of Binfield Heath. Turn right past the front of The Bottle & Glass Inn and some farm buildings onto a narrower track (Bones Lane). The path follows the field round to the right to a path junction at the edge of a wood.

(5) Fork left and when the wide path you are on veers left, go straight on, through a gap in the trees in front. Stay on this bridleway through (F) Crowsley Park Wood to a minor road.

(6) Turn left along the road for 100m to a turning on the right. Turn right into a lane and follow it, still on The Chiltern Way, as it climbs gently up to The Old Barn. Continue past the entrance as the lane becomes unsurfaced and stay on the main track for 1.3 Km to a path junction just after Cross Lanes Farm. Cross straight over the path junction, go through a gate, follow the track for 1.2 Km and go through a gate to a busy road.

(7) Cross the road, follow the path over a lane then through a small wood to a driveway by The Lodge. Turn right along the driveway and left into a cricket ground. Cross the cricket ground heading for a path to the left of the line of cottages.

(8) Enter a wood and fork right through a gate. The path descends steeply down through the next gate and into a field. Stay in the same direction, dropping down then climbing up the other side of the field. Go through a gate, cross a lane and through the next gate into the grounds of the NT’s Greys Court (G). Turn left up the surfaced driveway, past the house on the left to the visitor entry point.

(9) Turn left immediately after the visitor entry point to walk through and out the back of the upper car park. Follow the left-hand field edge, go through two gates and turn right along the fence for 80m to a path junction where the route leaves The Chiltern Way. Stay straight ahead, go through a gate and follow the path past the farm buildings on the left to a lane.

(10) Turn right along the lane, walk towards a house and bear left on a waymarked path to a road. Bear left over the road, go through a gate and follow the path (signposted to Lower Assendon) into a (H) Lambridge wood. Stay in the same general direction following the white arrows for nearly 1km to a crossing path.

(11) Turn right for 200m to the next junction, continue ahead for a few metres and bear right downhill. Stay on the path for 600m, ignoring all other paths to left and right, to leave the wood over a low barrier onto a golf course. Go straight across following the waymark posts, past several tees. Just after the 16th tee follow an avenue of trees. Go through a gate and keep straight ahead along a private driveway (I) and a lane (Lambridge Lane).

(12) Just after Croft Cottage, take the path on the left downhill to a road (Crisp Road). Turn right along Crisp Road, go over Cooper Road and take the next right up Hop Gardens.

(13) Walk all the way to the junction of Hop Gardens with Gravel Hill. Turn left and follow the road down to the Town Hall, where the walk ends. (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: The Town Hall, Market Place, Henley-on-Thames (RG9 2AQ) Grid ref. SU 759 826

Note : This version of the walk follows the diversion at Marsh Lock (waypoint (1)). Please follow the marked route. Details of the Thames Path diversion from www.nationaltrail.co.uk

Parking: Several car parks fairly close to the Town Hall

Local Transport: There are bus services to Henley from High Wycombe, Marlow, Oxford and Reading. Henley station is served by the Great Western Railway's Twyford branch line. Full details can be found here.

Terrain: Although quite a long route, it’s fairly easy stile-free walking along good paths, quiet lanes and urban pavements. There are two steady climbs with a total ascent of 220m/720ft, numerous gates and one low barrier.

Food & Drink : There are many places in the town. On the route there’s The Bottle & Glass Inn in Binfield Heath, and Greys Court for National Trust (NT) members

This walk was created for the book "More Great Walks in the Chilterns" available from the Chiltern Society or from Amazon

(A) Henley-On-Thames was first recorded in 1179 when King Henry II bought land ‘for the making of buildings’. A church and charter market were established in the 13th century. The historic heart of the town is around St Mary’s Church (12th century), the Town Hall, Market Place and the 18th century stone bridge. There are many old buildings designated of special architectural or historical interest. The town is, of course, famous for its annual royal regatta and is home to many rowing clubs.  Notable points of interest passed on the route are the Town Hall built to commemorate Queen Victoria’s Jubilee in 1901, the old buildings in Hart Street and the church, where there’s a memorial to the singer Dusty Springfield in the churchyard. In 2018, Henley-on-Thames was accredited as a Walkers Are Welcome Town, the second town in Oxfordshire to achieve the status.

(B) The River and Rowing Museum opened in 1998. It was designed by Sir David Chipperfield and was the Royal Fine Arts Commission’s Building of the Year in 1999. It holds 20,000 items covering the international sport of rowing, the history of Henley-on-Thames, the story of the River Thames and an exhibition about the children’s book Wind in the Willows.

(C) Marsh Lock There has been a lock here since the early 15th century. The wooden walkway is the only one on the Thames, and was built because the lock was on the opposite bank to the towpath.

(E) High Wood is part of the Phillimore Estate. Since 2015 an archaeological investigation has been undertaken by South Oxfordshire Archaeological Group. Remains have been found from the late Iron Age and throughout the Roman period. In spring there’s a wonderful display of bluebells.

(F) Crowdley Park Wood forms part of the 160 acre Crowsley Park Estate. It’s owned by the BBC and has been used as a signal-receiving station since WWII. One former owner was Henry Baskerville who’s thought to have been the inspiration for Conan Doyle's The Hound of the Baskervilles.

(G) Greys Court takes its name from its original builders, the de Grey family. It’s had a chequered history. The medieval castle was fortified by the construction of a surrounding wall in 1348, from which four of the five towers and part of the wall survive. The stables and a donkey wheel house remain from an Elizabethan dwelling. The main house was destroyed in the Civil War, then rebuilt. It’s now owned by the NT and it is open all year round. The Chiltern Society worked with the Trust to develop walks round the estate. This project was pioneered by David Teasdale, a Society member, whose memorial gate is in the grounds.

(H) Lambridge Wood is a large area of ancient beech woodland and is exceptionally rich in flora. Until 1922 it was part of the Grey’s Court Estate and in 1952 it became a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI).

(I) Friar Park is a late 19th century mansion with elaborate contemporary gardens and pleasure grounds designed by the original owner Frank Crisp. Later it was the home of George Harrison of the Beatles.