We do our best to put on walks to suit everyone! If you can’t find a walk to suit your taste or needs, please let us know what we can do to help!
Please note that well behaved dogs are allowed on walks unless otherwise stated in the walk details
We do our best to put on walks to suit everyone! If you can’t find a walk to suit your taste or needs, please let us know what we can do to help!
Please note that well behaved dogs are allowed on walks unless otherwise stated in the walk details
Walking the St James’ Way/Camino Ingles – Henley and Goring Ramblers
Photo shows the 'pilgrims' at God's House in Southampton at the end of the section of the Camino located in England.
In early November, Henley and Goring Ramblers completed the final section of the St James’ Way, a modern-day pilgrimage route of approximately 68.5 miles that stretches from Reading Abbey to the port of Southampton. The route forms part of the Camino Ingles, one of the network of Caminos that stretch across Europe to Santiago de Compostela in Spain.
We had hoped to start from Reading in January, walking ten sections of 6-9 miles each month, but flooding and bad weather delayed the start of the walk until March and we were only finally able to get underway by starting at Theale and returning to the first section in June once flooding had subsided and essential repairs to the path were completed.
The Confraternity of St James only recently way-marked the route and provide lots of helpful advice via their website. A guidebook and a Pilgrim Passport can also be purchased so that walkers can collect stamps at churches and pubs along the way. The stamps and distances recorded in the passport count towards the distance travelled towards Santiago.
Most sections of the route were accessible by train or bus so we only used cars or taxis in a handful of places where this was absolutely necessary.
Following the distinctive blue and yellow scallop shell route markers, we found a route full of variety, which largely skirted the major urban areas and led us instead through dappled bluebell woods, nature reserves, farmland, and along towpaths and clear chalk streams. We walked the latter sections alongside the River Itchen, which meandered through low-lying fields and occasionally divided around the path to give us the feeling of walking along a causeway.
Other highlights along the way included visits to the remains of Roman Silchester near Reading, the remains of the beautiful Benedictine priory at Pamber and the magnificent Winchester Cathedral, where as pilgrims we were able to enjoy a free guided tour.
The combination of church and pub stops turned out to be ideal for our group. Pilgrim blessings were available at St James’ Church Reading, where we also viewed the Shrine of St James, and at St Mary’s Church Sulhamstead, where we were invited to ring the church bell. Those of our members who enjoy beer found it in plentiful supply in the many comfortable and hospitable pubs along the way. On the section between Itchen Abbas and Winchester, we were lucky to find a village hall offering refreshments including scones made with the locally grown watercress.
We ended our walk at God’s House Tower in Southampton, where we exchanged our completed passports for the Via de Sanctus Iacobus certificate and enjoyed a refreshing cuppa and baked goods. We all agreed that this had been a very enjoyable walk, packed with interesting places to visit. We are very grateful to the Confraternity of St James who are responsible for the upkeep of the route, and to the many churches and pubs for their hospitality along the route. We enjoyed it so much that one of our trips for 2025 will enable us to continue the route into Spain and to the ultimate pilgrim destination at Santiago, so watch this space!
Catherine Ewart
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Christmas Carols Walk, Service and Lunch 2023
We had wet walks this year on our annual Christmas Carols Walk, Service and Lunch. Undeterred three groups set off from The Rising Sun at Whitchurch Hill for different length walks converging at Stoke Row Chapel for the carol service led by Rev. Mark Taylor. After the service we walked together back to the Rising Sun for a convivial lunch. This annual event has been taking place at different churches and pubs for a number of years now and always brings out a good number of our walkers - often with a waiting list if the maximum number the pub can take is reached!
Walking the Capital Ring
Lunch on Wandsworth Common on the penultimate stage of our Capital Ring Walk
An interesting long distance urban walk? Yes, but one that made us realise what a lot of green spaces London has! Our group completed the 78 miles circuit of London between January and November 2023. We travelled from the Henley / Reading area one Saturday each month by train, tube, Docklands Light Railway and bus, and thanks to the Elizabeth Line from Reading were able to do this despite the rail strikes. We started and finished at Richmond and found something to surprise and interest us on every stage.
I asked the people who had done all or most of the circuit what stood out for them on the trail. The overwhelming response was how the route, only a few miles from central London, threaded its way through so many green spaces – parks, commons, woodlands, alongside waterways and even through a large urban wilderness in Hackney that was a cemetery in the 19th century. One section of the Ring is called the Green Chain Way, and it really is that – a linked chain of open green spaces in what is a busy urban area. The urban sections were also enjoyable, full of ever changing street scene with lots of architectural, historical and social interest. Even the train and bus journeys provided us with opportunities to see more of Londoner’s lives and gardens!
Special sights on particular stages stand out: having a picnic lunch in a park as we watched the planes coming together for the King’s coronation fly past; the magnificent ‘cathedral of sewage’ that is Bazalgette’s chateau like Abbey Mills pumping station ; the floating hot tub near East India station; the sheer number of Londoners using the green spaces and waterways, walking, cycling, jogging, playing football, canoeing, picnicking; watching the changing seasons ion the parks; the dinosaurs at Chrystal Palace; the deer and a fox by the path in Richmond Park - the list is endless.
I think we were all surprised and delighted at how much there is to see and enjoy along this route and we were all sad to have finished it!
The Hardy Way – Completed at Last!
Photo shows the group about to board the DCT bus to be taken to the start of the final stage of the walk
On s lovely sunny day in the summer of 2019 two Henley & Goring members were in Dorset doing a recce for our planned long distance winter weekends walks over the following two winters, when we saw a cute little green bus with the name Dorset Community Transport on the side. We checked it out on the web, registered our group with them and DCT became our transport on the linear walks round Dorset for the whole of the 220 miles long Hardy Way.
The plan was to walk 5 weekends in the winter of 2019/20 and 5 weekends in 2020/21 finishing in March 2021.However Covid got in the way and we were only able to complete the walk in February 2023! The composition of the group of walkers varied a bit over such a long period of time but a core of those who started at Hardy’s Cottage in September 2019 were still there when we reached the graveyard where Hardy’s heart is buried in Stinsford near Dorchester having circumnavigated the county of Dorset. Out furthest point north was Shaftesbury, furthest south was Portland Bill, east was Cranborne Chase and west was Beamster. We stayed in Dorchester, Weymouth, Wareham, Yeovil and Shaftesbury travelling by car to the pick-up points where the DCT bus transported us to the start of the walks. We had lots of convivial evening meals in local pubs and restaurants and great Sunday lunches before driving home.
The route is full of interest and variety made even more interesting because so many of the places we walked are associated with Hardy’s life and immortalised in his novels. The real and Hardy’s imagined landscapes blended as we trod in the footsteps of Tess of the D’Urbervilles and the Mayor of Casterbridge. When we walked the Blackmore valley stage it was cold, wet and muddy so all too easy to imagine Tess, abandoned by Angel, picking turnips the cold winter fields. The coastal stretch from Bridport to Portland Bill was a tale of two climates. The first section in March 2022 was done in warm sunshine. The second half, round Portland Bill in November, was cold wet and windy; quite an experience – how wet can one get!
What were the highlights? Too many to include in a short article! I can never forget the fantastic view from the prison café high on Portand Bill where we had lunch. We could see from Old Harry’s Rock right along Portland Bill and Chesil Beach, the vista made even more dramatic by the rapid changes from brilliant sunshine to white out and driving rain. Not funny at the time but a good story afterwards I remember when some of the group got completely stuck in the mud crossing fields in the Backmore valley and had to be rescued by stronger members of the group. We could not fail to be impressed by the range and variety of the landscapes from the open heaths, delightful villages and small towns to dramatic coastal sections, all of which had associated interesting cultural and historical stories – Bradbury Rings, the harbour at Wareham, Wimborne Minster, Gold Hill (the Hovis street) at Shaftesbury, lagoons where Bomber Harris tested his bouncing bomb, beaches where troops trained for the Normandy landings, the seaside resort of Weymouth.
The Hardy Way is an amazing long distance walk and although it took us 2 years longer than planned to complete, I think all who went on all or some of the stages, were glad that they did.
Walking the Capital Ring
A group of 16 walked the first stage of the Capital Ring on a Saturday in late January. We finished the walk on a glorious cold sunny day in November
The photo shows the group at the start of the walk by the River Thames at Richmond
Three Castles Path Summer 2022
This 60 miles route from Windsor to Winchester, via Odiham Castle (now ruined) built by King John, was inspired by the King’s journeys. We started in April intending to walk the route in 6 ten miles stages over the summer. Apart from August, when we decided it was just too hot to walk on the designated day, we did just that, finishing in Winchester on 1 October.
Starting in Windsor we walked through the Great Park to Ascot then through the Crown Estate south of Bracknell, the Blackwater valley, the Basingstoke Canal, the Whitewater River and the River Itchen to finish at the Great Hall at the castle in Winchester. We left Windsor to the sounds of the Coldstream Guards who were parading thought the streets as if to cheer us on our way! On some stages we picnicked in lovely rural surrounding, on other we enjoyed a pub lunch in one of the many delightful villages on the route. We left Windsor in sunshine and arrived in Winchester in equally good weather. An enjoyable walk with lots to see and enjoy on the way.
Some of the group at the Great Hall in Winchester at the end of the walk
Jumbo Jubilee walks and picnic on Maidensgrove Common near Henley-on-Thames
Henley & Goring Ramblers enjoyed Jubilee walks and a picnic on Maidensgrove Common on 1 June. Members had a choice of 4 circular walks ranging from 3.5 to 13 miles and about 60 walkers did one or other of the walks. Timing was excellent as we all arrived back at the Common at 3.30 for the joint picnic. Other members who had not done the walks joined us there. Last time we had a joint picnic on the Common was during the time of Covid restrictions. This time we could enjoy meeting friends and socialising without having to keep 2 metres apart!
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We used to publish two walks programmes a year, each with about 70 walks with walks on most days of the week. However, owing to the uncertainties caused by Covid we changed to publishing our walks programme on a monthly basis by email with paper copies for members not using email. From January 2023 have published our walks progeramme on a three monthly basis.
Distances range from 3 miles to over 16 with most graded moderate or easy. Our programme makes it clear when dogs are not welcomed and whether or not there is a pub stop for lunch.
We have lots of day walks in the local area but we also do long distance linear walks, usually with stages of 7-12 miles, on one day a month. Linear walks further afield involve weekend or mid-week overnight stays.
Trips to different great walking areas in the UK are organised 3 or 4 times a year. These are for between 3 and 7 days. We like to have one or more trips abroad each year, usually for a week to 10 days in length.
Other Long Dustance trails
In 2018 we completed the Chairman's Walk (around the perimeter of West Berkshire), more weekend linear walks in Wiltshire, the Four seasons Walks (same walk repeated over 4 seaons in the Nettlebed area) Hills and Views walks in the Chilterns and more joint walks with disabled ramblers. Once again our walking members were amazed at the rough paths disabled ramblers on their mobility scooter drivers tackled with ease.
We completed the Palladian Way in monthly stages between June 2018 and March 2019 and did most of the Shakespeare Way walking from London to Stratford. Sadly owing to the lockdown we were not able to complete the last two stages of this walk nor visit the theatre as we had planned.
We started our next weekend linear walking project: The Hardy Way, a circular walk round Dorset, to be completed in 10 monthly in September 2019. Owing to the lockdown we were unable to complete the last stage of the season planned for March 2020. We were able to resume the walk in November 2021 when we did the two stages that should have been walked in March 2020. Wecompleted the final 2 weekends in November 2022 and March 2023.
Walking in Upper Teesdale on our recent trip
See our trips page for where we are going in 2022 and 2023.
We have regular short walks of up to 5 miles (see section on regular walks).
Shakespeare Way: Linear walk started in October 2018
We walked this trail between October 2018 and the end of 2019 in monthly stages on Tuesdays. The 146 miles trail goes from Stratford upon Avon to The Globe in London but started in London. . We hoped to complete the walk in 2020 but Covid restrictions got in the way.
The Palladian Way
We completed this long distance trail, walked in monthly stages between June 2018 and March 2019. We started in the centre of Buckingham, passed through Stowe landscape gardens, on through the grounds of Belnheim palace, on to the Cotswolds and finish at Bath.
Below: Palladian bridge at Stowe
