The Cookham Classic - River, Marshes, Winter Hill, Cliveden

Distance: 10 miles (figure-of-eight - 6.5 miles / 3.5 miles loops)
Terrain: Mostly flat riverside paths and tracks with one short 100 metre climb to Winter Hill
Pace: Moderate, with an optional shorter loop after lunch
Start/finish: Cookham Moor National Trust car park
Refreshments: Lunch stop in Cookham

A varied, sight-seeing Thames-side figure-of-eight walk combining river, ridge and village over mostly National Trust managed sites around the picture-postcard village of Cookham - the place that inspired The Wind in the Willows and Stanley Spencer. 

The morning loop (6.5 miles) covers the National Trust land around Cookham Moor, follows the River Thames to Cock Marsh, a Bronze Age burial ground, now a floodplain, then a short 100 metre climb to the chalk escarpment of Winter Hill for far-reaching views across the wide floodplains, the River Thames to the Chiltern Hills. The walk then descends through Cookham Dean with its thatched cottages.

Lunch is back in Cookham. Walkers not continuing can explore the pretty high street, visit the church and the Stanley Spencer Gallery.

The afternoon loop (3.5 miles) is flat and follows a quieter, but iconic stretch of the Thames opposite the Cliveden Estate, with views of the main house and Seven Gable Cottage (famed for the Profumo Affair), returning via Battlemead Meadows and Widbrook Common. Wildlife often includes cormorants, and flocks of migrating birds at this time of the year. National Trust membership is NOT required to visit these NT sites.

Walking shoes/boots are a must as paths can be wet and muddy. Please bring a packed lunch.