Distance 8.5 km
Lambourn and Upper Lambourn are peaceful working villages where individual and strings of racehorses are ridden throughout the day and particularly before 13:00. Please take great care when horses are about. Horses can be spooked by sudden movements, domestic animals and loud noises. Please do not endanger the horse, the rider and yourself.
Please follow the Countryside Code to keep you, your dog, farm animals and the countryside safe. Respect other people, Protect the natural environment, Enjoy the outdoors.
For dog walkers there is special advice available from Countryside Online.
Thank you to Anita Morton, Oliver Steed, Virginia Dreyer for researching this walk. If you have any suggestions or comments regarding this walk please add a comment using the form at the end of this page.
The Walk:
Starting from the centre of Lambourn, take Newbury Street, then Newbury Road, towards Eastbury. (Those familiar with the village may prefer to start down Bockhamton Road, turning right onto Newbury Road a short distance before Long Hedge). Leave the road at the bottom of Long Hedge, just past the end of the 30 mph limit, and pick up the path of the Lambourn Valley Way (signed). (Take care on the last hundred metres before you reach Long Hedge, as there is no pavement, and the road is narrow.)
Follow the Lambourn Valley Way for about 1.5 km, crossing a paddock and a couple of fields (ignore a track with a gate which crosses the path before you reach Eastbury), to a by-way crossing your path, with a barn to your left and a house on your right and a footpath sign pointing to the left. Turn left here, up the hill.
Follow this path over the downs for about 2.5 km, with a gallop on your right and later on crossing over two gallops, till you reach a patch of woodland. (Note that the ‘all-weather’ gallop here is active, and horses may approach up the hill from the right round a sharp bend where it will be difficult to see them coming. Look and listen carefully for signs of activity before crossing the gallop). On reaching the woodland, the straight on, marked, track shows a ‘caution’ sign, so follow the path as it swings to the left round the field edge. This path joins the main track further up the hill. At the top of the hill, it becomes a tarmac road at Sheepdrove. Follow this road till it joins the road to Red Barn.
Turn left down the hill to continue towards Lambourn. To avoid walking down the busy road, take the path down the side of the field on the right. The entry point is immediately after the last house (and at other points down the hill). At the bottom, turn left onto the Wantage Road to make your way back to the village centre.
Points of interest:
Lambourn Valley Way. For this stretch it follows the route of the old Lambourn Valley Railway, which was decommissioned in the 1960’s
Eastbury. The walk only touches the village, but, if time permits, it is worth an explore, with fine old buildings, a beautiful church, and pretty river (when flowing in summertime).
Chalk Downland. The walk gives fine views of the downs towards the Ridgeway.
Gallops. The walk goes past a number of gallops, where you may see racehorses exercising.
