Afternoon walk: Kimpton & the North Chiltern Trail (5.5 miles / 8.5km - Leisurely, Booking Required)

This walk is for up to 30 people, including the leader.

Join us on the first Saturday afternoon of the new year for the second of two walks today exploring the quiet countryside around Kimpton, a charming old village nestled in a valley of the North Chiltern Hills between Hitchin, Luton, Stevenage and St Albans.

This is a relatively short walk through gently rolling countryside, graded ‘Leisurely’, so should be suitable for most people in our age group. However, some sections may be muddy so boots or good quality walking shoes are recommended, particularly on some cross-field paths which can make for less easy walking after rain.

The afternoon route follows on from a morning walk aimed particularly at walkers new to the group, but everyone is welcome to attend either walk, and keen walkers can attend both walks to complete a 10.5-mile figure of eight route, which due to total distance qualifies as ‘Moderate’ grade.

Both walks start and finish at the Parkfield Sports Ground car park on the north side of Kimpton near the church.

For our afternoon walk we’ll head northwest of the village into isolated countryside, which includes some gentle slopes, passing mainly through arable farmland with a few scattered houses along the way. Nearly a third of the route is on part of the North Chiltern Trail, an extension of the Chiltern Way long-distance path promoted by The Chiltern Society. There are great views of the rural landscape and except for the planes heading to and from nearby Luton there is little indication of nearby settlements.

We start by walking uphill past the sports ground and local woodland, then climb over a series of stiles through some horse paddocks belonging to The Holt Farm & Livery Yard. We then follow a byway towards Bendish and pick up the North Chiltern Trail. This takes us down a picturesque track to a valley bottom then uphill again before we turn off the Trail to reach the hamlet of Ansells End. From here it’s alongside and across fields to reach the edge of Kimpton, where an old footpath between houses brings us back through the village and past the parish church of St Peter & St Paul to return to the car park.

At the end of our walk there’ll be the option of a drink at the village pub aptly named The Boot (but in case of muddy boots, please bring a change of footwear if planning to visit the pub).

This route is based, with thanks, on ‘Walk 191: Kimpton North-West Loop’ from the Hertfordshire Walker website (hertfordshirewalker.uk).

Please note this walk is not suitable for dogs.

For information about walking with the group, including our dog policy, please visit the Stag Walkers website.

Booking your place: Please book your place using the free Meetup website/app. Join the Stag Walkers Meetup group and click the 'Attend' button on the event page.

Please do not turn up for a walk without booking, as places are limited.

If the walk is fully booked, click 'join waitlist' to get a place if one becomes available and please check back regularly as you will likely get a place. The waitlist gives priority to single bookings so if you wish to bring a guest, we recommend booking separately.

Unless you opt in to further communications, we will only use contact information you provide to get in touch about the walk.