Ealing, Ruislip & Harrow Walking & Social Group

A week's cycling holiday in Southwest France. We are cycling the Canal de Garonne which flows from Bordeaux to Toulouse. Average of 30 miles each day on the cycling days. The Garonne canal is perfect for cycling through France. Level gradient with traffic-free tracks, with great countryside the whole route. Our first day is spent in Bordeaux. This city is full of elegant quays and wine cellars. Great choice of art galleries, Gothic landmarks and excellent restaurants.
Our cycling adventure starts on Sunday and passes through a wonderful landscape of chateaux and vineyards. Accommodation scheduled for each stage at very scenic towns with lots of facilities. The canal has many historic features with aqueducts, manors and original locks along the route. Highlights of the journey include the tomato capital of France: Marmande. We will visit Bastide towns (medieval walled towns full of history) as well as detours to vineyards for wine tasting. We will stay at Moissac, another fascinating town with its famous abbey. Our hotel is in a converted water mill. At Agen, the prune capital of France, we aim to visit the art gallery which boasts a collection of rare Goya paintings looted during the revolution from a nearby chateau. The planned route can incorporate detours to regional attractions including Buddhist centres and historic abbeys.
On Friday, our final cycling day, we cycle from Montauban to Toulouse. After depositing the hired cycles, we can dine on the local speciality of Cassoulet to celebrate the cycling adventure. On Saturday before travelling back to the UK, we can explore Toulouse "La Ville Rose" the unofficial capital of Occitanie. Full of medieval cathedrals, towers and art galleries, Toulouse is also the HQ of Airbus (tours available) and the birthplace of the Concorde.
We will collect the hired cycles at the start and drop them off at the end of the ride. Railway runs alongside canal so option to put cycle on train for a stage if reasons arise. Organiser will provide fuller itinerary to everyone booking.
Refreshments
Abundance of choices in each town and on route. Aim to arrange picnic lunch each day.
Travel
Direct flights to Bordeaux and from Toulouse to UK. Option to travel on Eurostar and TGV. Organiser will provide full details of choices.
Accommodation
Hostels and hotels for the 7 nights. We are seeking budget options for each stage. Organiser will provide full choices to everyone booking.
Cost of the weekend is just £10 deposit which covers for group membership.
Group membership is for 1 year and ALL walks are then free. To book please rsvp & mail meetup@hawog.org.uk for payment link. Any questions mail meetup@hawog.org.uk ,& please do NOT add comments.

This is a 7-mile walk in the Chiltern Hills, walking the Chesham Outer Ring. Starting at Chesham Station we walk down by the River Chess into the old town, passing a filming location for the 2013 film "The Imitation Game". We then enter Lowndes Park heading out of Chesham towards Chartridge and Pednor. Once in Chartridge we walk through Captains Wood and Ramscoat Wood. We pass Bellingdon Farm Cottages, where the author DH Lawrence lived between August 1914 and January 1915. I wonder if he wrote "Lady Chatterley's Lover" there. We then head out towards The Vale and Ashley Green Road. We walk back via Ley Hill to Chesham Station. Walking pace is approx 2mph. The terrain is moderately hilly and likely to be muddy. May be unsuitable for buggies. Some of the fields may have cows or cattle in so may be unsuitable for dogs.
Refreshments
Hen and Chickens pub or bring a packed lunch
Travel
Metropolitan line to Chesham. Car park at Chesham Station.
Start
10:00am prompt at Chesham Station, postcode HP5 1DH
Cost of event is £10. This includes full membership for 1 year , Event arranged by main group,(www.hawog.org.uk (http://www.hawog.org.uk/)) All day walks are free to full members. Any questions please mail meetup@hawog.org.uk

A six miles walk, in which we will firstly explore the Primrose Hill district, well known for its pastel coloured Regency townhouses and village-like neighbourhood shopping
centre, and will include a stop outside the childhood home of the poet WB Yeats. We'll then cross over to Primrose Hill itself for a picnic break and to enjoy stunning views
over central London, so please bring a picnic lunch along with you.
For the second part of the walk, we'll head down into Regent's Park and take the Broad Walk route to the Inner Circle and our second break at the Queen Mary's Garden cafe.
From there we'll walk around the boating lake which dominates this part of the Park, before heading to Baker Street and finish with a pub visit there.

Refreshments: Bring packed lunch. Shops and cafes on route.

Travel: Chalk Farm station (on the Northern Line), Baker Street station (on the Circle, Hammersmith & City, Metropolitan, Bakerloo, and Jubilee Lines)

Start Time/Place: 11 am prompt outside Chalk Farm Station, NW3 2BP
Cost of event is £10. This includes full membership for 1 year , Event arranged by main group,(www.hawog.org.uk (http://www.hawog.org.uk/)) All day walks are free to full members. Any questions please mail meetup@hawog.org.uk