Free Open Day Trip to the Chilterns - Chess Valley Walk, Chesham & Rickmansworth

Let's walk across the rich and secluded landscape of the Chess Valley path, one of the highlights of the Chiltern countryside yet so close to London you can get there on the Metropolitan Line.

NOTE: This is now an Open-Ended Trip. We suggest a destination, you decide what to do there - with or without the group. Experienced walkers may suggest a few activities and walking routes, or volunteer to coordinate, and others may join. Travel and accommodation are entirely up to you.

We set up this type of event to allow participants to explore more freely and independently, and also for smaller sub-groups to form based on the different preferences. Please use the comments to either suggest your activities or join others.

If you want to help organize more regularly, or set up specific walks/events for others to join, please get in touch with "TP".

Walk Details Suggestions

Let's enjoy a day out together discovering ancient towns, listening to diverse wildlife and strolling past watercress beds as well as historical buildings -including the secret residence for high profile prisoners of World War II (now used as a conference centre...).

Here are some planned highlights of the walk...

-The town of Rickmansworth
-Latimer House, the former World War II prison for senior officials
-River walks and watercress beds
-And plenty of picturesque fields...
-This is very close to London and can be reached by Underground so we expect some flexibility.

*** Preliminary Details ***

Travel & Meeting Point
The expected start of the walk is Chesham station on the Metropolitan Line (Zone 9), the end is back in Rickmansworth (Zone 7). These are on the same Underground line, so if you plan to join by car you can travel back to Chesham from there. We will meet just outside the station, near the bicycle stands.

The Plan
We suggest to start at 11:00 AM, leave Chesham along the River Chess and follow the waterside until we reach the Watercress Cottage, continue past the Frith Wood and the secretive Latimer House (the former WW2 prison) and other highlights until we reach Rickmansworth. We will stop for small pic-nic breaks and depending on the mood of the group make minor diversions from the actual river. Before going home, we will obviously stop at a pub for a few drinks and/or a meal!

Estimated Duration:
Honestly - and as always - this will entirely depend on our group speed, ability and mood - we don't want anyone to stay behind, but with a good average pace we shouldn't walk more than 5-6 hours.

Route features:
A little more than 10.5 miles (17 km), depending on our little diversions, walking on path and occasionally off-path, there will be stiles to cross on the walk, woods, and wet and muddy sections. Gentle climbs.

What to bring:

• Plenty of water, 2 litres recommended
• Enough snacks and packed lunch to keep you energized along the walk
• Rainproof (ideally waterproof) clothing, sturdy shoes/boots you don't mind getting muddy
• Reserve socks
• Towel
• Sun protection
• Yourself...
• ...and your camera!

IMPORTANT
Please bear in mind this is a free of charge, self-guided trip with a hobby group. It is not organized by a business nor any entity with commercial purposes.
Any trip details, travel advice, route planning, instructions and other content in our group merely represent our shared personal knowledge, research and suggestions as outdoor enthusiasts. As this is no business, there is no "product", "service" or "package" and also no "tour guide", "operator" or "walk leader".
Each participant is responsible for their own safety. Even if some of us are very experienced walking outdoors, nobody assumes responsibility for any kind of injury, damage or loss that may happen.
Despite this, we take extreme precautions and all trips we plan are very safe, fun, highly educational and popular. Our experienced members volunteer their time and effort to shape a pleasant and quality adventure for everyone :-)
By participating you acknowledge and agree with this disclaimer.

Here are our tips on staying safe during outdoor trips:
https://www.meetup.com/Free-Outdoor-Trips-From-London/about/

TRAVEL, ACCOMMODATION, INSURANCE
Although we provide detailed suggestions, each participant is expected to arrange their own travel and (if required) accommodation - this gives everyone the freedom and choice to join from wherever they want and stay wherever they want. Anyone interested in travel or outdoor insurance should also arrange this on their own. As mentioned above we always take extreme precautions, but some people may still feel safer if covered.
As most of our trips are confirmed or postponed very close to the event date - heavily depending on the weather forecasts - we advise not to buy this until the last minute. People getting tickets from the same station are encouraged to meet early on the day to benefit from discounts such as GroupSave.

ABOUT THE GROUP
This Meetup group was founded by a few friends in London who enjoy the outdoors through different activities - walking, hiking, rock climbing, kayaking etc. We are originally members of the volunteer and bilingual Toastmasters club RES "Russian English Speakers" where we put together a few day walks - they attracted so many people that we decided to share our hobby with a broader audience, hence we created this new group!

Any questions, feel free to ask below or send a private message!