Walk 1 (about 1.6 miles)
A little further on is an old bonfire site. Growing
here may be seen Verbascum plants. Carry on and
climb over the stile at the bottom. Continue on to
the road. This is The Ridgeway Path. Turn right, and
after a few minutes a track on your right leads to a
gate. Go through this, and climb over a low bar on
to Lough Down, an open grassy area with wild
flowers. Walk up a steep hill, an effort perhaps, but
one that is well worthwhile to see the view from
the top. On the Down may be seen, at the right
time of year, many chalk grassland flowers: pyramid
orchids, wild mignonette, milkwort, dropwort,
horseshoe vetch, kidney vetch, to mention but a few.
Red kites, graceful, with forked tails and red in the
sunshine are a sight worth seeing, but other birds
too, for example, green woodpeckers and skylarks,
may also be there. There used to be nightingales,
but alas no more. The chalk grassland flowers
encourage the indigenous butterflies.
Going west out of Streatley on the B4009, a
steep hill leads to a car park on the right.
Enter this and, on the left, take the footpath
to the Golf Course (beware of golf balls). From
the top of the hill enjoy the views of the Golf Course
and surrounding area, with The Ridgeway Path at the
bottom of the valley. The wide grassy areas of the
Golf Course contrast with the woods and areas of
thicket. Listen to the birds in the woods. On this
walk look for pyramid orchids, and other wild flowers
in the season. A grassy path leads downhill and then
passes through some trees. Emerging from the
wooded area, see where the path has been hollowed
out by myriads of feet over the centuries.
Look out, therefore, for the Adonis Blue and the
Chalkhill Blue, who both need the horseshoe vetch
on which to lay their eggs. The Chalkhill Blue and
Adonis Blue males are blue, the Adonis being the
darker of the two. The females are brown.
When you reach the top of the hill turn round and
admire the view. From here can be seen the Chiltern
Hills and Wittenham Clumps, with its two distinctive
clumps of trees. Didcot Power Station is in the
distance on your left.
At the right hand corner of the fence, at the top of
the hill, is a gate, which leads to Lardon Chase. Go
through it. Here, spread out before you are the
villages of Goring and Streatley, with the Thames
wending its way to Reading. Walk to the right along
the top of the hill. As you go, look to your left when,
on a fine day in the distance can be seen the Tilehurst
Water Tower, and to the left of it the wind turbine
on the M4 in Reading. Continue to the car park.
TO DIDCOT
TO WALLINGFORD
A329
7
1
A4
E
TAG
WAN
Circular Walks
Streatley Farm
Cottages
Circular Walk 1........................
Circular Walk 2........................
Open Access Land....................
Footpath (FP)...........................
Bridleway (BR).........................
Byway open to all traffic (BW)
Thames Path.............................
Ridgeway...................................
Other Paths...............................
WALLINGFORD
AD
RO
Walk 2 (about 3 miles)
STREATLEY
P
Parking......................................
A Roads.....................................
ROAD
B Roads.....................................
Minor Roads.............................
Whitcote
Tracks / Private Roads..............
Ri
urs
Co
17
A4
Playing
Field
FP 28
FP 5
STREATLEY
The
Swan
The
Bull
The Coombe
House
CO
OM
BE
EA
LL
ROAD
Y
RR
FE
FP 1
HIGH ST
FP 13
E
LAN
SE
LO
FP 24
RO
Southfields
Fairfield
AD
Hawthorns
A3
29
Long Meadow
Permitted Path
FP 1
Parsonage
Wood
AD
OR
D
Green Hill The
Common Wood
RO
STATI ON
N
MA
The Coach
House
FP 14
Fir
Copse
The
Grange
RO A
FP 15
FP 13
Youth
Coombe Bottom
Goring
B4009
ING
READ
9
B400
HILL
GARDENS
Weirs
Hostel
TH
E
R
TL
HI
EY
Goring
Lock
TO WOODCOTE
ET
STRE
HIGH
P
THAMES
Weir
BW 12
C
G
ol
National Trust
GR ANGE
f
Lardon Chase
Works
B4009
TO ALDWORTH
FP 25
P
FP 11
ST
Cleeve
Court
FP 12
r
e
Stonefield
Shaw
CLEEVE ROAD
Cleeve Court
Cottage
The Lodge
A329
FP 11
T ham
Cleeve House
Lough Down
ve
Thurle Grange
es
Sheephouse
Shaw
TOWNSEND ROAD
Club House
FP 26
FP 14
Papist
Bushes
Boat House
FP 26
Friars Ford
Holies Walk
Wood
Checkendon
Wood
FP 26
FP 27
Piggery
FP 14
er
T
ha
Ash Copse
es
m
Holies
Hanging
Ash Hill
BR 2
n
Wo
od
G
Grim’s Ditch
FP 1A
BR 2
Wood Farm
Hurdle
Shaw
Holies Shaw
High Holies
Wood
Mutton Copse
BW 9
© Crown Copyright 2009 WBC 100015913
Reproduced from the Ordnance Survey
map with the permission of the controller
of Her Majesty’s Stationery Office
TO ASHAMPSTEAD
Cartography by Vic Bates
©West Berkshire Council 2009
TO UPPER BASILDON
West Lodge
A3
RO 29
AD
TO PANGBOURNE
IN
AD
RE
wi
on
iv
Streatley Hills
Monteviot
gd
R
FP 1
Le
Cross the road from the car
park and take the path by the
National Trust sign. This is a
well-made path, initially through
wo o d s w h e re t h e re a re
bluebells in the spring. A path
from The Coombe joins on the left.
Go straight on here through a gate.
Presently, the woods, on the right
thin to reveal wide views. Continue
straight on (passing the path from
the Youth Hostel on the left), through
two more gates, and you will reach
the top of The Holies. Before you
are woods, and a wide area of chalk
grassland where different types of
orchid may be seen in the season.
Take the obvious paved path down
a steep hill. After passing through a
gate there is a steep uphill path
which, if followed, could be the place
to look for orchids. Otherwise, as
you approach the bottom of the hill,
leave the main path and follow the
curve of the hill around to the left.
Here, stop and admire the cowslips
in the season. On the right, in the
far corner of the wood, there is a
gate. Go through it to a path running
parallel with the Reading Road.
Continue on until the path runs into
the Reading Road. Cross over the
road and continue walking in the
same direction to a footpath on the
right, which leads to the High Street.
Turn left into the High Street. During
April to June the meadow on the
right, as you walk up the High Street,
has a magnificent show of yellow
bulbous buttercups. Continue up
the High Street, through the lights
and straight on. Just past the Old
School House and before you reach
a left turn to the Coombe, there is,
on the right, a gravelled track leading
to a gate at the bottom of Lardon
Chase. Go through the gate and
walk up a very steep hill. When you
reach the fence at the top, turn left
along Lardon Chase to the car park.
An alternative would be to keep on
the Reading Road, and just before
the Youth Hostel, take a left turn up
a steep track to your original path
and then turn right to the car park.