8th December
When your body clock has been habituated to early morning starts Saturday lie-ins become a trial rather than a pleasure. No different today. We’re in Sarratt before sunrise, parking on the Green. It’s only then that a side effect of early morning starts becomes apparent…I’ve not been alert enough to load the correct gpx coordinates for our walk. We’ll be free-styling!
I have at the back of my mind that we were to walk north out of the village before looping back to the Chess and return to the car. Well, the route we eventually take bears no resemblance to the planned (see below)! Nevertheless the early start is rewarded by a 10-15 minute window as the sun rises over Sarratt. We walk as far as Chipperfield Common before following the footpaths to Venus Hill and Flaunden. Rumour has it Flaunden used to be at the bottom of the hill, in Buckinghamshire but, due to constant flooding, the locals decided to re-locate to Hertfordshire, at the top of the hill…makes sense to me, no decent football teams in Buckinghamshire!
These are familiar paths now and before we know it we’re back by the Chess at Chenies Bottom. Our return beside Frogmore Meadow and the water cress beds is accompanied by that beautiful, thin winter light. I may have lost the coordinates for our walk but this has been a really enjoyable 7.9 miles.
Sarratt & The Chess picture gallery (more pictures on Flickr):
Distance: 7.9 miles ; Difficulty: Moderate
Postcode for Satnav: WD3 6AS
Sarrett & The Chess walk profile
Where Angells Tread! 
I really enjoyed your walk and the wonderful sunlight. I find, that a walk like this always stay fresh in memory and lures with new mornings of the same intriguing character.
It is the epitome of tranquillity.
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Thanks Hanna.
Sometimes getting up early pays off…other times it just means one of us is complaining all the way round 🙂
Hope you’re well?
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Big smile! These are the conditions of a walk. It is the changing weather that arouses us.
We did a lovely walk in the drizzle and fog today. – But it was in the afternoon 🙂 🙂
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