Did a mini tour ofthe Chilterns yesterday, taking in the village used in the Vicar of Dibley and the windmill used in Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, which are within a half mile of each other.
The village is called Turville and the Windmill is directly above it on top of the ridge.
This route was further west than my local Chiltern runs but I fancied seeing somewhere new. I parked up near Princes Risborough and headed off up to Bledlow Ridge where I picked up the Chiltern Way. I followed this up and through Radnage to Stokenchurch (where every other building seemed to be a pub). Coming out of Stokenchurch the route took me under the M40 motorway.
A very steep drop down into Turville (past the vicars house from V of D) then straight out the other side only to turn right up to Turville Heath. I then turned north up to Ibstone from where I dropped down into the valley containing Worksley Park with its cricket ground in the middle of nowhere. Then picked up a lovely bridleway through the woods round the back of Christmas Common that brought me out next to a bridge over the M40. This bridge is at the top of the M40 cutting that's in the opening scenes of the Vicar of Dibley.
Over the bridge then down the escarpment to pick up the Ridgeway path at one of the few drinking water points in the Chilterns. I discovered this a couple of weeks ago when I ran the Western half of the Ridgeway. It was about 50 yards from where I'd stashed a water bottle for my Ridgeway run. Needn't have bothered if I'd known the tap was there.
I soon left the Ridgeway and head back up into the Chilterns. I picked up a long slightly downhill bridleway that brought me back to Radnage where I more or less followed my route out through some lovely spring flower filled fields.
All in all a very nice 25 miler. I must get into this part of the Chilterns more often.
