Countryside Management Service

Watling Chase Timberland Trail

A 17 km walk into the past and the heart of Watling Chase Community Forest

Distance:	Total distance 17 km (10.5 miles)
Time:	4 hours
Rating:	Moderate. Many parts unsuitable for pushchairs or wheelchairs
Starting point:	(see text for further details) Elstree and Borehamwood Station show me on a map The Alban Way, near Hatfield show me on a map

Route description

The Watling Chase Timberland Trail is approximately 17kms (10½ miles) long. It passes through the most varied and beautiful landscapes between Borehamwood to the south and St. Albans and Hatfield to the north. The Trail is mainly based around public footpaths and is therefore suitable for walkers only.

The complete walk is covered in the downloadable PDF leaflet. In order to see the detail from the illustrated map on these web pages, it has been split into three sections - click on a section below to see the detail of each part:

• Part 1 - Elstree and Borehamwood Station to Shenley.
• Part 2 - Shenley to London Colney.
• Part 3 - From London Colney to Smallford, near Hatfield.

How to get there:

Public transport

There are regular trains between Elstree and Borehamwood station and St. Albans City station while buses run between St. Albans and Smallford. The Timberland Trail also passes through London Colney and Shenley and there are some bus links to these villages as well. Call the Hertfordshire Traveline on 0870 6082608 for more information

By Car

You may join the Trail anywhere along its length. For easy access or parking, try joining at one of the following locations.

Elstree and Borehamwood Station (Grid ref. TQ 190 963): show me on a map
From the station take the steps up to Allum Lane. Cross Allum Lane and walk to your left and then just follow the signs. There are plenty of pubs and restaurants in the nearby town centre. The Trail links up with the London Outer Orbital Path (LOOP) on Allum Lane. This is a 240km (150 mile) walk around the perimeter of London. Leaflets are available from Borehamwood Library.

Shenley Park (Grid ref. TL 181 005): show me on a map
Includes an impressive walled garden, cricket ground and tea rooms. Buses run from nearby Radlett station and stop outside the park on Radlett Lane. From Radlett Lane enter Shenley Park and turn right into the car park and follow the signs.

Bowmansgreen Farm (Grid ref. TL 189 041): show me on a map
Parking is available and buses stop at nearby London Colney to provide a link to train stations at Hatfield and St. Albans. Access is available from Coursers Road.

The Alban Way (Grid ref. TL 202 073): show me on a map
There is a small car park that you may use on Smallford Lane (Grid ref. TL 198 072). The Alban Way is part of the SUSTRANS national cycle network. There are bus stops on Smallford Lane. Nearby St. Albans Abbey and City stations and Hatfield station provide access to the national rail network. Alban Way leaflets are available from libraries in Hatfield and St. Albans.

Finding the way:

The route is well waymarked throughout. You may follow these signs in either direction.

Comfortable clothing and sturdy footwear is essential and you may want to take a drink or a snack. There are pubs along the route and in the nearby villages of Shenley, London Colney and Sleapshyde. Refreshments are available at Shenley Park and Bowmansgreen Farm at selected times.

The Watling Chase Timberland Trail is one of twelve trails in each of the Community Forests that have been funded by a partnership between Timberland (UK) Ltd and the Countryside Agency.

This Trail has been realised through the joint efforts of the Countryside Management Service, Groundwork Hertfordshire and Hertsmere Borough Council.

Watling Chase Community Forest is a long-term initiative to improve the countryside around the towns of south Hertfordshire and north London. The initiative focuses on environmentally-led activities for the benefit of all that live, work and play in the area.

*Timberland and the Timberland tree symbol are registered trademarks

Rights of Way symbols you might see

	Yellow arrows indicate footpaths for pedestrian use only
	Blue arrows indicate bridleways for horse riders, cyclists and pedestrian use only
	Red arrows indicate Byways Open to All Traffic (BOAT) for horse riders, cyclists and pedestrians and may be legally used by other wheeled vehicles
	Black arrows indicate Roads Used as Public Paths (RUPP) for horse riders, cyclists and pedestrians and may be legally used by other wheeled vehicles

More about Rights of Way

Maps

This map is based on Ordnance Survey material with the permission of Ordnance Survey on behalf of the controller of Her Majesty's Stationery Office © Crown copyright. Unauthorised reproduction infringes Crown copyright and may lead to prosecution or civil proceedings. Hertfordshire County Council 100019606 2004.

The Ordnance Survey mapping included within this web-site is provided by Hertfordshire County Council under licence from the Ordnance Survey in order to fulfill its public function to provide information relating to its activities, services and plans. Persons viewing this mapping should contact Ordnance Survey copyright for advice where they wish to license Ordnance survey mapping for their own use.

See the Ordnance Survey site for more information.

This is is one of a series of walks through the Chilterns Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) supported by the Chilterns Conference.

Please be considerate in the countryside - keep to footpaths, especially through crops, and leave farm gates as you find them.

You can join us or a local community group as a volunteer, carrying out practical activities such as coppicing, hedge laying, improvements to footpaths. More....

The Countryside Management Service (CMS) has been working with communities in Hertfordshire for 30 years, helping them to care for and enjoy the environment.