The Chess Valley

The Chess is a shallow chalk stream which rises from three springs in the Chesham area and flows for about a dozen miles until it joins the Colne, a tributary of the Thames, near Rickmansworth.
Starting from Chesham metropolitan line station fourteen of us followed its hide-and-seek course initially through old Chesham, whose lovely ancient houses make a backdrop appearance in Mike Leigh’s recent ‘Mr Turner’ biopic – walkers did you spot this? – and then out through the less beautiful edgelands of football pitches and industrial estates. Vestiges of old corn mills and watercress beds punctuated the next section until our path emerged into open country to follow the uphill boundary of a typical Chilterns beechwood, with autumn colours, fine views and fields rolling away towards the Chess now below us in the valley. We passed Latimer House which served as an interrogation centre for senior prisoners of war including Rudolf Hess during World War II, then crossed the Chess to reach the pretty village of Chenies and our lunchtime stop at the Red Lion pub. Lunch became a little elongated as this popular pub proved even more popular than envisaged, with resulting pressures on the kitchen and our time! But the food was good.
Our path then headed back down into the valley for a last look at the Chess, passing the still productive watercress beds at Sarratt Bottom. Then uphill through the grounds of Chorleywood House and across the Common, reaching Chorleywood station as the autumn light started to fade.
The leader’s estimate for this linear walk was nine miles, but those with the technology made it just over ten on the day.