Oxford CAMRA:
Pub Walk 6: Oxford Green Belt Way - Thornhill to Beckley via Forest Hill and Stanton St John

The Oxford Green Belt Way (OGBW) is a 80km/50mile circular walking route through the green belt countryside around Oxford. The route was created in 2007 by the Oxfordhire branch of the Campaign to Protect Rural England (CPRE Oxfordshire), to mark their 75th anniversary and 50 years since the creation of the Oxford green belt. This walk uses a section of the OGBW, going from Thornhill Park-and-Ride through Forest Hill (with one pub), to Stanton St John (two pubs) and then finishing at the pub in Beckley.

A couple of members of Oxford CAMRA did this walk on Saturday 5th June 2011. See below for some notes on how we got on.

Distance: 8km/5mile

Surface: bridleways, grass, field-paths, farm tracks, some pavements. Mud is a possibility in parts, if it has been wet in the days leading up to the walk. Stout, sensible footwear that you don't mind cleaning afterwards is recommended (walking boots if you have them).

Accessiblity: the route features a number of gates a couple of stiles near Stanton St John. It mostly features gently undulating countryside rather than steep climbs. The approach to Beckley involves a uphill walk rising around 40m in the space of 1.2km (120ft in three-quarters-of-a-mile).

Public Transport: the start point at Thornhill Park-and-Ride can be easily reached from central Oxford by 400 bus. Bus services at Beckley are unfortunately very sparse. The walk advertised as a branch social event was advertised with the proposal that return to Oxford or Thornhill would be by private-hire taxi cab. If you don't mind adding a further 4km/2.5mile to the distance then it is possible to walk back to Headington from Beckley, via the bridleway called "Sand Path". Up-to-date public transport details can be checked with Traveline (http://www.travelinesoutheast.org.uk/, 0871 200 22 33).

Further Information: The footpaths and bridleways that make up this walk are shown on OS Explorer Map 180. The very latest (2009) revision of the OS map has the OGBW route marked with green diamonds. CPRE Oxfordshire sell a guidebook for the Oxford Green Belt Way, described at http://www.greenbeltway.org.uk/. I bought a copy from the Tourist Information centre on Broad Street. It can be mail ordered by sending a cheque for £6 to: CPRE Oxfordshire, Punches Barn, Waterperry Road, Holton, Oxfordshire, OX33 1PP (phone 01865 874780 for details). If you would like to navigate the route by way of a hand-held GPS device, this GPX track log of the route may be of interest.

Overview map of the route.

Thornhill to the White Horse, Forest Hill

From the Park and Ride, head to the main road, turn left, then take the underpass under the road. On the other side of the A40, head over to Delbush Avenue and walk its length. At the end you will find a brideway path - turn right onto this. Follow the bridleway, crossing a stream by way of a footbridge, then turn right and walk with the stream on your right-hand side, go through a gap in the hedge ahead and carry on with a field boundary on your left.

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Forest Hill to the Star at Stanton St John

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The Talkhouse

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Stanton St John to the Abingdon Arms, Beckley

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Notes From Our Walk

Oxford CAMRA undertook this walk as a social event on Sunday 5th June 2011. The event was organised at relatively short notice, and had less advanced publicity than is normal, so I wasn't expecting a large turn-out. In the event one other branch member, Dermot Dobson, came along. We waited a few minutes to see if any stragglers would arrive, then set out together.

It was a good walking day - dry but not too bright or hot, and we made good progress through Sandhills and along the bridleway to Forest Hill. After the prolonged dry spell that we had throughout the spring the field-paths and normally muddy places around gates were easy to cross, though some artificial irrigation had obviously been taking place, because where the path into Forest Hill crosses a field of crops the earth had a decent amount of "give" in it, without being too gloopy!

On entering Forest Hill we took some forlorn photographs of The King's Arms - closed some years ago and converted into a private house, though still sporting a pub sign, and a Hall's Brewery tile plaque by the door. Having stopped briefly to pay our respects outside the ex-pub, we then turned our attention to the village's sole remaing live pub, the White Horse.

The White Horse trades principally as a Thai restaurant these days. However it still has a traditional pub bar, welcomes drinkers, and serves two real ales. When I last visited in 2010 they were serving beers from Dorset, but on the occasion of this visit both beers were from Vale Brewery (from Brill, just over the county border into Buckinghamshire) - we each had a pint of Vale Grumpling, and found it to be in good condition. The day that we were visiting happened to be the Sunday of the 2011 Big Lunch, an Eden Project inspired event that encourages people all around the country to have a community organised lunch together - the pub had a bunch of tables set up outside for the event, rather than offering its normal Sunday lunchtime service indoors.

On leaving the White Horse we set off down the lane behind the pub (dodging an unfeasibly large tanker that was attempting to manoeuvre in the space!), and then across the fields towards Breach Farm, encountering horses, cows, red kites and poppies along the way, before making our way into Stanton St John.

The first of the two pubs in Stanton St John, the Star is a Wadworth house, with a good range of that brewery's usual beers and seasonal brews. The pub was busy, both with people having Sunday lunch and with Sunday afternoon drinkers. I enjoyed a good pint of the Henry's IPA.

Our other stop in Stanton St John, the Talkhouse is another establishment that trades more as a restaurant than a pub. It serves a decent range of Fuller's beers, but there is very little provision for the drinker who does not wish to dine - what little seating there is away from the resaurant tables has more of the feeling of a "waiting for your table" area than somewhere that you would just pop in to for a quiet beer and a chat. I had the London Pride and thought that it was okay but nothing special.

Next we retraced our steps down the road, passed the Star, and headed off across a couple of fields to refind the Green Belt Way at the point where it finishes skirting Stanton Great Wood, set our sights on the Beckley TV mast, and walked along the bridleway past Woodperry House.

Joining the Woodperry Road there is then a 10 or 15 minute walk into Beckley, where we reached our last pub of the (official) walk, the Abingdon Arms. As with all of the pubs on this crawl, the food offering at the Abingdon Arms is an important part of their formula. It is quite possible to just pop in for a drink though, and the pub has a very nice terraced garden at the rear with excellent views out over Otmoor. The beers on offer were Brakspear Bitter, Brakspear Oxford Gold, and Marston's Pedigree. I had a good pint of the Gold.

Originally the walk was intended to end here, but since my only companion was a tall, long-legged, and capable walker who was more than capable of some extra distance we then walked back to Headington, making for an 8 or 9 mile day out that ended in the White Hart in St Andrew's Road. I have vague recollections of enjoying a couple of pints of a very nice Everard's seasonal beer. But I forgot to make a note of which one ...

My thanks to Dermot for coming along and keeping me company, and my apologies to anyone who might have liked to come but wasn't able to because of the hasty fashion in which I arranged the walk. Our next pub walk outing is on Saturday 20th August and starts at the Vine Inn in Cumnor at 12-noon (for 12.30 departure), and will take in the pubs of Cumnor, Bessels Leigh, Appleton and Eaton in a 5 mile circular stroll - hope to see some of you then!