Yesterday was unseasonably warm and fine so I headed off for an epic adventure from High Wycombe to previously unvisited county town of Buckinghamshire, Aylesbury. I could have followed the sensible route and headed directly north but that would have been boring. Instead I veered east to visit the pleasant Hertfordshire town of Tring and then tacked back to Aylesbury along an extension of the Grand Union canal.

Unfortunately due to my chronic inability to estimate distance I arrived in Aylesbury rather late and had to rush for a train without exploring, rendering the whole expedition somewhat pointless. What I saw of it appeared to be a larger-than-expected traditional market town. Never mind, perhaps I can return there to start a future adventure: the fabled citadel of Milton Keynes is tantalisingly close…

The highlight of the route was this viewpoint on the top of Coombe Hill. This is the highest point in the Chilterns and you can see right over the Value of Aylesbury beyond. The monument is to casualties of the Second Boer War.

hill_scale

Another pleasant surprise was Tring reservoirs where I joined the canal and you can see in the last few photos below. Walking along the causeway surrounded by water made quite a change from forests and the whole area was incredibly peaceful at the end of the day.