Walks near Cambridge by train
MapA day hike in the countryside is just a simple train journey away — explore the most charmingly located railway stations near Cambridge and plan your next day of green.
Alternatively, view walks directly from Cambridge.
Waterbeach to Ely (Cambridgeshire)
9 minutes direct from Cambridge.
Highly recommended
Waterway: two thirds beside rivers and canals.
Ely Cathedral: the 'ship of the fens', a great Norman cathedral visible for miles across the flat fenland.
Time: 5h30–11h30
2 lunch spots: the Five Miles Inn (2h–4h in), or Wren Cafe (3h–6h in)
5 end-of-walk rewards: the Cutter Inn, the Drayman's Son, the Kings Arms, the Minster Tavern, or the Prince Albert
Adapted from: The Rough Guide to Walks in London & the South East (3rd edition).
Bishop's Stortford to Harlow Town (Hertfordshire)
30 minutes direct from Cambridge.
Recommended
Waterway: four fifths along the River Stort Navigation.
Time: 4h–7h30
2 lunch spots: the Three Tuns, or Full of Beans Cafe (2h–4h in)
1 end-of-walk reward: the Moorhen
Adapted from: The Rough Guide to Walks in London & the South East (3rd edition).
Reverse direction: the Saturday Walkers Club and Slow Ways (inc. GPX).
Ely Circular (Cambridgeshire)
15 minutes direct from Cambridge.
Open fenland, flat drained farmland, long straight tree-lined farm tracks, hedge-lined meadows, river banks, dykes and catchwater drains, quayside and historic city.
Ely Cathedral: the 'ship of the fens', a great Norman cathedral visible for miles across the flat fenland.
Time: 4h
Warnings: Exposed river banks.
Walk details: the Saturday Walkers Club (tips, local insights and turn-by-turn directions).
Audley End Circular via the Cottage (pargeted house, Wendens Ambo) (Essex)
15 minutes direct from Cambridge.
Gently rolling chalky uplands, farmland, woods and copses, green lanes, field boundaries and pretty villages with thatched cottages and pargeted houses.
Time: 5h30
Walk details: the Saturday Walkers Club (tips, local insights and turn-by-turn directions).
Baldock Circular via Wallington Church (Hertfordshire)
30 minutes direct from Cambridge.
Vast flat Hertfordshire arable farmland, open field edges, big skies, gentle hills, small historic villages and patches of woodland.
Time: 5h
Warnings: Can be muddy.
Walk details: the Saturday Walkers Club (tips, local insights and turn-by-turn directions).
Hitchin Circular via Pegsdon Hills (Hertfordshire)
30 minutes direct from Cambridge.
Chilterns chalk ridge, farm tracks, field boundaries, grassy lanes, woods, steep chalk downland, flat-bottomed valleys, alder and willow fen woodland, chalk river and historic market town.
Time: 6h
Warnings: Can be hilly.
Walk details: the Saturday Walkers Club (tips, local insights and turn-by-turn directions).
Harlow Town Circular via Hunsdon (Essex)
45 minutes direct from Cambridge.
Flat, easy farmland, open fields, riverside and quiet villages.
Warnings: Can be muddy.
Walk details: the Saturday Walkers Club (tips, local insights and turn-by-turn directions).
Broxbourne Circular via Waltham Abbey (Hertfordshire)
45 minutes direct from Cambridge.
Flat river floodplain, towpaths, water meadows, lakeside paths, woodland strips, farmland fields and open parkland.
Time: 4h
Warnings: Can be muddy.
Walk details: the Saturday Walkers Club (tips, local insights and turn-by-turn directions).
Cheshunt Circular via Royal Gunpowder Mills (Hertfordshire)
45 minutes direct from Cambridge.
Flat river floodplain, gravel-pit lakes, water meadows, country park sculptures, farmland and a market town.
Time: 3h30
Warnings: Can be muddy.
Walk details: the Saturday Walkers Club (tips, local insights and turn-by-turn directions).
Knebworth Circular via Graffidge Wood (Hertfordshire)
45 minutes from Cambridge, with one change.
Undulating Hertfordshire countryside, woodland, large open arable fields, quiet lanes, deer park and pretty villages.
Warnings: Can be muddy.
Walk details: the Saturday Walkers Club (tips, local insights and turn-by-turn directions).
Watton-at-Stone Circular via Woodhall Estate (Hertfordshire)
1 hour from Cambridge, with one change.
Rolling Hertfordshire hills, farmland, woods, hedgerows and riverside path along the River Beane.
Walk details: the Saturday Walkers Club (tips, local insights and turn-by-turn directions).
Welwyn Garden City Circular via Ayot St Lawrence (Hertfordshire)
1 hour from Cambridge, with one change.
Rolling Hertfordshire countryside, landscaped parkland, arable fields, picturesque village and Gothic church ruin.
Walk details: the Saturday Walkers Club (tips, local insights and turn-by-turn directions).