Walks you can reach from Welham Green by train

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).

Gently undulating woodland, open fields, deer park, golf course, nature reserve and formal garden city streets.

Warnings: Can be muddy.

Walk details: the Saturday Walkers Club (tips, local insights and turn-by-turn directions).

A varied walk through scenic, rolling Hertfordshire countryside, mixing narrow woodland paths, broad cycle tracks, farm tracks and urban streets, with field, wood and downhill woodland sections. Lumpy and muddy underfoot in places and with gates. There is a stretch on a wide pavement beside the A414 dual carriageway. Follows the River Lee for a while and makes use of the Chain Walk. Can be split at Bayford station.

Time: 4h–8h

2 lunch spots: the Candlestick, or the Black Horse

Warnings: Includes a pedestrian crossing of the A1 and a stretch alongside the busy A414 dual carriageway, on a wide pavement set back from the road. Can be muddy.

Walk details: Slow Ways.

A pleasant walk mostly on footpaths away from roads, through woods, fields with horses and sheep, residential streets and alleyways and picking up a cycle path into Hatfield. Field paths are sometimes barely visible through harvested crops; steps and narrow rooty paths. Follows Cycle Route 12 towards Hatfield. Main roads are paved and well lit. A few minutes by train returns you to the start.

Time: 2h30–5h

1 lunch spot: the Sibthorpe Arms

Warnings: Many points where it is easy to go astray, so follow the GPS map carefully.

Walk details: Slow Ways.

The views were magnificent; good views, you can see the Shard. A varied route through fields, woods, hedged farmland tracks and picturesque villages, with steep hills around Cuffley (good views, including the Shard) and stretches of suburban and roadside walking. Frequently very muddy and marshy and especially in Morven open space and the wet field paths south of Cuffley. Passes the Leefe Robinson Memorial and Sopers Viaduct, and joins the Hertfordshire Way. Northaw is a picturesque village with a tap inside the church gate. Cuffley has shops and cafes for a refreshment stop.

Time: 4h30–9h

Lunch: Lots of refuelling opportunities in Cuffley around the half-way point.

Warnings: Many muddy and marshy sections, including waterlogged kissing gates and very muddy bridges over brooks (care needed); some narrow rooty paths; a temporary signposted detour around new road works near the New River at the Cheshunt end.

Walk details: Slow Ways.

A varied but not greatly varied route mixing suburban streets, cycle paths, hedged farm tracks through fields and woods, wooded tracks up to a picturesque village. Includes a steep 19% hill with good views and a steep downhill through woodland and plus a narrow winding rooty path. Marked paths in places have gone or are overgrown. Follows the Hertfordshire Way through Hemps Hill. Northaw is a picturesque village with a tap inside the church gate and a pub; Cuffley has shops and cafes for refreshment.

Time: 4h–8h

Lunch: Shops and cafes at Cuffley, and a pub at Northaw.

Warnings: Some marked paths have gone or are overgrown, with diversions needed around new road works. A steep 19% hill up to Cuffley, then a steep downhill through woodland.

Walk details: Slow Ways.

The rest of the walk is stunning, varied, and very enjoyable. A varied route through Hertfordshire, beginning on dull town streets and an industrial estate before reaching Panshanger Park with its meadows, woods, the River Mimram and a lake, then an undulating cut-through into Hertford. Paths are mostly good and mud-free and but narrow with a camber and several kissing gates; one stretch on Panshanger Lane has no pavement. The permissive paths through Panshanger Park are safe and quiet; long-horned cattle graze in some meadows, and wildlife includes spoonbills. No village halfway, but shops at either end and benches by the lakes.

Time: 2h30–5h30

Lunch: No facilities midway; shops at either end.

Warnings: A quarter urban. A short stretch on Panshanger Lane has no pavement and only a poor verge on a curved road; take care. A footbridge over the railway at both ends involves stairs.

Walk details: Slow Ways.

A fantastic Slow Ways route; a totally pleasant, easy to navigate, accessible, direct, and beautiful route; the complete forest bathing experience. An easy, flat route almost entirely along a disused railway line, the Alban Way, on paved and wide paths separated from traffic and shaded by trees. Accessible and suitable for all types of wheels; some find the tree-tunnel monotonous as there are no views. Follows the Alban Way disused railway almost the entire route, with displays at one of the former stations and benches to rest. Good pubs, cafes and shops at the St Albans end.

Woodland: half under tree cover.

Time: 2h30–5h

Warnings: A quarter urban.

Walk details: Slow Ways.

The countryside views are fantastic, and the scenery is extremely varied; a marvellous view of the rest of the route all the way to St Albans. A very enjoyable and varied route with a mix of fields, woodland, lanes, tracks and urban residential estates, plus a riverside walk; mostly good path and road or pavement with some muddier track and one or two extra-muddy fields. No pavement-less B-roads and all road crossings safe except one. Marvellous mid-point view across to St Albans. Rich wildlife (skylark, woodpecker, red kites, butterflies) and varied features including an air museum, a fishery and a gravel-extraction conveyor belt. Pubs at South Mimms and Tyttenhanger, plus a picnic area and WC at the Willows Lakes fishery. Note St Albans High Street is on the far side of the station.

Time: 4h–8h30

Lunch: Pubs at South Mimms and Tyttenhanger split the route into thirds, plus picnic area and toilets at the Willows Lakes fishery.

Warnings: The crossing of the A414 is uncontrolled on a dual carriageway with fast traffic, though there is a central median so you only cross two lanes at a time; some narrow kissing gates and barriers along the route, and a fair bit of mud in winter.

Walk details: Slow Ways.

Lovely views over the Lea Valley; Excellent views over the rolling countryside. A route through some nice scenery, following an old railway path (the Ayot Greenway) on compacted grit, plus a river walk, rolling hills and farmland, with the lovely Sherrardspark Wood near Welwyn. Largely free of mud thanks to sand and gravel over chalk; hills, narrow paths and kissing gates and steps. Follows the Ayot Greenway, a former railway bed, with views over the Lea Valley; passes Sherrardspark Wood; there is a picnic spot en route.

Woodland: two fifths under tree cover.

Time: 3h30–6h30

Lunch: Plenty of food and drink at both ends; Wheathampstead has a Tesco Express, cafes and pubs, and a farm cafe at Croft Farm (check opening hours).

Warnings: The roads at Ayot Green can flood after heavy rain.

Walk details: Slow Ways.

A fairly direct route making the most of wooded footpaths and quieter streets at both ends, with field boundaries, a golf-course edge and a track under the M25. There is around a mile to a mile and a half alongside the noisy A1 and plus a stretch of road without a verge; a few muddy patches and a tunnel under the motorway that may flood. Follows part of Cycle Network 12; South Mimms services, passed en route, has all facilities and picnic benches for a break. Passes Elstree Studios.

Time: 3h–6h30

Lunch: South Mimms services, passed en route, has all facilities.

Warnings: Follows a busy road for a sixth of the walk. About a mile and a half is spent alongside the noisy A1 (on a safe cycle path), and there is a half-mile stretch of road with no verge; the tunnel under the M25 may flood occasionally.

Walk details: Slow Ways.

Quiet suburban roads and a small woodland path out of Potters Bar, then lanes that become field paths, crossing the A1(M) and M25 and various fields with kissing gates of varying condition. Woodland near the Radlett end with a steep road descent into the town. Narrow paths and dozens of gates. St Giles' & St Margaret's church in Ridge has a water tap near the front entrance. Shenley has a bench and a Post Office/shop. Probably more scenic in summer.

Time: 2h30–5h30

Lunch: Shenley, roughly mid-route, has a Post Office/shop.

Warnings: Field paths change as the farmer ploughs, and a couple of recently drilled fields had no visible path; there is a short 21m stretch with no path where care is needed. Not all kissing gates are in good condition. Dozens of gates and narrow paths.

Walk details: Slow Ways.