Walks you can reach from Shiplake by train

Beginner-friendly: Cross the river, make sure it’s on your left, and keep walking all the way to Marlow! You can't go wrong.

Waterway: two thirds along the River Thames.

Time: 3h30–6h30

Lunch: There’s nowhere to eat en route so either pack a lunch or eat in Marlow at the end — there are many cafés, pubs and restaurants there.

4 end-of-walk rewards: the Bull Inn, the Old Brewery, the Prince of Wales, or the Marlow Donkey

Warnings: Very popular and busy. Be warned that the river bank is prone to flooding, making sections of the route impassible — if that happens there will be many other ramblers who you can follow for the alternative route.

Adapted from: The Rough Guide to Walks in London & the South East (3rd edition).

Similar walk: Slow Ways (inc. GPX).

Highly recommended: Thames towpath, open riverside meadows, quaint brick-and-flint hamlet, ancient woodland, wooded hillside terraces, parkland estate and Georgian market town.

Woodland: a fifth under tree cover.

Time: 5h–10h

1 lunch spot: the Stag and Huntsman (2h–3h30 in)

2 end-of-walk rewards: the Bull on Bell Street, or the Old Bell

Warnings: Can be muddy.

Adapted from: Time Out Country Walks Volume 1.

Similar walk: the Saturday Walkers Club.

Highly recommended: Thames riverside, ancient streets, broad valleys, beech woods, fields, small villages, alpaca farm and toll bridge.

Woodland: two fifths under tree cover.

Time: 5h–10h30

1 lunch spot: the Red Lion (1h30–3h30 in)

1 end-of-walk reward: the Greyhound

Warnings: Can be muddy.

Adapted from: Time Out Country Walks Volume 1.

Similar walk: the Saturday Walkers Club.

Flat Thames towpath, riverside parks, wooded sections, pasture fields, meadows and riverside gardens.

Waterway: four fifths along the River Thames.

Time: 4h–8h

Warnings: Flood risk sections.

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

Similar walk: Slow Ways (inc. GPX).

Undulating, stile-free woods and fields on the Chiltern Way, past a listed Victorian wellhead and a walled-garden viewpoint.

Woodland: a fifth under tree cover.

Rebecca's Well: a grade II listed Victorian wellhead depicting Rebecca at the well of Nahor, embellished by a 19th-century curate of Wargrave.

Time: 2h–4h

Warnings: Tree roots can be a trip hazard in the woods.

Walk details: Round Reading Walk.

A mostly flat route following the Thames Path from Henley via Shiplake to Sonning and then looping back on the opposite bank along a narrow grassy path to Charvil and a pavement walk into Twyford. The Thames Path is a rough track in places and can get quite muddy and rutted. Some steps and narrow gates. Follows the Thames Path National Trail for much of its length. To enjoy the 2020 loop of the Thames Path through Shiplake, turn left off Mill Road soon after the pub and duck under the railway. Many private-property signs line the Thameside section.

Waterway: three fifths along the River Thames.

Time: 4h–7h30

Lunch: A choice of amenities in Sonning.

Warnings: Crossing a really busy roundabout with no pedestrian crossing on the approach to Twyford. The Thames Path can get muddy and rutted. Steps and narrow gates.

Walk details: Slow Ways.

Fine views, big skies with kites. A varied and beautiful walk through woods, fields, deer parks and manicured parkland, with hills, fine views and many red kites, ending with suburban streets into Maidenhead. Good paths but lots of stiles and kissing gates, narrow rooty paths and steep in places; squelchy and likely very muddy in winter. Follows parts of the Chiltern Way and Thames Path; High Wood is managed by the Berkshire College of Agriculture, which asks walkers to keep to the designated path.

Time: 5h–9h30

3 lunch spots: the Olde Bell, the Honey Pot, or the Rising Sun

Warnings: Several stiles and kissing gates; narrow rooty paths, steep in places, can get very wet and muddy in winter.

Walk details: Slow Ways.

A largely riverside route following the River Kennet and then the Thames Path for a long stretch and with open fields and shaded paths. A narrow path past Sonning Lock with barbed-wire fences can become muddy in wet weather; the approach to Twyford is on a metalled road and through a country park. Follows the Thames Path and the Oscar Wilde Memorial Walk past the walls of Reading Gaol; passes Reading Abbey ruins and Abbey Gardens. A detour through Charvil Country Park gives respite from the main road.

Waterway: two thirds along the River Thames.

Reading Abbey: the ruins of a major medieval abbey founded by Henry I, beside the former Reading Gaol where Oscar Wilde was imprisoned.

Time: 3h–5h30

Lunch: Refreshments available at Sonning, roughly midway.

Warnings: An unavoidable stretch of the A3032 Old Bath Road has a narrow pavement near Twyford, and there is an annoying crossing of the A4.

Walk details: Slow Ways.

A pleasant route starting with a little street walking before public footpaths and the Chiltern Way, through fields and lovely forest, then a long stretch on quiet lanes that were once drovers' roads, with some steep inclines and declines through woods. Narrow and sheltered footpaths and a churned-up bridleway near Henley can be muddy in wet weather. Follows the Chiltern Way Extension in the early part. Woodcote has a convenience store and cafe.

Woodland: a third under tree cover.

Time: 5h–10h

Lunch: Several pubs along the route.

Warnings: Steep steps down to and up from the slightly busy and dangerous A4074 crossing. Narrow, sheltered footpaths and a bridleway near the Henley end become muddy in wet conditions.

Walk details: Slow Ways.

An absolutely gorgeous series of woodland, field and lane; Slow Ways don't get better than this. A flat but varied route, mainly traffic-free and quiet, through town footpaths, fields and woods, taking in a rural middle section between Ruscombe and Lillibrooke Manor with pretty villages and old manors and historic churches. Many parts can be very muddy after rain; some stiles and kissing gates. Passes a landscaped estate at Shottesbrooke where sheep graze. The earliest pub heading from Maidenhead is at Waltham St Lawrence, just over six miles in.

Time: 4h–8h

2 lunch spots: the Bell, or the Beehive

Warnings: The route just south of Southbury Farm runs very close to a river and is commonly flooded, with no path where one is marked; an alternative also floods badly after heavy rain. At Lillibrooke Manor the right of way runs alongside the gravel drive, not up it, but is poorly signed and can lead walkers into private grounds. Plenty of mud after rain.

Walk details: Slow Ways.

A largely off-road walk across Berkshire farmland, using town green spaces, byways, country lanes and field paths, with several stretches of unavoidable road walking. The field and woodland paths can be narrow and uneven and very muddy after rain.

Time: 4h–7h30

2 lunch spots: the Shurlock Inn, or the Stag and Hounds

Warnings: Mud is a real problem here, even after dry spells. Some road and verge walking is unavoidable, including a stretch alongside Maidenhead Road if the private Billingbear Park crossings are blocked. Footpaths can be narrow and lined with thorny bushes.

Walk details: Slow Ways.

A pleasant route that more or less follows the River Loddon and with a half-mile of street walking out of Twyford and an unappealing pavement stretch into Wokingham along suburban streets and the busy Reading Road. The footpath through the Loddon Nature Reserve and along the river is rough in places and can be very muddy. Skirts Dinton Pastures Country Park. Passes through the Loddon Nature Reserve and skirts Dinton Pastures Country Park; starting from Winnersh shortens the dull initial stretch.

Loddon Nature Reserve: a former gravel-pit reserve between the River Loddon and a lake at Twyford, rich in wildlife with boardwalk paths.

Time: 3h–5h30

Lunch: There is also a café beside the main lake at Dinton Pastures Country Park, a short detour off the route.

Warnings: Follows a busy road for a sixth of the walk. A fallen tree may block the path close to Twyford. The Wokingham end runs next to the busy Reading Road. Can be muddy.

Walk details: Slow Ways.