Burwit one

Verified Slow Way

Verified by 100.00% of reviewers

Direction of walk: Burford to Witney in late summer.

Starting on a relatively quiet road from Burford town centre there is some road walking with no footpath until you reach the first clearly marked footpath across the water meadows. In winter, and often autumn and spring, these meadows flood so be aware that you might need to continue using the road all the way to Widford. In fact, most of this route tracks alongside the river Windrush, so flooding is possible, although not necessarily visible until you reach the problem.

As you reach the first stile, you are alongside the oxbow bend, famously described by Roger Deakin in Waterlog. Under no circumstances attempt to repeat his wild swimming feat, as the Windrush is now too heavily polluted due to sewage spills and the hilarious biannual raft race between Swinsbrook and Asthall has had to be suspended. One of the stiles between Burford and Widford is a bit rickety but quite manageable. Newly created stone-filled gabions make an otherwise muddy area very easy to cross. The path up to Widford was narrow and a little overgrown at the time of walking.

After the cattle grid, there is a sweeping track across the fields between Widford and Swinbrook. Do deviate up to St Oswald’s, a mediaeval church on the site of a roman building, still in regular use and with fascinating visitors’ book entries from across the world.

You arrive in Swinbrook via the churchyard, another possible stopping point to admire the 17th century Fettiplace monuments inside the church. The stretch from Swinbrook to Worsham is easy walking in open countryside. The path from Worsham to Old Minster I found the least appealing, a relatively underused path alongside arable fields with ankle-twisting potential, plus a steep part at Foxhole Bottom that required some limbo contortions to get under various fallen trees. Be aware of the very final stretch of road into Old Minster. It is a 20mph limit but narrow and busy at times.

Once you have passed the idyllic and peaceful Minster Lovell ruins on the far side of the cricket pitch, there is a stretch of pleasant field walking until you steeply climb up out of the valley. The road crossing gives good visibility in both directions, but beware as it is a fast road at this point.

The final stretch into Witney is easy walking, the only challenge being which of the many paths up into the new housing estates to take. In essence it doesn't matter, unless you are being purist about the route, as all take you to the same main road. I found the right track up further along than I had imagined, but very clear when I got there, close to the old blanket mill chimney.

After that you have a gentle walk through into the centre of Witney. Choose a spot to linger on Church Green or dive into one of the many cafes for refreshment after your walk.

It starts off in Witney with a road walk through the town, followed by mostly fields and a small patch of woodland. Be prepared for a small section of muddy trail. The route passes straight through the English Heritage site Minster Lovell Hall, which is a point of interest that's worth seeing. What follows is mostly road walking; some parts of the route have no pedestrian path, but it’s a quiet road, as noted in other comments. Overall, it is a pleasant walk with minimal elevation.

The path follows a circular walk path for a fair bit, and the route is quite well maintained. Even when walking through fields there is a clear path where one could follow. There is a short portion where due to erosions and rain the ground became very wet and muddy, with some exposed tree roots and trunks hindering progress. Overall a fairly decent path to walk on.

As the earlier reviewers have noted, this is predominantly off road, and where the route follows roads, they are quiet. I also agree with an earlier reviewer's point about the slightly wobbly stiles - nothing I'd call dangerous, but do take care. These stiles and the kissing gates towards Witney, along with the possibility of mud and some short steep sections render this route unsuitable for wheels. But it's very pleasant, following the Windrush valley, with significant sections either close to or crossing the river itself. It touches on, rather than passes through, a number of villages along the way (but a short detour may be worth it if you need refreshment, either to one of the village pubs, or the Minster Lovell Sports and Social Club, whose picnic tables invite you to purchase something if they're open. You might even be able to watch a cricket match there). The route also passes straight through the English Heritage site of Minster Lovell Hall.

Bit of road walking but only on quiet roads. Can get very soggy in winter. Not including witney and burford there are 4 pubs along this walk.

Nice walk, mostly through fields and woodland, with some walking along very quiet roads. Some of the stiles (especially near Burford) are a little wobbly or under-maintained, so care is advised.

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