Max and Russell explore the woods and commons of the rolling Chiltern Hills for a fun yet peaceful ride around Yattendon in Berkshire
With a maze of tight, twisting singletrack trails and wide-open common land, this little-known area of the Chilterns is perfect for an adventure down south
Spring is finally starting to show us some signs of how glorious this country and its riding can be when we have a bit of warmer, drier weather. At the time of writing we’re still under lockdown restrictions, so we’ve decided to explore some nearby trails in a quiet part of the Chilterns. I’ve sorely missed the adventure that riding far-flung locations provides, but discovering new local routes, independent cafes and microbreweries has certainly been a positive.
Although our ride is in a lesser-known area of the Berkshire countryside for bikers, it’s pretty popular with horses, so it’s best left alone in the winter because the ground gets poached. However, with the trails finally drying out, a plan is hatched and we converge in Yattendon, a twee little village with easy access from the M4. It also happens to be home to a great little cafe for pre-ride refreshment. Quite remarkably, there’s also a bike shop here, a couple of great pubs and a brilliant brewery complete with tap room and food. With another excellent cafe partway around the ride, in Chapel Row, we’ve got it all planned out.
Common people
Leaving Yattendon behind, Russell and I roll along the quiet roads, stretching our sleepy, winterweakened legs. Just past The Pot Kiln pub, with its fabulous game and wild food restaurant, a short,
OUR FIRST EXPLORATION OF BUCKLE BURY COMMON TAKES US THROUGH DENSELY PACKED TREES, WEAVING BETWEEN THE TRUNKS UNTIL WE EVENTUALLY EMERGE GRINNING AND PANTING
gentle climb completes the warm-up as we peel off the road. A gradually descending forest track subsequently encourages us to rid ourselves of rusty winter handling skills, and as our confidence grows so does our speed, until we’re spat out the far end feeling refreshed and reinvigorated. Crossing the bottom of the valley and the River Pang, we climb to Bucklebury Common, which is home to some good trails, and has a pretty interesting history too.
Wartime legacy
Thanks to the efforts of Reverend John Morton (1788-1871), who fought a bill in 1834 to enclose the area, which would have rid commoners of their rights to graze livestock there, Bucklebury Common remains open to the people. It did close during the Second World War, however, when it was requisitioned by the army, who moved the topsoil to create a hard surface where they could store and assemble vehicles and equipment for the D-Day landings. Huts were also built for American servicemen. After the war, the land was opened back up and people rendered homeless by the conflict moved into the accommodation.
The common covers some 600 acres, making it one of the biggest in South East England, and with the land being unsuitable for growing crops, it’s largely been left as wasteland or woodland – good news for us MTBers. It mostly runs along a gravelly ridge between the Pang and Kennet river valleys, with the top being gravel and the lower land being clay. A long straight road through the middle dissects the common, with a broadleaf woodland of oak, ash and beech to the north, and a more open heathland to the south. The road serves as a useful navigational aid, because it’s easy to lose your sense of direction as you explore the myriad trails that meander across Bucklebury Common. Although riddled with byways and bridleways, there are also a number of singletrack trails, often alongside the roads and byways. Please be aware that while mountain biking may be tolerated here, it’s still only a legal right to ride your bike on byways and bridleways.
Into the labyrinth
As we reach the top of our climb we enter the common, passing one of the many hidden houses nestled deep within the woods. Our first exploration of Bucklebury Common takes us through densely-packed trees along the northern edge of the road, weaving between the trunks until we eventually emerge grinning and panting at the village of Chapel Row. There’s a great cafe here, but we’ve got a taste for the trails now so ignore temptation and continue straight onto the loop over the road and down a driveway, which soon gives way to a nice little flowy singletrack descent with roots to pop off and dips to compress and pump through. As we reach the bottom it’s more a case of ploughing through a horse-churned mudfest, however, and to round it off Russell
THE DRIVE WAY SOON GIVES WAY TO A NICE LITTLE FLOW Y SINGLE TRACK DESCENT WITH ROOTS TO POP OFF AND DIPS TO COMPRESS AND PUMP THROUGH
catches his hand on some freak gigantic bramble, which tears both glove and skin.
With the sun shining, the return leg on the southern, more open, side of the common allows us to make the most of its warmth, although the firmer ground still holds some standing water. There are a few criss-crossing trails through here, which don’t always seem to line up with the OS map, but you can’t get too lost if you do get distracted and go off-piste. Eventually coming out by Upper Bucklebury, we pay a visit to the pump track for a play, but it’s closed for winter repairs.
I love my navigational tools, and they’re about to really prove their worth now because we’re soon wiggling and weaving along a labyrinth of singletrack trails that dive in and out of the trees. If you can relax and go with it, it’s good fun and adds to the sense of freedom and adventure – something we’ve all been missing for a while.
A taste of freedom
Dropping down the hillside now, we leave Bucklebury Common behind us and are immediately reminded that we’re still barely into the spring – with most tracks still pretty wet, the horses have been making a muddy mush of them. We try to pick our way around the worst of the gloop before quickly losing patience with that and diverting around Westrop Green on a byway. Then we pick up a firm forestry track that allows us to pick up the pace, as much as our tired legs will allow. After the fun but frantic riding that twists and turns through the common, it’s nice to spin our legs out with some consistency and cover the ground quickly once more. Before we know it, we’re looking down at the M4, but its usual powerful roar is more of a gentle hum today, which quickly disappears behind us as we’re met with the sight of large, grand houses on the hillside ahead.
How the other half live
I love having a nose around on aerial maps of this part of the world, eyeing up the sprawling properties and the staggering number of swimming pools in their back gardens. It’s not surprising there are so many horses around here, either, as they need something to put in their grounds, after all. After dropping down through Hawkridge Wood we pop out again by The Pot Kiln. Sadly we can’t stop for a meal because we’re too early for the re-opening of hospitality, but I can treat Russell to a play on some jumps and berms on Frilsham Common before we finish for the day.
As restrictions start to lift, and we’re able to see the light at the end of a long, wet winter tunnel, it not only feels like a new year but, in many ways, a new beginning. Today has provided some really great riding and a liberating sense of freedom, and has reaffirmed for me that you don’t always need to go too far to have a proper adventure. That said, I still can’t wait for the lockdown to lift properly, just so we can get a post-ride pint in! Now that’ll be worth the wait…