Gentle walk around the Saxon ring village of Holywell

Good points of this walk (click map to enlarge) are

• Easy walking of about 2.5 miles
• A mostly circular walk
• Good mix of woodland, farmland and village landscapes
• Peaceful churchyard
• Ancient monument
• Saxon ring village
• Beautiful cottages along Holywell Front
• The Old Ferry Boat inn is reputedly the oldest pub in the country, with resident ghost

Not so good are the coffee in the Old Ferry Boat Inn, tastes like instant… oh, and before ordering food you might want to check out reviews.

Start this walk at the car park indicated on the map. Walk to the back of the car park where a gate indicates the start. Follow the path through woods and around the playing fields. When you arrive at the track heading up to Holywell Spinney and the road, turn the other way to the left, walking on the far side of the hedge towards a wooded area at the bottom of the field. Follow the path to the right. Note the ancient trees in the hedge to the left.

The path will continue for a couple of hundred yards and then turn right, now taking you along the opposite side of the field mentioned above. When you come out onto the road turn left towards Holywell.

After a short distance you’ll come to the village. The road to the right will take you in a rough circle around the village. Take the opportunity to pop into the church grounds and sit for a few peaceful moments on the bench to the right, a great spot to rest for a few minutes in the shade of trees. If you’re lucky you’ll see a robin, various tits and a green woodpecker.

Continue to walk through the church grounds and you’ll come upon the ancient well that gives Holywell its name. The ground to the left of the well is cultivated for the benefit of visitors, particularly children.

The walk through the church brings you back to the road. If you’re feeling frisky, to the right is a short diversion across farmland to a peaceful spot on the Great Ouse.

Continuing along the road you’ll head downwards to Holywell Front, where beautiful cottages look across water meadows. At the end of the Front is the Old Ferry Boat inn. Best to avoid at weekends… the garden is crammed with picnic tables and it’s very busy at weekends. But on a quiet and sunny weekday there are few places better to be, sitting on the front overlooking the river. Just a pity their coffee isn’t very good, and the food gets some poor reviews.

If you’re feeling very energetic follow the Ouse Valley Way footpath past the Old Ferry Boat. This will take extend the walk to one of about six miles, first taking you to the Pike and Eel Hotel, and then to Needingworth before returning back to the car park.

To continue on the original route, return to the village road and follow it up past the Old Ferry Boat car park and round to where you first met the village. You can then return back to the car park.

Read the Wikipedia entry for Holywell here.

Read a summary of the history of the village here.

Read much more historical detail of the village here.