Barley and Barkway Circular

It is a short drive to Barley from Duxford; Barley is now in the north corner of the county of Hertfordshire; the Prime Meridian passes close to Barley. A well known landmark in the village is the sign of The Fox and Hounds public house; another interesting sign is on a building which used to be a blacksmiths and was then used to repair vintage cars.

After parking, we walk to the War Memorial and follow the footpath and then road towards Smith End Farm. Here we cut across fields to the B1039 Barkway road; after a short walk along this we take the path across a paddock and then along a copse down to a lane. Further on, as we enter a field we see a large dead tree - it is still magnificent. This whole area is the Newsells Park Stud Farm and we bypass the entrance drive to this 1,200 acre estate which has "an international reputation for raising, selling and racing thoroughbreds of the highest class". We proceed down a bridleway and enjoy views of some of the horses grazing in the fields with the RAF Barkway Mast in the background; a little further on, looking back, we see an obelisk on the estate grounds - this was "erected by Sir Hugh Rose, later Lord Strathnairn, in memory of his favourite charger, which had carried him well during the Indian Mutiny."

We reach Barkway and walk down the High Street, part of the old London to Cambridge coaching route (see post for Barkway and Reed Loop)..

At the end of the village we take the footpath past Earl's Wood and eventually reach Messop's Grove, another wood on the way back to Barley; there is a long track to the village and there are good views - including that of the windmill at Great Chishill, one of only seven open trestle postmills in the UK.Read more