Walks

Board Walk

Self Guided Walks
Guided Walks Organised by Ruislip Woods Trust
Nature Walks and Talks Organised by Ruislip and District Natural History Society

Self Guided Walks

Since 2004 the London Borough of Hillingdon (LBH) have created three walks through Ruislip Woods.

The first requirement is that each walk starts at a regular bus stop and ends at another. As the buses also call at or near underground stations, it should be possible for just about anyone in London to reach the routes on public transport without much difficulty.

The second requirement is that the walk is easy and interesting. There are a few gradients on some walks and the White Route (St Vincents Hospital site to Bury Street) is definitely easier and quicker to walk north to south than vice versa. Along the way obstacles have been removed, surfaces improved to remove impassable muddy sections and the occasional bench seat has been installed.

The third requirement is that they take between 30 and 60 minutes to complete.

The walks are as follows, each has a leaflet that you can download and print out.
These can all be found on the LBH website on the page Walks in Hillingdon

Ruislip Woods Red Route
From Wiltshire Lane to Reservoir Road (Lido car park)
Accessible by Bus Route H13

Ruislip Woods Blue Route
From Six Bells Pub to top of Ducks Hill Road
Accessible by Bus Route 331

Ruislip Woods White Route
Wiltshire Lane to Bury Street
Accessible by bus route H13

For a longer, circular route, with a little adaptation you can start at the Lido and do the White Route in reverse, followed by the Red Route to return.

Guided Walks Organised by Ruislip Woods Trust

The Trust organises a number of guided walks throughout the year. Our newsletter contains details of these guided walks; for details of how to receive this please see Join the Friends. Any non-members who want to join a guided walk should first contact secretary@ruislipwoodstrust.org.uk to ensure we are aware of numbers in advance.

The guided walks currently available are :

New Year's Day Walk
Bat Walks
Ruislip Woods Festival Guided Walks
Autumn Fungus Foray

New Year's Day Walk

The New Year's Day walk has become a popular annual event. It is also called "three woods and two hills". It starts at the Woodland Centre, Ruislip Lido. There is a stop for hot minced pies and mulled wine or soft drinks in Bayhurst Woods. Ian Cantley leads the walk and shares his wealth of knowledge about the woods along the way. The walk takes about 1 1/2 hours and ends at the Six Bells pub, on Ducks Hill Road.

Conditions are usually very wet, so you will need stout walking shoes.

There is a charge to cover the cost of refreshments.

It is particulary important that non-members wishing to join this walk should first contact secretary@ruislipwoodstrust.org.uk to ensure we provide sufficient refreshments.

Bat Walks

A bat walk takes place each year on the evening before the Festival in May. For more specific details see Events near to the time.

Numbers are restricted on this walk because too large a group of people can make it difficult to hear the bats.

The walk starts from the Woodland Centre and begins with a talk about bats. It is accompanied by experts who bring bat detectors.

For those interested in bats, please get in touch with the secretary so we can put you on our list to receive information about other bat events organised throughout the year.