Bald Hill

The walk up Bald Hill from Watlington takes about forty minutes if you're not rushing, and frankly that's half the appeal. You're climbing properly into the Chilterns here, through beech woods that feel genuinely old, and the path is steep enough to make you work for it without being teeth-grindingly difficult. At 743 metres, it's not high by Alpine standards, but the viewpoint when you get there sweeps across the Vale of Oxford - real, uninterrupted countryside that actually feels like a view rather than just more trees.

The summit itself is fairly straightforward: open grassland, a wooden bench, and on a clear day you can see all the way to Oxford. It's the sort of place where you can properly breathe. Families with walkers aged eight upwards will find this manageable, though younger kids might grumble about the climb. History types will appreciate the earthworks - there's a Bronze Age settlement up here, though you need to know what you're looking for to spot anything concrete.

It costs nothing, and you can do the whole thing in two hours including the return walk. Go midweek if you can - weekends bring crowds from the towns. The proximity to Watlington makes it ideal for a morning walk if you're based at White Mark Glamping or Bella Vista Camping nearby. It's not a sprawling tourist attraction with facilities, which is precisely why it's worth the trip. Just proper Chilterns walking.