Tring

Three reservoirs cluster around this Hertfordshire market town, creating an unexpectedly watery landscape that draws serious birdwatchers and casual walkers alike. Tringford, Marsworth and Wilstone reservoirs form part of the Grand Union Canal's water supply system, their concrete edges softened by decades of wildlife colonisation.

Tring itself feels quietly prosperous rather than touristy. The high street has that reassuring mix of independent shops and practical services you'd expect from a proper working town. Most visitors come for the reservoirs though - College Lake Nature Reserve offers the most polished experience with proper hides and marked trails, while the other waters feel more industrial but equally rewarding for wildlife spotting.

Climbing Westend Hill or Southend Hill gives you the full picture of this curious landscape. From up here you can see how the Chiltern escarpment drops away dramatically, with the reservoirs glinting below like scattered coins. Southend Hill Hillfort reminds you this high ground has been strategically important for millennia.

The old Chapel of Ease sits quietly in the countryside nearby, worth seeking out if you fancy a proper walk through the beech woods of Fox Covert. These Chiltern woodlands are at their absolute best in autumn when the leaves turn every shade of copper and gold.

Getting here couldn't be simpler - Tring station sits right on the West Coast Main Line from London Euston, making it dead easy for a weekend escape. The town sits perfectly positioned between the M25 and the open Chilterns, close enough to civilisation but far enough out to feel like proper countryside. Staying at one of the nearby camping spots or glamping sites gives you time to explore the reservoir circuit properly, plus easy access to Berkhamsted and the wider Chiltern Hills.