Tree Cathedral Walk, Dunstable Downs and Whipsnade Estate

This gentle circular from the Dunstable Downs sets off along the Chilterns escarpment, one of the highest points in Bedfordshire, with sweeping views west across the Vale of Aylesbury. The path drops away from the ridge and heads towards the Whipsnade Tree Cathedral, a quiet grove of trees, shrubs and grassy rides laid out in the plan of a cathedral, with named chapels and a central nave open to the sky.

From the Tree Cathedral the route climbs onto Bison Hill, skirting the edge of the Whipsnade Estate, before dipping into the mixed woodland of Chute Wood. A steady pull back up the scarp brings you to the Dunstable Downs Beacon, where the panorama opens out again over the patchwork of fields below.

Nearby you can extend the day with a visit to the Robertson Corner Memorial, the Sir Peter Chalmers Mitchell Memorial and the Grade I listed Lubetkin Elephant House at Whipsnade, or a quieter wander into Sallowspring Wood and past the little church of Saint Mary Magdalene.