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Ramsden - Akeman Street - Leafield - Cockshoothill Copse - Chilson - Ascott-under-Wychwood - Kingstanding Farm - Five Ash Bottom - Leafield - Pay Lane - Akeman Street - Ramsden
Approximately 14 miles; 4½ - 5½ hours
Leave Ramsden War Memorial by the Roman Road (Akeman Street), passing the church on your left. The road runs straight for about one mile and ends at the T-junction with the B4022. Turn left and walk down the B4022 for about 50 yards. Take the track on your right that leads uphill to a 5-barred wooden gate.
The path now runs straight ahead of you through broad fields passing Chasewood Farm on your right. This was a model farm built by the Duke of Marlborough in the 19th century. Continue straight ahead (after the farm you may notice traces on your left and right of an old World War II airfield).
The path now drops down to meet a country road marked Crawley (left) and Leafield (straight ahead); you turn sharp right and follow the narrow road for about 350 yards (signed 'Orchard Farm'). When the road swings sharp left to Leafield, you leave it and carry straight ahead along the marked path.
This is a narrow path between tall hedges. After just under a mile you will reach Greenwich Farm on your right and two houses on your left, Woodlands Cottage and Greenwich Lodge.
Continue along Greenwich Lane to the main road. Turn left (The Pearl Restaurant) and take the next turning right (sign-posted to Chadlington).
Follow this road for about 1½ miles as it skirts the western boundary of Wychwood Forest on your right. (Note - the road drops down and, at the bottom of the hill, there is a path signed to the left - this is your return route - but for now stay on the road and continue up hill, sharp left and sharp right). As soon as woodland appears on your left, prepare to leave the road for a footpath. The road will descend, then climb and you will see two wooden gates more or less opposite each other on either side of the road. Pass through the left-hand gate and follow the path for a couple of hundred yards. Fork right, keeping woodland on your left and open field on your right. After another couple of hundred yards you reach a clearing and crossroads. Turn left and immediately right. An obvious path now leads through the woods and two fields down to the main Charlbury/Burford road.
Turn right at the main road and almost immediately left for the hamlet of Chilson. Just after entering Chilson, turn into 'School Lane' on the left (marked bridle-way). After the last cottage on the right, cross one field, turn left, then immediately right at corner of field and straight on for space of two fields. Turn right and follow hedge on your left to far corner of field. Cross next field diagonally to reach outskirts of Ascott-under-Wychwood.
There is one pub in Ascott-under-Wychwood - the Swan (for sale at time of writing – April 2012).
From the centre of the village, take the road south and pass uphill to reach the main Burford/Charlbury road again. Immediately opposite is a road/track marked Leafield. Take this road/track to Kingstanding Farm, leading you almost straight through open country and past the farm back to join the Chadlington road that you took earlier from Leafield. On reaching the road, turn right and follow it back to The Pearl Restaurant and then turn right down Greenwich Lane. At Greenwich Farm, turn left onto the footpath (Pay Lane) through woods to New Found Out Farm and the B4022. After emerging from the farmyard you will see the Roman Road in front of you. Follow it back to the centre of Ramsden.