For the Easter weekend walk, I thought I would pioneer a SlowWays walk, followed by a nice one to verify. I settled upon pioneering a route from Cobham to Woking, and then continuing to Addlestone.

For once, the route did not start at a train station, and instead I had to walk about a mile from Cobham & Stoke D'Abernon station. It was mostly along some fields, where I was being harassed by an annoying ankle biter when trying to put my coat away. It was such a lovely and warm day that I didn't actually ended up needing one. Once I got the dog and coat situation under control it was a short continuation to the start, at Cobham's clock on the High Street.

After leaving Cobham's High Street I walked along a slightly busy road, but only for a short while. Soon after crossing the river Mole (by bridge), the walked turned across pasture which was fairly soggy, but not too much to cause a problem for walking.

After a few stiles and bridges across streams I ended up in a very muddy field with two horses who luckily kept their distance, before emerging on the quiet Pointers Road, with no traffic beyond a runner. There I encountered a sign in Welsh (Gardd Triongl), a little unexpected in Surrey, but it was apt, as it pointed towards a very triangular garden. Not much after that I spotted a brilliantly placed red postbox in fresh new green sprouts in the woods.

My walk then crossed the M25 on a footbridge, before going up steep through some woods. At the top I found a family pick-nicking at Semaphore Tower.

The tower is located on the east side of Chatley Heath, which my walked crossed. The paths here were are all easy going across sandy and chalky paths of the fairly open heath. At the west end, I had to go through some more woods, and ended up at a cleared space around the A3 crossing.

Here lots of paths have now disappeared, requiring me to propose a new version of the SlowWays route: Wokcob three. My walk then continued along the lovely Wisley Common with a pond, and around some fields, before ending up at the little village of Wisley. Here I crossed the river Wey, and ended up at my first golf course of the walk. The route through it was easy going along asphalted paths.

After I crossing the River Way Navigation and its lock I ended up at my second golf course. On this one I couldn't follow the golf cart tracks, but instead I had to walk on the verges of fairways, and cross them sometimes. I was not hit on the head by golf balls luckily.

After leaving the golf course I ended up on open land with power lines above me. Although there was a narrow section with an electric fence on one side, the walk past the fields was easy going, although there was quite a climb up to Church Hill. After I crossed that road, I ended up on the "Sheep Walk" which goes straight to your third golf course — why are there so many golf courses? Although it goes through the golf course, I didn't actually see a lot of it as the path was surrounded by trees and hedges. It ended up being quite a lovely section with lots of yellow Celandine flowers.

After having left the golf course and walked briefly along a road, I enjoyed myself a lot again going along the river Hoe on dirt and grass paths. This was perhaps my most favourite section of this walk. This was then followed with my least favourite bit by going towards, and underneath, Woking station, and then along a shopping "paradise" to end up alongside the Basingstoke Canal. By this time, I also arrived at my second SlowWays route, from Woking to Addlestone.

The second part of my walk was very distinct from the first part. Instead of fields, hills, cows, and mud, it was all along two canals. I have walked the length of the Grand Union Canal a few years ago, but this had quite a distinctive feel to it. Or rather, two distinctive feels, as the section along the Basingstoke Canal was nothing like the River Wey Navigation.

There were a few locks on the Basingstoke Canal, with some lovely overhanging branches.

The reflections in the canal were great here. Once getting to the River Wey Navigation, the canal became much straighter and the paths muddier. This is also where I crossed back into London underneath the M25 — with some fun graffiti.

I left the canal at the Coxes Mill Pond, where lots of people were practising their kayaking/canoeing against the outflow from the lock.

After a short section along some residential streets I finished my walk at Addlestone's train station, where, as you'd expect from me, I just missed the half hourly train.

I have neglected to write about last week's walk from Gomshall to Reigate, but I will make up for that!