Escape from Stalag Luft Center Parcs Woburn

A while ago I commented to a fellow Fetchie who was planning a stay in Centre Parcs Woburn that there were some lovely trails nearby, as long as you could escape the barbed wire, sentries, searchlights, machine gun posts etc. As it happens, she didn't manage to escape - but I have since stayed there, and can offer some better guidance.

So... just follow the signs for the exit (there is no other way out) and shortly after the guard room (or guest welcome lodge) a bridleway crosses the access road (before you get to the public road). This forms a ~5km circular route round the outside of the perimeter fence, and is a really nice forest track - with some mud and hills for variety. If you want to extend the distance, cross the A507 at the pedestrian crossing, and follow the quiet road (with pavement) up to Millbrook church, where the Greensand Ridge Walk crosses. Turn right along the GRW, and in half a mile or so you will come to Ampthill Park, which has great running across open parkland and through the woods, and impressive views across the Marston Vale. Go left along the GRW (which actually involves continuing along the road through Millbrook for a bit more) and there is a fantastic twisty trail alongside the Millbrook proving ground. The route plotted below (or wherever it ends up on the page) shows a bit of each of these extensions. The route round Center Parcs might be a bit approximate, as I don't have a GPS and Google Earth is a few years old. But it is pretty obvious where to go.