ThePhoenix Trail is a 7-mile (11 km) footpath and cycleway which runs between themarket towns ofThame inSouth Oxfordshire andPrinces Risborough inBuckinghamshire, passing through the villages ofTowersey andBledlow.
The trail largely follows the route of a disused railway line, theWycombe Railway, which connected Princes Risborough and Thame with the city ofOxford. The line through Thame remained open until 1991 to serve an oil depot based in the town. It was subsequently purchased bySustrans and converted into a cycle/pedestrian route.[1]
The Phoenix Trail forms part ofNational Cycle Route 57 which also includes theNicky Line andAyot Greenwayrail trails. As well as cyclists and walkers, the route is suitable forwheelchair andpushchair users, as it is flat and surfaced with seating every 500 metres. The first 2.5 miles (4.0 km) out of Thame are surfaced with tarmac and the remainder with compacted limestone dust.Red kites can commonly be seen along the route. There is a collection of 30 sculptures built by Angus Ross and six furniture students from Thame's Rycotewood College, which draw on the trail's railway heritage and the landscape towards theChiltern Hills. These sculptures won the 2002 "Arts, Business & Community" Award from Arts & Business, and the trail also holds a Certificate of Distinction as a EuropeanGreenway from theEuropean Commission.
In June 2008, an extension of the Phoenix Trail toLord Williams's School(51°44′47″N0°59′22″W / 51.7465°N 0.9895°W /51.7465; -0.9895 (Phoenix Trail (Lord Williams's School trailhead))) was officially opened.[2]
Download coordinates as:
51°44′04″N0°55′05″W / 51.7345°N 0.9180°W /51.7345; -0.9180 (Phoenix Trail)
