January may be over but it’s still very much winter in this corner of the UK. After a pretty horrendous working week, I decided a lengthy dose of fresh air and big skies was in order and figured the best bet was a train out and a walk back. Previous walking in the area, and a direct train first thing on a Sunday, suggested Balcombe as a likely candidate, some 20km (12 miles) from home. A mornings’ worth of distraction. Perfect.
And what a morning! Clear skies overnight meant a crisp, cold frosty start, just the way winter walking should be. Emerging from Balcombe station I took a quick path north through the village and emerged atop the hill descending to Walk Wood just as the sun was peaking above the horizon.
The descent towards the wood was slightly circuitous given the depth of the mud, but the ground was icy enough to prevent any boot loss!
Traversing Walk Wood was vastly aided by a raised walkway over the runnels and streams, before picking up a farm track heading north east to Balcombe Wood, with the spectacular low winter sun casting a beautiful light. Peace and tranquility reigned in the forest (and plenty of mud!). I emerged from the wood somewhere near Little Strudgates Farm and followed the lane up towards Paddockhurst Park, before picking up the path past Worth School.
Looming over to the right, in its vast 500 acre grounds, Worth School is an imposing building in the landscape and has a fascinating history, its foundations in a Benedictine community of French and Welsh monks in exile (presumably from the English reformation) who then fled the revolution in France and pitched up with their prep school in Sussex in 1930s, attached to Worth Abbey, the daughter house of St Gregory's in Downside, Somerset. The footpath arrives on the grounds next to the astropitch; its not well signed across the school grounds and I made the mistake of following the road to be met by a very closed gate. Re-tracing my steps I found the righ path over the still-frosty landscape and emerged onto the road, crossing over to pick up the forest road into Worthlodge Forest.
Worthlodge Forest represents the last vestiges of a much larger ancient forest of Andredswald, which once stretched across the South-East from the Hampshire border, over the High Weald and into East Sussex. There were clear signs in its ditches, mounds and general signs of excavation that the forest had been exploited as part of the Wealden iron industry in the 16th and 17th centuries. Before industrial might arrived it had been reserved for hunting, courtesy of William II. All round a storied place, but also peaceful and full of bird song. There’s a nice looking circular walk starting at Worth Church if you fancy exploring it more. You can follow the path through the wood all the way up to meet cycle route 21, which is what I did, which heads east out of Crawley and follows the Worth Way over to East Grinstead. This is a lovely, easy trail to follow, but I skipped over it, had a brief 2 minute horror-show on a busy road with a blind corner and almost no verge to take cover on before diving with relief into a footpath’s hidden entrance, taking me inexorably north!
Quickly I was through Leyhouse Wood and back into open country, the frost by now less prominent as the winter sun warmed the ground a little. The roar of the M27 could be heard in the distance off to my left, and before long I emerged into the grounds of the Copthorne Hotel. I followed the footpath but backtracked to get onto the hardstanding of the hotel car park when I realised the path wasn’t passable without at least knee high wellies.
Crossing over the A264 and into Copthorne I passed straight through the village and its bordering footpaths to come eventually to Shipleybridge Lane and then Antlands Lane, a mere hop, skip and a jump from my usual Horley stomping grounds. For reference, I headed left at Antlands Lane, crossed the motorway on the pavement then headed right, down Peeks Brook Lane and so west on the bridle paths to get to Balcombe Road (a fitting end!) and then home.
This took me 4 hours and 13 minutes with one brief stop at a particularly beautiful bit for a swig of tea and minor boot adjustment.
I really, really enjoyed this walk. The last 4-5km, from Copthorne were familiar ground but didn’t detract one bit from the spectacle of the early miles. The very best of the Weald landscape and just down the road! If a group were minded to, it could easily be broken up with early fortification in Balcombe, a pit stop in Copthorne and a slap up pub lunch in Horley. For reference, I got the 7:20am train from Horley, was on the trail by 7:40am and home by midday.
A valid excuse to spend the rest of Sunday on the sofa!
Here’s the map…..
Comments