Wealden Wonderland: A Shortish Walk for the Shortest Day

A new, easy walk in the Western Weald which culminates in a pub lunch in the lovely village of Slinfold. Slinfold typifies the area: set in rolling countryside, beautifully kept and discreetly suburbanised, 'the mostly C16 and C17 cottages are preserved but not made artificially quaint and the modern houses are fitted in without drama'. Whatever the topographical merits, the practical aspects should appeal too: easy to get to (two trains an hour to the starting point), easy to get around (tarmac lanes and gravel paths aplenty), easy to get back again (the straight, smooth Downs Link) if our festive pub lunch overruns; I just had to squeeze this in for ODL chums old and new to see each other before Christmas.

The sights:

Itchingfield: 'The land near the church has a panoramic view N to the Surrey hills, unexpected in this close, lush [not in December] landscape' (Ian Nairn, The Buildings of England: Sussex). St Nicholas is at the middle of a tiny hamlet of a dozen farm buildings. C12, extended 1865 by George Gilbert Scott. C15 timber belfry and spire, like an Essex church. Churchyard has fine trees, and a so-called Priest's House, a rare survival, a tiny, toy-like half-timbered building, built C15, extended in 1600. Bennetts is a C15 house and Muntham House a grim Neo-Tudor school of 1887.

Slinfold: 'Leafy Weald, slightly rolling and beautifully cared for. Caring has not impaired the character of the village centre as it sometimes does' (Ian Nairn, The Buildings of England: Sussex). A prosperous and mellow place. St Peter is big and uncompromising, by Benjamin Ferrey of 1861. The Street is short and tree-lined, with many good Victorian buildings but many more late Georgian ones. Little Hammers is C16. 

Downs Link: A 37-mile cycle and footpath linking Guildford and Shoreham. This stretch is part of the Cranleigh Line which connected Guildford and Horsham. Construction of the line was started by the Horsham and Guildford Direct Railway, but it was taken over and completed by the London, Brighton and South Coast Railway, opening in 1865. The original promoters hoped that the line would become a trunk route for traffic from the Midlands to the Sussex Coast but low usage due to the agricultural nature of the area led to continuous financial losses, and it was closed as part of the Beeching Cuts in 1965.

Dogs:

I love having dogs on my walks and this walk is suitable for them. It is of shortish length, but there will be fields with livestock and a number of stiles and roads to negotiate. A dog must be obedient if it is off the lead. 

The route (please click the link in red to see it):

Setting off in a southerly direction, we'll turn west along Christ's Hospital Road and tracks to Itchingfield on Fulfords Hill. We'll then head south, following the West Sussex Literary Trail to Muntham School where we'll turn west and use a path to get to Bashurst Hill, which we'll walk north along to pick up a track to Shiprod's Farm and Elmhurst Farm. Crossing the A264, a bridleway will take us to Hayes Lane which will take us into Slinfold. After lunch, we'll return along Hayes Lane before a turn to the east will allow us to return to the station along the Downs Link.

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(Photo credits: Footprints in the Snow: Photo © hehaden  (cc-by-nc/2.0); Looking across field from footpath junction: Photo © Shazz (cc-by-sa/2.0); Approaching Shiprods Farm by bridleway from the south: Photo © Shazz (cc-by-sa/2.0) Bridleway with footpath junction south of Shiprods Farm: Photo © Shazz (cc-by-sa/2.0). St.Nicholas, Itchingfield: Photo © Peter Trimming (cc-by-sa/2.0); St.Nicholas, Itchingfield: Photo © Peter Trimming (cc-by-sa/2.0). Sheep under a Tree: Photo © N Chadwick (cc-by-sa/2.0). Bridleway to the A264: Photo © N Chadwick (cc-by-sa/2.0). Slinfold - The Street: Photo © Colin Smith (cc-by-sa/2.0); The Street, Slinfold (3): Photo © Barry Shimmon (cc-by-sa/2.0); Parish church of St Peter, Slinfold: Photo © Barry Shimmon (cc-by-sa/2.0). All photos are copyrighted but are above credited to their copyright holders and are licensed for further reuse under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 2.0 Generic (CC BY-SA 2.0) except the first, which has a different license.)