Length: 18.3km (11.3 miles) with options from 5.7 miles to 9.2 miles if you finish in Arundel
10.05 train from Victoria (10.12 Clapham Junction, 10.23 East Croydon) to Amberley, arriving 11.28
Buy a day return to Amberley, unless you think you might want to finish in Arundel, in which case a day return to there.
There are a lot of Amberley and Arundel walks on this website. Some that used to exist seem to have disappeared, he said pointedly.... So just to be clear, this is quite a different walk from the Amberley Circular via Cootham that was put up a few weeks back.
This one starts along the River Arun (which should be lush with riverside flowers at this time of year) and then has a stiff climb up on the downs of Arundel Park (likewise florally blessed, hopefully). Just when you think it is going to do the conventional route into Arundel, it does a sneaky slant down a valley, taking you past a lake and out around a river loop, with fine views of Arundel Castle.
There are plentiful lunch options in Arundel. The Norfolk Arms is having a "Tap Fest" if you are into that kind of thing. (Warning: may contain intoxicating liquor)
Arundel having a train station, you can end the walk there. Otherwise the afternoon takes you back through the bits of Arundel Park and the River Arun you missed on the way out. There are mid afternoon refreshment options including a cafe by a lake and a pub by the river. If you resist those and walk like a mad person, you might just get to the idyllic riverside tea rooms (now called Riverside South Downs) near Amberley Station before they close at 4.30pm, but I doubt it.
If you arrive later, it is no hardship, because the Bridge Inn in Amberley is possibly the nicest end of walk pub of the lot. Super food, and a nice little garden if it is not wet.
Right next door is Amberley station, from where trains leave at 18 & 48 past until 21.48. (The service seems to have improved: formerly it was only hourly) T=swc.361
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N=15 on this walk on a w=fairly-sunny-and-at-times-windy day. The wind was VERY strong in places but not present all day. There were a few dark clouds and half-hearted attempts at showers, but it never really got beyond spits and spots.
Towards the start of the walk I saw a dozen swifts, then house martins and maybe swallows in quick succession. Stopping to look at these meant I lost two thirds of the group. The rear party then scythed their way through some rather overgrown patches on the riverside and the early part of the downs. Someone needs to give this path a strimming.
There had been a deal of head scratching earlier about which of the tangle of GPX routes actually was the main walk, and this continued through the day. I don’t use GPX so had no issues, but I think these routes that loop back and across each other are confusing for those that do. Nevertheless my faction kept rigorously to the main route, doing the river loop and all. On the latter we met one of our party coming the other way muttering about spaghetti hoops (we think he meant the GPX).
Getting to Arundel after 2pm we found some of the hares in the Red Lion. Nine ate here, one having drinks. Despite the glorious sunshine we sat inside for fear of a sneaky shower. The food was OK; not bad, but nothing special.
Over lunch it transpired that some people wanted to watch some sort of football match, starting at 5pm. Going to Horsham (?) to do this was discussed, and others seemed to think the Sportsman in Amberley would be a good place to see the match (due to its name, you see). Those walkers (and one fellow traveller who I suspect just fancied a shorter walk) took a shortcut in the afternoon.
Two decided to finish in Arundel, leaving just four of us to do the proper afternoon route. One of those also sped off to see the footie. The other three of us got to the cafe by the lake just as it was closing but they agreed to do takeaway teas and cakes. We ate these watched at menacingly close quarters by about 50 herring gulls and mallard ducks.
After the Black Rabbit we kept to the riverside, then crossed the Gurkha Bridge and got to the Bridge Inn at 6pm to find the footie crowd watching the match there. Two had quick drinks and got the train, and one (me) ordered food (salmon in watercress sauce: delicious!). I write these lines outside on the terrace, while our nation’s fate lies in the balance….
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