Length: 16.7 km (10.4 miles) 6/10
A good time of year to do this hilly and hopefully bluebell-bedecked walk around Leith Hill. The walk owner recommends a short detour to visit the Leith Hill Rhododendron Wood. For those in training for the Scotland trip, there are various map-led ways to extend the walk and get some more miles/ascent in, for instance following the Greensand Way west for 6 km to Holmbury Hill (5 km south of Gomshall station) or heading towards Box Hill (see last year's Surrey Peaks challenge walk): the viewpoint on Box Hill is 10 km from the lunch pub.
Travel: 0941 from Victoria (Clapham Junction 0948, Epsom 1024) arriving Holmwood 1047. Return trains from Gomshall via Guildford at 1524, 1604, 1626, 1724 and 1824; via Redhill at 1530, 1628 and 1728; and via Reigate at 1829.
Get a return to Gomshall. This will be valid as far as Dorking on the outward route and might be accepted to Holmwood, although you could be asked to pay a small supplement. Holmwood and Gomshall are on different lines with trains operated by different railway companies, so if you want the option of travelling back via Guildford, you will need a day return to Gomshall any route permitted.
Lunch: the
walker-friendly Wotton Hatch pub (tel.01306
887694) in Wotton, some 11.5 km into the walk. This pub serves
food all day in comfortable internal and outdoor seating areas (both
quite extensive) and has a good value set menu in addition to an a la carte menu.
Tea: Several options: the Abinger Hammer Tea Rooms are just over a mile from the end of the walk. Just before Gomshall station, the Lavender Goose tearoom (tel. 01443-202214) closes at 5 pm. A little further along the road is the suggested pub, the Compasses Inn (tel. 01483-202506) at Gomshall Mill has a pleasant beer garden with a stream outside.
Long and short walk options: There a number of ways to extend the walk. As well as those mentioned above, the walk web page suggests two ways to continue to Guildford (27-30 km).
The route intersects the Dorking circular walk SWC 274 so if you want to finish at Dorking you could follow that from Friday Street or Wotton, a slightly shorter (15 km) route.
The easiest way to shorten the walk is to catch the hourly 32 bus to Guildford or Redhill opposite the Wotton Hatch pub. If you have tea in Abinger Hammer you can catch the same bus from there or, as detailed in the walk directions, simply turn right, westwards, from the tearoom and stay on the A25 to Gomshall Station.
For walk directions, map and GPX click here
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2 comments:
#9 walkers. It was #mainly_dry. There was a light shower in the afternoon but it soon stopped. There was quite a it of mud but also some long dry stretches. I thought it was a good time of year to do this walk, everything is looking very green and lush.
Just to add to Margaret's report, all 9 of us took the detour to the Leith Hill Rhododendron Wood, having earlier stopped for elevenses at the Leith Hill Tower kiosk. Views from the tower were good. The wood was almost in full flower, so just about worth the detour. Bluebells in places today were past their best, but in shaded areas they were in full flower, and delightful. The countryside in general was green and lush, and looking glorious.
All bridleways today were muddy - some horribly so - but we managed to get by, although those wearing canvas trainers did not have the easiest of times today.
Most stopped for their picnic lunches in or around the (sadly) closed Stephan Langton pub, although I continued on alone to the Wotton Hatch pub, where I was served an excellent plate of sea-food pasta, washed down with a pint of very good ale. Three of the ladies on today's walk kindly popped in to the pub to join me for a drink. The afternoon showers had started by the time we left as a foursome, to enjoy the afternoon leg of the walk. And very nice it was. On reaching the outskirts of Gomshall, my companions opted to yomp the last few hundred metres to the railway station in the hope of catching the 16-28 hrs service to Redhill. I hope they made it, although it looked a bit touch and go as the train arrived with my companions still with a few metres to go. Me - I just sauntered on into Gomshall Village, where I waited at the nearest bus stop for the 32 bus to Guildford, which duly arrived on time. On the bus a local resident gave me a running commentary on the history, sights and sounds on what we were passing along the way, which was kinda very nice of her, although I might have preferred to doze off.............
A good connection at Guildford, and I was home by 7 pm, having enjoyed a lovely SWC day out.
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