9.28 train from London Bridge (10.05 Sutton) to Ockley, arriving 10.43 T=1.47.
Buy a day return to Warnham. My resident train fares expert (after reading the original draft of this post) tells me that this is also valid for return via Horsham, if you choose to do this route. This advice is, however "without prejudice" - legal speak for "don't come running to me if you get fined for having the wrong ticket".
For walk directions click here, for GPX click here, for a map of the route click here.
This pleasant outing is well known for its bluebells - which should be starting to show their heads - but less so for its wood anemones, which my notes say are abundant in the first part of the walk (let's hope your notes are correct - Ed). The spring woods should also be starting to show a bit of a green fuzz and in general this is gentle countryside which should have plenty of springtime delights.
There are two lunch pubs, both rather small, one a small diversion off the main route. Tea is possible at the Sussex Oak in Warnham, whose garden makes a pleasant place to sit if the weather is fine (a man may dream...).
If ending the walk at Warnham (10.3 miles) allow 20 minutes to walk down the road from the pub to the station. Trains back from there are at 19 minutes past, going to London Bridge today, with the last train at 18.19. But if you have a Horsham return you can also get a train at 49 past southbound to Horsham - last train 18.49. Despite a 26 minute wait for a London connection in Horsham, this takes no longer (1 hr 25 mins) to get back to London.
Alternatively, both the walk directions and GPX now include an extension to Horsham, lengthening the walk to 12.5 miles. This takes you past a wetland reserve, though also involves a trek through the Horsham suburbs.
Trains back from Horsham are at 20, 25, 50 and 55 past the hour. The 20 and 50 past are Southern trains and a bit quicker (54 mins v 1hr 5 mins), while the 25 and 55 past are Thameslink. Both today go to London Bridge, so the only advantage of the Thameslink services is that they continue on to St Pancras and Finsbury Park.
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N=10 on this walk. One turned up in wellington boots. Smart lad. He will go far in life.
You would normally expect mud to have dried by this point in April. But not this year. Splish splash slither squelch the whole way. Occasional dry sections only raised hopes that were swiftly dashed. In February when the midweek walkers did the same route, the paths were dry.
To get all of the good news out of the way, there were indeed zillions of wood anemones throughout the route - but most were not in flower. They may be not out yet, they may not be coming out or they may have gone over. They should be at their best now, but the memo obviously got lost in the post. On the plus side there was a blue haze on many of the plentiful bluebell woods: they at least seem to be on schedule.
The weather was initially a disappointment too. But despite the gloomy forecast w=the-clouds-slowly-cleared-to-sun and it was pretty much a perfect spring afternoon (except for one walker who found the sun “too hot”…)
And after the early disappointment, this was a gorgeous spring walk. There were some very nice patches of “wooden ms”, particularly on verges. The birdsong included half a dozen chaffinches, chiffchaff, nuthatch, song thrush, wren, blackbird. The flowers were many and varied, with particular mention of drifts of cuckoo flowers and several patches of goldilocks buttercups (a woodland specialist). Also a clump of delightfully scatty false oxlip (an accidental hybrid between primrose and cowslip). The hornbeam woods were a vibrant green.
We decided not to forewarn the Scarlett Arms of our arrival and it proved not at all busy. Two ate inside, five outside in the sun, and the three sandwichers joined us for drinks. Welly Man said the pie was the best he had ever tasted.
A slight personal regret as we approached the end of the walk was the lack of butterflies. But then in the woods near Warnham I saw a brimstone and my first orange tip of the year, bless it, having its evening feed on some cuckoo flower. What greater happiness is there on this earth?
I also achieved my dream of having tea in the sunshine in the garden of the Sussex Arms, with a nice chocolate brownie with ice cream for ballast.
I wanted the moment to last forever. Alas, others were already discussing whether we might get the 17.19 train. One or two seemed ready to stay, but then the sun went behind a postage stamp-sized cloud and that settled it. We fled back towards London.
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