This walk takes in Ardingly Reservoir, the Ouse Valley Viaduct, and fine Weald territory.
T=swc.22 Length: 19.5km (12.1 miles) or, if you go via The Gardener's Arms and take the shortcut from there to Wakehurst Place, 16.7km (10.4 miles). Toughness: 7 out of 10
Or, you could do the winter version of the walk 15.4km (9.6 miles) with same shortcut to Wakehurst, Toughness: 4 out of 10.
Trains: London Bridge 10.09 (East Croydon 10.23) arrives Balcombe 10.50.
Return trains from Balcombe xx:25 and xx:55
Lunch: The Ardingly Inn ( 01444 892 214 ), 10.1km (6.3 miles) into the walk
Next door is the Ardingly Cafe ( 01444 891 113 ), which serves sandwiches, salads, soups and light meals until 3pm Monday to Saturday.
The Gardeners Arms ( 01444 892328 ), is an alternative lunch option 10.2km (6.4 miles) into the Summer Walk.
Picnic spots : There are many benches around Ardingly Reservoir.
Tea: Wakehurst Place ( 01444 894066 ), has a self-service cafe, the Seed Cafe , which is the recommended tea stop for that walk. It is open until 5.30. The Half Moon Inn in Balcombe is another possibility.
Further details L=swc.22
3 comments:
The Balcombe Tea Rooms closed earlier this year but a "dynamic coffee shop with a taste of Portugal" (JO.CO) has opened in its place. The bad news is it closes at 3.30pm, so you'll have to choose a shortish option and walk fairly briskly to enjoy it.
N=11 off the train including three new people who quickly took the lead and I'm not sure if anyone caught them up later on. The weather was w=warm-and-sunny. Two lagged behind picking blackberries and did not come across any others at the reservoir when they stopped for lunch. As the day was getting warmer the two decided to cut the walk short and took the direct route back to Balcombe where the new coffee shop was still open but disappointingly had no vegan cakes. It would be nice to hear how everyone else got on. I hope all enjoyed the day.
3 of us caught up with 1 gentleman later during the walk and went to Ardingly cafe which was excellent (apparently the pub was not busy at all). We really enjoyed the walk. It was so lovely and I especially love the beautiful Balcome lake!
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