Dorking via Brockham Circular: Lost Surrey estate, with restored landscaped garden and forests, and the Village of Brockham

SWC Walk 364 – The Deepdene Trail: Dorking via Brockham Circular

Length: Main Walk: 10.0 miles (16.1 km). Driver's route, skipping Dorking town centre and stations: 8.1 miles (13.0 km). Skipping the Hope Mausoleum saves 0.7 miles and 100ft of ascent from both options. Toughness: ~3/10

10:41 Dorking train from London Victoria (Clapham Jct 10:48, Balham 10:53, Epsom 11.24 etc ...), arriving Dorking at 11:40

Return trains from Dorking are xx:17, xx:43: to Victoria and xx:32 to Waterloo

Buy a return to Dorking Stations.

This map/gps-led walk walk is mostly gentle over wide, firm paths with little or no mud. If you want a bit of a climb, you could exit the restored landscaped garden of the former Deepdene Estate via it's 114 steps, otherwise it's a gentle ascent along the mapped route to the viewpoint above the garden. From there, follow the longer route to loop through Betchworth Park via Brockham. The morning section of this is through open countryside and the afternoon along an old coach road alongside woodlands. Along the route there are some nice open view of the Downs. with lunch in the village of Brockham. On the return route from Brockham, there's an optional short out-and-back extension to the ruins of Betchworth Castle.

Dotted around Brockham Green are a selection of lunch options:

Inn on the Green (01737-845101). I'd recommend booking ahead.

The Royal Oak and Meerkat Retreat (01306 733147) may also be open.

At the Village Hall, you'll find The Taphouse which has indoor and outdoor seating. It's website says it is "Home to the £3.50 pint" and advertises a range of beer, real ales, wine, cider, soft drinks and pasties from Nelly's Farm

Also at the Village Hall is the Reading Room Coffee and Cake House.

For picnics, there's also a small SPAR and benches on the Green and in the Church grounds

Dorking High Street has plenty of nice cafes and pubs to choose from. One I've been to previously is Harts At The Courtyard, Old Kings Head Court, RH4 1AR (outsdoor seating only). If you prefer to stop later on beside Dorking station, the Lincoln Arms does have outdoor seating at the back.

Please remember that these walks don't have a leader so come prepared with the SWC gps route and/or map from L=swc.364 page.