Climping Beach Circuit, Littlehampton

 

Pipes practice went on a bit today, so we chose a supposedly shorter route ...  a circuit around Climping Beach, taking in the nature reserve and back along the "sand" ...  luckily we had the tides in our favour and it was vey low tide as we passed.

We also got lucky with the car park... the barriers had been vandalised and was effectively free for all.

A quick picnic lunch and we set off back up the single carriage way road we had dropped down on.

To keep away from the vehicles we turned onto the fields at the first footpath, then back on the original heading till we met the path we had aimed for all along .... confusing but all tracks around here were laid out like chess squares.

Everything was open, with a rye grass crop.

Turning around farm buildings we crossed another field before entering a thin ribbon of shrubbery ...  a kind of haven dividing the fields.

The map showed a very faint green background if you looked really hard at this bit!

At the "mill" ...  a restoration project in progress the path bend slightly to go around the golf course,.

We were now on a more widely used track with some sticky, muddy sections between bramble and wild thorn bushes. The other obstacle was frequent groups of people going the other way. - this is obviously a common walk for the local residents.

Eventually the path widened a little as the bushes gave way to rushes and we came out on the road down the east side of the Arun river

A minor detour again from the intended route as we cut away from the coast to get onto the footbridge and look across into Littlehampton town as well as up and down the river.

this used to be a swing bridge many years ago, but is now a slider version.

Back down the road to towards the shore and the carpark at west pier - no broken barriers here, so glad we went where we started, rather than from this, alternative, point.

A look across to the start point for the armed forces day parade under the amusement arcade.

A walk along the cobbles was avoided by the tide being a long way out and we could get to the "sandy" part.

Closer to the car park we came to the Groins ...  or rather the remains of the great majesty of them ... steadily destroyed by storms over the years

Ascending back up the defences we passed the numerous concrete blocks brought in to cover for the groins, in the endless battle to stop the erosion.

back at the van time for a cuppa and another local walk

Bramley Circuit, Surrey

This time we chose a local walk ...  starting in Bramley along the downs link railway line and Wey south canal...  these two run next to each other here joining up just outside the village.

We parked up at the library car park in the centre and onto the old railway at the remains of the station .

At the point where a road crosses the canal, the old railway and the river with a complex bridge we turned off south.

Across the cricket field I had passed for so many journeys into Guildford to the office and into the wood land on the other side.

There were lots of expensive houses around here - conveniently close to the golf course. 

The path opened out to fields leading towards a massive sewage works, with some overgrown outfall areas.

Continuing on again...  we had reached the bridge on the back double across to the Godalming road.

We followed the edge of the river Wey river/ navigation valley here, keeping to the path besides marshy lands 

At a complex crossroads of paths we turned up towards Farley hill.

The path ascended slowly at first along a bridle way in the edge of a wood, before turning steeply up a deep cut track to the higher level of the hill.

we could see over towards Guildford and the construction of some large towers.

Heading south on one of the back roads past a close of expensive houses alongside the golf course, before cutting across down the side of a "big" house - seemingly an old manor house, and up a parallel road to a mill pond

The mill pond was spectacular ...  flat and reflective leading to Eastwater house - another farm house split into a commune of accommodation units.

A short section up a deep cut bridleway opened out into rolling hills as we headed towards the Birtley estate.

The sun was going down below the skyline as we came out at one of the farms on the estate ...  The walk now 

followed alongside horse fields and some scrubby woodland.

The path descends back into Bramley down a deep cutting, going straight through the housing estates coming out just down the road from the car park

A final look at the cider presses, and back home as the light faded.

Limpsfield circuit, Surrey

 

We delayed the walk this week so that we could meet up with Noeleen... we headed over towards the far east of Surrey as well to be closer to her. The target this time was a circuit around Limpsfield - as these things go it would turn out that it would go through a number of houses and lanes that Noeleen remembered from her training days. 

Parking in Ridlands lane car park, next to all the early morning dog walkers, watching as the last for the initial drizzle moved away.

Not long later we moved off down the road towards the Chart - a village with a pub that Sue remembered from an earlier visit with her friend Mary.

The next section was in the Chart forest area ...  following the Greensand way - a long distance path we had touched several times before this year, then cutting down hill to the edge of a steep slope.

we traversed along the edge of this slope above the expensive houses facing south. Then dropping down to the bottom of the valley and some interested residents watching us curiously.

Past some more expensive farm buildings converted into residences.

Back up the slope again now, besides some fields and into the broad-leafed woods again.

This path ultimately led to a residential area in the grounds of a large house - almost a gated community, all the while the location was bringing back memories for Noeleen..  then we went down a lane which turned out to go past the house she stayed in all those years ago. 

Strange memories for her.

At the bottom of the next valley my map reading took a slight diversion and we carried on ahead instead of turning up the road.. which caused a diversion around the school grounds and up a busy road without pedestrian facilities.

The return was across Limpsfield common, another wooded area, where we stopped for a bite to eat on a convenient tree stump - Bertie begging for food from anyone who looked most likely to give some up.

Back to the van across the golf course. Time now to take a look at the various "structures" around the woods by the van ...  first a big hotel, then Owl's house and a hedgehog hotel ... Peter Rabbit's post office was removed because of Covid...   but it was an interesting diversion.

Back at the van and time to return to our base.