Earlswood - The Joshua Tree

Pike, what pike

Don't Tell Them Your Name Pike

Tuesday 21st June - the longest day - nights will be drawing-in again from tomorrow, so it's time to think about the Christmas shopping.

Walkers: Farty, T.B. (resplendent in vet's badge once more), 12 legs, Windy Senorita, Lil and Clat. No-one else could make it.

Distance: 6 miles

Find of the walk: some 18,0000000 carat earrings.

Well, this is a lovely spot, in and amongst the urbanisations of Redhill. Not many of us knew it was here - what a find, and on our own doorstep too. Thanks to Farty and her 'I want to do new walks' campaign, we have discovered some rather lovely areas.

On time and off we went, the weather blustery, sunny and a bit wet at times. Our heading, south-westerly, across a golfing green, over a road and into the woods, where we came to poooh corner - dog walkers PLEASE pick up your pooch's droppings - it's hideous to find.

Through the woods, and over another bit of golf-courseness and eventually out at Earlswood Lakes. Lovely vistas of water, ducks and swans galore, and the odd fisherman with his rods hanging out. It looks as if the ducklings have been got at, as we only saw one, with Mum, and we wonder how long that will last.

Across Woodhatch Road and straight into a field with cart-horse types, and a little foal with a pink bottom. Chris coped well and we got to the other side, where Windy the gazelle, went into pointer mode as she was convinced there was a pike in the river there. The vet crept up to take a better and longer look, and then confirmed said fish was, in fact, a piece of weed. Oh well, better luck next time, and maybe a piranha ? We then bumped into a dog-walker and her posse of about 7 dogs, all friendly and bouncy, but Minnie didn't seem to like the bottom attention she was receiving. The walker was friendly and chatty, but unfortunately she trod in a big pile of dog pooh - and also complained about the dog-owners who don't pick it up. Mind you, with that lot in tow, she would need a wheelbarrow to clean up afterwards. Oh well, moving on.

Farty quickly got us onto the right track, and we followed the river Mole to the junction of footpath signs, and stopped for a break. Several pillboxes were nearby, so we can only assume that this was a serious look-out post in the war - watching out for floating nazis then?

Into Benting Wood and on towards the railway line, which we crossed, with not much time to spare. This is a frantically busy place - very hazardous for the workers, as a train seemed to appear every 5 minutes, and this is where Windy kindly modelled the earring find.

Then it was our 'lost in time' moment, as the signs dis-appeared, and cows appeared on the horizon, but we were safe, because there was a ditch between them and us. We didn't get the right path, and found ourselves on Bridge Road, at the wrong point so had to walk alongside for a while - no pavements. This is where Lil had her splendid Dawn French Vicar of Dibley moment, as, stepping into a puddle, she came up to nearly her knees - how we laughed. Sorry Lil.

Eventually back,in urbanization once more, and the East Surrey Hospital on our right. Further along is the Royal Earlswood Park, and a building which was once a 'loony bin' - allegedly, two of the Queen Mother's relatives were there. Time was short because the vet had an appt. with some balls, so we trekked on, underneath the railway line and back to the cars.

Once de-booted and stretched, we got inside the pub. Friendly, un-rushed, clean, and comfortable. We had waitress service, and excellent food, with good prices, so I reckon full marks were well-deserved. Our vet was reading the latest edition of 'Streetwise', and regaled us with snippets from said magazine, which caused him to dissolve into helpless giggling. One, was a story about chocolate bars - 'then he slipped his hand into her Snickers, which made her Ripple. He fondled her Jelly Babies and she rubbed his Tic Tacs. It was a fab moment as she screamed in Turkish Delight. But, 3 days later, his Sherbet Dib Dab started to itch.' - I won't go on, but Minnie didn't find it very funny at all.

We shall be back, as Farty has tapped into a seam worth excavating and enjoying.

Next week's walk is already sorted - Tuesday 28th June it will be The Sussex Oak at Warnham. So, we shall see you then, then.

Ardingly, The White Hart

Exhausted walker

Nice walk, pub ok!

Not an MP in sight!

A forest of foxgloves

woodland glade & ramblers

Cottage for Sally!

Gravetye Manor

Venue: Pub ok

Walkers: Farty, TB, 12 legs & Windy

Find of the walk: Nothing

Mottisfont Abbey nr Romsey nr Romsey Hampshire

The Wind in the Willows

Wednesday 15th June

Clat and Lil are on a sojourn to Portsmouth, and today decided to visit the abbey, as they are both n.t. members, and this place is renowned for its rose gardens. Set in a beautiful tranquil location, with the River Test flowing through the grounds, this is a lovely building, in equally lovely grounds.

You can just imagine the sounds of swishing crinolines, and laced-up bodices as the landed gentry went about their daily business. No, not cross-dressing, but I don't know what the female equivalent is.

This used to be the home of society hostess Grace Russell who used it for extensive entertaining and a good time, and also attracted the arty types. She moved out to live in the local village, and, in time, her wonderful collection of art and antiques seemed to be sold off or dis-appear. The n.t. people have lovingly restored it to its original glory and grandeur, and it is well worth a visit.

We went round the house,and looked at the artifacts and paintings, with suitable inputs from the n.t. staff on duty. We were doing very well until a woman let out the most ENORMOUS fart - enough to blow the walls down - and we beat a hasty retreat. This place will now be known as Mottisfart Abbey.

The walled rose gardens are a sight to behold, and choc-full of the most wonderful blooms. The glorious scent of the roses follows you everywhere, and the colours are stunning. Obviously now is the best time to visit this place because of the roses, but it also has a good garden shop, a second-hand book shop, eateries, good loos, and plenty of walking - perfect for a day out.

So, despite the bottom action in the library, we enjoyed our day of culture and education.

Do hope the ramblers enjoyed their day too.

Blue Anchor Walton on the Hill - or rather the Dukes Head!

Venue: The Blue Anchor, Walton on the Hill, afterwards changed to The Dukes Head

Walkers: Farty, Registrara, 4 legs + 2 legs + 2 legs, Mrs P and later on, Clat and Lil. Windy Nohills taking sis and compost back home, Martin attending a family funeral in Cambridge, Sal and Hootsmon presumably aviating!
Weather: Beautifully sunny when we began, clouding over later and even looked like rain at one point. Quite windy.
Distance: 5 3/4 miles
Time taken: about 3 1/2 hours to include a 45 min coffee stop and a few bad signs (see more later!)
Find of the walk: A fledgling crow
We parked in the Blue Anchor where there was plenty of space and set off across the road and towards the A217. Our first bit of bad signage as we couldn't find the correct path to the road but were soon crossing the A217 - and were then unsure which road to take as the signs had disappeared! We decided to head off into Kingswood Warren which we discovered was aptly named . . a veritable warren of posh, modern houses . . . it took a fair bit of walking around gawping at the houses before we found a very well hidden path out of the 'estate'.
The path lead us to Kingswood Golf Course which was suitably well manicured and reeking of money! We were once again searching for a sign when a very helpful caddy whizzed up on his buggy and pointed us in the right direction - he knew the path well as it lead to our next pub stop, the Well House!

We decided that these coffee stops are a great idea and seem to feature more and more on our walks. Today didn't disappoint as we sat out in the pretty terraced garden (although the coffee expert, 2 legs, did comment that the coffee could have been hotter!). Having availed ourselves of the facilities (so much better than a trip into the bushes) we retraced some of our steps, through Mugswell and towards Gatwick Farm and Babylon Lane. Parts here were familiar as some of this walk crossed over others we've done, particularly Reigate Hill 2. This time we peeled off onto a footpath halfway down Babylon Lane and we ended up back on the A217.

We negotiated the traffic and the footpath sign on the opposite side of the road led up a drive to a tyre fitter's yard - very scruffy and overgrown with a spooky looking house. The signs had completely disappeared by now and there was nothing but high brambles and stinging nettles to be seen in every direction! It was turning out to be a very bad signage day! We found a helpful ' oooh, young man' to ask and he pointed through the jungle saying 'the footpath continues over the other side' - great! He tried to find a way through but we finally beat a path ourselves - thank goodness for sturdy walking sticks - and emerged almost unscathed the other side. Not for the first or last time today we thanked goodness for a compass!

We continued through Margery, skirted around Mogador and onwards towards Banstead Heath. Walking down one narrow path behind some gardens we came across our find of the walk - a fledgling crow. He was absolutely fine but couldn't fly high enough to get off the path, so Farty came to the rescue, picked him up and popped him on a garden wall where he managed to fly down into the garden. We then had a brief encounter with a beautiful 'Felix' cat who took one look at Minnie and decided to see her off - will Minnie ever live it down?! We also had a 2 legs boot malfunction - what she suspected was a bit of grit in her boot turned out to be the beginning of a blister. Nurse Provincial came to the rescue with a blister plaster so we were soon once more on our way.

So, on to Banstead Heath which was looking lovely - we spied a tree completely covered in honeysuckle and noticed there was a lot more in the hedgerows. It was here that both 2 legs' and my compasses suddenly went haywire - spooky stuff, were we on leys lines or something more sinister? They decided to spring back into action a little further on which was just as well as it wasn't easy to find the right track off the Heath! We had another doggie encounter with a lovely 14 week old Jack Russel called Freddie - Minnie not too impressed until we bent down to stroke the puppy when she suddenly became very jealous and territorial!

And then, over the next hill we spied two familiar figures approaching - our Clat and Lil! So, I'll leave them to continue the saga . . .

The Clat and Lil experience

As the hips were still being naughty, these two chose to join the walk towards the end. Clat decanted her goods into a smaller rucksack which meant that the compass wasn't transferred - never leave your compass behind!!
We set off across the heath, and Clat was convinced she knew the route backwards towards the Sportsman pub and our rendezvous point with the others. Several bushes and numerous signposts later, she decided she didn't. However, the weather was nice, lots of flowers in bloom, and lots of doggy doooo to step round - dog owners note - pick it up!!!!!!!!!!! - time for a tablet..........

Deciding we needed to start again, we found our way back to the main road, and did a box-shaped u-turn and headed along a track by the golf course, and dodged many spherical objects coming our way. Farty texted and asked us where we were - the reply? ' lost but am working on it.' Well, on and on we went and deeper and deeper into the jungle which is Walton Heath , and more sign posts. In the end, we decided we would do our own thing and meet the others back at base. Clat, out of her comfort zone headed in the direction of a blue arrow, and eventually came out onto the road once more.
Further along, this brave and gallant duo decided to give it another go and in we went again. This time - result! We spotted our lot coming over the ridge, and we were very pleased to see them, and after our re-union, we headed back to the pub - The Blue Anchor.

This pub has recently changed hands, and is 'dog-friendly'. Well, it isn't and it isn't people friendly either. We should have got a clue before entering when we saw the chef hosing down the wheelie-bins, still in his whites and chef's apron. No smile or words of greeting and the same applied once inside this hostelry or should i say hostilery?

We sat down, menus given out and then the waitress told us that dogs were not allowed in that area and we had to move to the bar area, which was dark, pokey, no chairs - just low stools and tables, and, it did smell. Two staff members seated nearby with their paperwork obviously didn't like us being there, so we upped sticks and left.

Mrs P said she needed to follow someone to find the alternative pub, which wasn't necessary as the place was next door. By the way, she has a lovely new car, and it has sat-nav so we shall be following her in the future.

Well, the difference in the ambulance and welcome was huge. Welcomed in with open arms, attentive and friendly (dogs too), staff, and lovely food - Mrs P took a photo of Lil's concoction of a bacon/avo/chicken salad - yum yum. The rest of us had good fare too, and we chatted to the landlady Wendy, who has just returned from a cruise to the Arctic areas, and has come home to warm up once again.

After some time we suddenly realised it was nearing 5 p.m. and we were still there! Mutterings of rush-hour traffic and things that needed to be done, came to the fore, and we said our good-byes, and talked of the future.
Scores for the pubs - Blue Anchor - a big fat zero on all counts. Duke's Head - top marks as always.
Next week - walk t.b.a.

Betchworth - The Dolphin

Doing the Splits!

Tuesday 31 May
Walkers: Farty, T.B., 12 Legs, Registrara and Clat. Trish is poorly with a throat job (get well soon), Lil is knackered after her tour round Croatia, Windy is still being Spanish, Hoots is 'soliciting' again, and Sally is elsewhere.
Distance :Reg and Clat - 3 miles, the rest - 6 1/2

Find of the walk: a dead mole, who was then given an ariel burial

Today, as Clat was road-testing her bursitissed hips, there was a breakaway planned approx half-way round, and Reg was included.

We set off a little tardy, owing to a mis-guidance on Chris's part, but it happens to all of us and it was such a lovely day, that we spent the time in useful gossiping. Down Wonham Lane and a left, towards the n.w and Hartsfield Manor , where Reg performs her matrimonials. The sun was shining, the birds singing their heads off, and so were we.

A little way on it was realised that T.B. wasn't with us - and he too had suffered from some mis-guidance, and then found us o.k. The walk resumed, past the Red Lion, and over countryside towards the A25. The fields are fat with crops and a good harvest is hopefully on the horizon. Over the road and straight into the jungle on a very dis-used footpath. Further along we had to use our judgement on what was a diagonal, but it worked, and we found ourselves on a lane adjacent to a brand new footpath sign. Sadly, the one we wanted to find, had dis-appeared, and we arrived at the railway crossing at the wrong spot. What a mis-guided day this is turning out to be!

However, Farty found the missing sign, in the bushes and performed an erection so that others did not get lost. Talking of which, this is where Clat and Reg parted company - after all , who knows when a hip is going to play up? So, two versions will now follow:

C & R: We two headed down the lane, which brought us to the duck pond - so pretty and full of marvellousness. We then proceeded to the P.O. which serves coffee, and is a general store - perfect then, for a stop, and a chat, in the quiet little garden at the back. Not for long, as a group of 10 older ladies, invaded the space, and told us that the rest of our group had been spotted. Time to go ..........

Down another lane we went, and to the Red Lion once more. We had a little stop under some trees, as a rain shower passed overhead - we didn't want to get the bread wet. Safely back at the Dolphin, Reg left, and Clat headed for the pub - the bladder effect had kicked in, and here she sat and awaited the return of the group.

Rest of group - Having found the correct path, they got as far as the stile, and, seeing a male walker leading a large herd of cattle heading straight towards them, the stile was vaulted by Chris and so yet another mis-guidance led them on a different path. Lots and lots of birds were noted, including lapwings and a raptor. This is probably why Sue trod in a fresh cowpat. Apparently, it was of the macaroon type, which can be misleading to the unfortunate boot owner, as they look hard, but have a soft centre - you have been warned.

Wonham Mill is full of action and work is going on there apace. It will not be long before there is a For Sale sign promoting the new dwellings on offer.
About an hour and a bit then, and they joined Clat in the pub, who was trying to ignore the pain -in- the- xxxx bar-fly who always seems to inhabit these places. Apparently, he has been barred from every pub in the area, except this one , but we are sure it wont be long before the Dolphin will be doing the same!

Lunch was very good - the fish pies were choc-full and hot, although the veggies were not. T.B. enjoyed his steak/ale pie, and Clat had some duck spring rolls. Sated and satisfied, we went our separate ways, and hope to meet up with you next week - venue t.b.a