Back in the High Weald today, although still a little further afield than our usual patch. The day’s adventure would take us a little over an hour away from home, past the Ashdown Forest to the village of Horsted Keynes, for another new route.
The day was warm, bright and promising, and we set off from the free car park at midday. It was not long before we arrived at our first obstacle. Fortunately, the obstacle in question was a ginger cat that stood in the middle of the path demanding cuddles. He rolled about on the floor as we petted him before allowing us to continue on our journey. We headed out around the edge of the village onto a road, which was lined with flowers and horses, as well as a large bird of prey swooping about. We then picked up a path that took us through a bright forest, which we marched through at an urgent pace whilst still managing to admire the variety of flowers dotted about (including a patch of strange yellow ones growing from water, which we have yet to identify). On the other side of the woods we turned left onto a road climbing steeply upward. We managed surprisingly easily, soon arriving at the top to be greeted with a few grazing sheep.
The road continued for another couple hundred yards before we took a footpath bearing out across the sunny, hilltop countryside before us. As we made our way beneath the clear blue sky, the wind blowing across the field, we were happy to find ourselves at this point on planet Earth. To make things all the better, as we made our way along a sun-soaked hedge, we came across something exciting – bluebells! High on the warm hillside, a spattering of the iconic British springtime flowers were growing, and growing well. They were the first we had encountered on one of our walks since last year, and though it will be a few more weeks before they flood our woodlands, it was great to see their arrival begin.
The route began to head slowly downhill until eventually we entered a slither of woodland. At the bottom of the dell we found a sunny glade with a small stream trickling through. We paused for a minute to appreciate the spot, before climbing back out into the open. We again found ourselves on a breezy hilltop, walking beside a large, dry crop field, before diving down into another slip of trees. We walked past a slightly smelly pond and climbed up the side of another small field, where the owner had made an unofficial diversion. Across the road and along the next footpath we found our next batch of sheep. This included one who had been fenced off on its own, who was baaing and pacing about its pen in seeming distress. The sheep was obviously in there for a reason, but I could not tell what that reason was! A few minutes later the path began to run alongside the Bluebell railway before crossing over, on the other side of which was a few chickens.
As we made our way passed a large country cottage, we arrived at a stile and a beautiful view appeared before us. A hill rose ahead, and we could see hundreds off sheep dotted contentedly about the countryside. Fortunately, this was where our day would lead, and so we carried on enthusiastically. We passed through another wooded dell, this time containing a small colony of wild garlic, and on then arrived at the foot of the day’s largest climb. This was quite a long and steep one, however it was made much more bearable by the regular sheep-appreciation post. There were more than we could point at, and we stopped to admire several, who looked back at us with very sheep-like expressions. As we turned back around to admire the perfect High Weald view of green hills and sheep beneath a bright sky, we also saw steam rising from the bluebell railway and heard a distant whistle. This section was amazing and one of the best in the Weald. The only thing that would have made it better would be the presence of lambs – we have never seen so many sheep this time of year without a single baby! I imagine the hillside will be teeming in another week or so. Also, for future reference, this stretch would provide the best lunch spots along the way.
At the top of the hill, we found the small village of Highbrook, containing a church and an old smokery that had been converted for the use of passing walkers – very nice. We were quickly walking out the other end of the tiny daffodil-lined village and heading back out across the fields. We walked down a sunny alley of trees, where a few butterflies fluttered about. Here we discussed the problems with eating them – Beth’s issue seemed to be ethical, whereas mine was a simple question of quantity and food satisfaction. After this we looped around a tree to continue past the edge of a small vineyard, where we walked beneath another trees whose young leaves had recently emerged. Beyond this, the route took us through a very pretty garden, filled with roses and other flowers – including the unknown yellow things – as well as a trail of daffodils guiding us out the other side. By this point, it was almost three o’clock, and we needed to pick a lunch spot. As such, we found a sunny log in the woods and plonked ourselves down. It was a perfectly good spot, however the day’s brisk breeze insured we didn’t dally too long.
After the day’s longest road stretch, which was still not particularly long, we met our next stile. Unfortunately, nailed to it were Beth’s least favourite signs – “Beware of the Bull” AND “Cows with calves in field”. Cautiously, we entered the large, open field. We steadily but quickly made our way across, scanning left to right as we went. Fortunately, we could see neither cattle nor signs of them, and we were both relieved when, over the ridge, we spotted the field’s edge and knew we were okay. This was followed by the farmyard, and here we did begin to see the signs – or rather smell them. We came across them moments later. Nestled amongst a series of barns were several cows and an array of calves at different stages. They were adorable, and many were poking their head through the fronts of the barn to munch on yummy feed. We were just stopping to admire the young cattle when the farmer came strolling through his yard with a bottle in his hand. He stopped to say hello and we spoke of farming things for a few minutes, including the new-born calf he was off to feed and the reason the cows were being kept inside, which turned out to be deer-related vandalism. This is, of course, unfortunate for the friendly farmer, but… cheers deers!
We left the farmyard and spotted the roofs of Horsted Keynes not too far away. We made our way down one final field, back up through the day’s last patch of woodland, and came out into the edges of the village. Somehow, we managed to get lost in the churchyard, but this mishap aside, all went well and we were soon back in the village centre. We got back just before four, and stopped at one of the two pubs; The Greenman. We enjoyed some Stowford Press Cider as the sun turned the world gold and reflected on the day. We would have stayed for a second round, however the stiff breeze kept blowing and so we called it before getting too cold!
Today’s adventure was a great one! It was quite out the way, in an area we hadn’t explored before, but it did not disappoint. We will definitely do this one again, although next time we might leave it to mid-April, when the flowers will all be in bloom and the hills ought to be flooded with lambs. Either way, this is a classic High Weald walk. Also, shoutout to whoever wrote the instructions – they were fantastically detailed, and Beth greatly appreciated them.
Matthew G. Huggins 