This weekend we returned to a walk we first completed a couple of years ago, around the ever-popular Ashdown Forest. It wasn’t a bad route, however that attempt had been impacted slightly by both tricky-to-follow instructions and map, as well as a lunch booking waiting for us at the other end. This time, there would be no such issues. I had mapped the route on the OS app myself, and made no lunch reservations either. So far, so good.
We arrived at the starting point of Wrens Warren car park, a couple of minutes outside of Hartfield, at just gone midday. The day was mostly blue-skied and bright, although the occasional cloud cover brought with it a slight chill. As soon as we left the car park, the views opened up ahead and we came across the perfect bench beneath a tree. We sat on it, for what must surely have been the earliest break in our walking career. We were quickly back on our feet and making our way downhill through the open gorse land which makes up the heart of Winnie the Pooh country.
We came out to a quiet road amongst the trees, as the sunshine shone through the glowing canopy, before making our way down a driveway, passing a man chopping logs for his fire. Recent rainfall had left its mark in the form of small floods dotted around, and we were expecting to encounter water-based obstacles today, which first reared their heads along the following stretch. The narrow path was rather waterlogged and required careful and squelchy navigation to avoid getting wet feet; fortunately, we are now seasoned pros.
After crossing another road, we began to climb, stopping on another bench on the way, before reaching a point where we had gone the wrong way last time. Remembering our mistake, we continued with confidence. The route was proving much easier and more enjoyable than last time, and we made good progress, noting a couple of minor mistakes we had unknowingly made previously. Sadly, the pony whom we also met last time was not there to say hello on this occasion, which was the only downside.
We came to another small, quiet and colourful lane next, where we came across neither car nor person, before turning left onto our next footpath. Almost immediately on our right was a small lake, lined with trees. The colourful leaves reflected brightly off of its surface, and we stood on its bank for a few minutes to watch a fish swimming about, disturbing the undergrowth in the shallows. Ahead, however, awaited the downside of such a large volume of water’s presence. We reached a point where the footpath had become a fast-flowing stream, which again required efforts to get through in a relatively dry manner. We then rose up between a pair of fields, to where previously we had come across some cool sheep and their buddy, an escapee goat. Sadly, they had clearly been moved on. However, a moment of note did still occur here. The path was once again rather waterlogged and littered with large puddles, and it was along this stretch that, finally, for the first time in months, my boots were breached; yes, I suffered a wet sock. This is always a significant moment in the walking calendar, and only beckons at things to come. Beyond this were a couple more open fields, one of which was again quite wet, however, in between the two, we came across a bush which seemed to glow ethereally blue as we approached. Upon inspection, we found it absolutely littered with sloes. Shortly after, we made our way past a church, where Beth suggested we might find a bench. She was of course correct, and so we stopped for some lunch, sat just behind a war memorial.
Ten minutes later, we crossed the road and headed down a quiet lane and picked up the footpath awaiting us at its end. Today, Beth had been sporting some new trousers, which she had recently picked up from a charity shop for £6. This weekend was their first outing, and she was rather enjoying them. They were comfortable, looked good and also had some fantastic pockets. This is all relevant information, because of what happened next. We walked past a root, on which grew some funky, tiny fungi (and Beth of course is a fan of such things). She wanted to take a photo, and so she bent her knees and dropped into the necessary deep squat. This was immediately followed by a ripping sound, and a wide-eyed shocked look appeared on Beth’s face. Yep, sure enough, a three-inch split had appeared along the seam. Beth was understandably upset by this development. In order to protect her dignity, I quickly took off my jumper and tied it around her waist – as long as we kept moving, I wouldn’t get cold, and I am pleased to say it wasn’t long before Beth recovered from her ordeal!
This was followed by a long stretch of woodland, which included a few more significant puddles and wet patches, as well as various fungi, as the light began to gain a golden hue. We then walked down a road and crossed a ford, which was significantly fuller than last time. We then re-entered the trees, which steadily rose up hill toward the eventual finish line. During this stretch we passed some chickens and a pair of pigs enjoying some acorns, before emerging back out into the open land which had started the day (only now in the opposite corner). I think this point may have been the only moment of the day when my route mapping hadn’t quite been accurate to the original route, but it didn’t make a lot of difference in the end.
We continued to rise through the gorse, and passed what I thought was a very large and colourful toadstool, which once I got closer took to be a dead pheasant, but actually turned out to be a very much alive pheasant, doing its best to hunker down and hide from us amongst a thin patch of undergrowth in the middle of a path. As soon as he realised he had been spotted, he rose to his feet, turned and ran swiftly away, his tiny feet making an incredibly satisfying splishing sound as he headed along the soggy path and out of sight.
The path finally levelled out toward the top of the hill, which was well timed, and we were both grateful to reach it. We then made our way along a much flatter, wide path, taking in the same views which had started the day, only this time with a beautiful sunset to bathe in. When we reached the bench near the car park, we once again sat down to breathe it all in, having completed another successful day’s walking.
This time round, everything went better (aside from Beth’s trousers). As a result, the route was both enjoyed and appreciated much more by both of us, and the beautiful colours of this time of year makes it a great choice for an autumnal walk!
Matthew G. Huggins 