The Sussex Border Path: western section
31 July 2009: Emsworth to Rowland's Castle; 14 miles, 13 on path
Emsworth manages to keep some character despite the overbearing presence of Havant and Portsmouth to the west.
You start where the coast road divides two little lagoons, before branching right at the Sussex Brewery pub, of which more later.
From here, the path leads you out to a marina, keeping distinctive houses on stilts to your left.
After a so-so crossing of the isthmus, you come out to the shoreline at Prinsted, and the Thorney Island loop begins.
It's a loop of three thirds. First, down the east coast of the island,
views sweep high to Stoke Down (below) and Goodwood Racecourse;
there were racegoers on my train today, and this most beautiful of racecourses will have been at its best.
Further round are the channels of Chichester Harbour, busy with dinghies today, and the spire of Chichester Cathedral.
I've always found it remarkable that this is the only ancient English cathedral visible from the sea.
Thorney Island was a Battle of Britain airbase, and is now in the hands of the Army,
and it's rather disconcerting to be greeted by a remotely-manned guard tower at Great Deep.
Here, you have to give your details before being allowed to proceed.
The former settlement of West Thorney (on the east side of the island!) is not far away,
and its wonderful Norman church (top picture in sidebar) a good excuse for a break.
 |
The island's southern shore has views out to sea, the Isle of Wight rising beyond Hayling Island,
before the northwards turn at Marker Point. From here, at first the hills above Portsmouth dominate,
with their naval installations completing a military full house, until after passing out of MOD land,
Emsworth's pretty-looking wharf side comes to dominate.
What a very good little start this has been; not typical of the path as a whole, perhaps,
but the only opportunity to see a side of Sussex that would otherwise not be revealed.
The Sussex Brewery pub is far too good to miss retracing your steps a few yards back up the main road.
Beer, food, sawdust floor all highly recommended, and they retain a traditional barmaid too.
Afterwards, there's a pretty little lane beside a stream before an underpass to the A27 and a broad field behind houses.
Some suburban bits follow, before your first taste of woodland.
Farm lanes bring you, through a neck of woodland,
dramatically into the Stansted House ride (picture 2).
The house, former seat of the Earls of Bessborough is a mile away, in the wrong direction, so turn instead towards Rowlands Castle,
a village with three pubs, hardware store, and an awful lot of money.
27 November 2009: Rowland's Castle to Liss; 16 miles, 13 on path
A belated return. After crossing the railway, it's a lovely start, past the hamlet of Finchdean and on up to Chalton Down.
This little downland summit is an excellent all-round viewpoint,
the route forward into the woods of West Harting Down being traceable to the right of Ditcham Park school (picture 3),
with other views to the Hampshire section of the South Downs Way and, behind you, back to the Solent.
On the ascent the little scarp slope leading to Compton Down is notable too, beyond the tiny isolated chapel at Idsworth.
Below Chalton Down, the eponymous village has its own church. I took my first break here, and enjoyed listening to organ practice.
If my timings had been a little different I might well have enjoyed a pint or two at the impossibly cute half-timbered pub,
just outside the churchyard. The rain started on exit and kept with me through the wooded section rising to the main downland ridge.
With head down through a forest ride, I missed the right turn away to a footpath; the SBP website is perhaps a little misleading here,
implying the existence of a non-existent fence. There were no troubles thereafter,
but note that unusually the northern scarp is in two sections, the very grand Foxcombe Farm between them,
and the South Downs Way intersected just before the final dip.
The Petersfield - Chichester road runs below the Way, and I took its wide grass verge into South Harting,
and lunch and drying out before a real fire at the Ship Inn.
After contouring below the hill fort on Torberry Hill, there's a straggly road-and-field section
until, just after a farm vehicle graveyard at Down Park Farm (picture 4), the silver birch trees of West Heath Common come into view.
This is one of the many Sussex heaths linked by the Serpent Trail,
here coincident with the SBP; it will reappear frequently in the next two stages.
The River Rother is crossed next. Don't mistake this with the other Sussex Rother, which we will meet on the final SBP stage of all.
The short winter dusk was drawing in as I headed north away from Durleighmarsh Farm into Durford wood,
and I knew I would have to make good time to avoid use of head torch.
I did, just, but regretted not having better light to enjoy the National Trust territory to my left.
The SBP exits onto a minor road not far from the village of Hill Brow, where I had lunched on the Serpent Trail three years before.
This time, however, it was a roadside walk in the dark, down to Liss and my train home.
12 February 2010: Hill Brow to Haslemere, 10 miles
Barbara joined me for this short stage, on a rather grey day in a chilly winter.
Much of the section is coincident with the Serpent Trail,
in particular the start through Rake Hanger, the middle section from our lunch pub to Liphook, and the finish over Marley Common.
This meant I could anticipate highlights, though once I rather unfortunately over-promised.
I'd been looking forward to the return to Rake Hanger (picture 5). Truth was though that it's stark in winter;
not without its own beauty, but one which needs to be sought out more. Barbara reckoned springtime would be glorious.
After crossing the old A3, the path separates from the Serpent Trail and heads north,
past the distinctive dome of White Eagle Lodge,
the "mother lodge" of a meditative community. Open country lies to your left after crossing the railway,
but in total distinction to the lodge it provides military training - you may hear firing.
This is the Longmoor military range,
and once it included its own full-sized rail network, so that soldiers might know how to comandeer rail transport while fighting overseas.
Turning east, you pass the 'equine hospital' of Home Park before the Serpent Trail rejoins at Chapel Common.
I remember passing the Black Fox inn last time,
when it was ill-timed for a break. It was the natural lunch stop today, and we were looking forward to it.
And three well-kept ales, two from micros, can recommend it to drinkers. Our grilled sole did not live alas live up to website promise.
A short shower and golf course trudge as we started out again didn't lift spirits either.
But the sun started to lift, Stanley Common is pleasantly wooded (picture 6),
and I promised Barbara the reward for the next climb would be the fine views - and the bench -
I remembered from Linchmere Common on the Serpent Trail.
I had not however realised that the SBP doesn't go that way, so I earned myself a bit of a black mark.
Another little rise took us to the day's high point of 192m before the short drop down the escarpment to the main road,
with fleeting glimpses of Black Down to the south-east, which we remembered from another of our walks together.
The day ended as it had begun, with a short bus trip forming the link between walk and station.
Forward to: West Sussex north
|
