We met up at Cowfold recreation ground car park and made our way west through the church grounds, before turning south not long after. We worked our way along the public footpaths across the fields; unfortunately, in places these had become overcropped, although generally not too badly.

We turned east across the top of the grounds of the Monastery of St Hugh. Of this the book 100 Walks in West Sussex writes:

The tall spire that dominates the countryside below Cowfold is not that of a church, but belongs to the Monastery of St Hugh. This secretive closed Carthusian order arrived unexpectedly from Paris over a century ago. Originally hidden in a wood the buildings are now more visible from the adjacent paths.

We soon crossed the A281 at Little Parkminster, then walked through the woods and fields for a couple of miles, before arriving at the Royal Oak pub for lunch. As one of our number remarked, this was the first time this year we had been able to eat outside for a lunch stop!

The second half of the walk was shorter, as we made our way northwest through the countryside back to Cowfold.

Many thanks to all who attended the walk; if you would like to leave a comment, please feel free to do so.

Starting at Haywards Heath station, Claire led us at a brisk pace across the countryside, past Ardingly Reversoir, where we took a brief break. The halfway point of the walk was reached at Wakehurst Place, where we were able to have lunch before Banksie the dog got us evicted. The second half saw us make our way back down to Haywards Heath.

At 14 miles, the walk was a challenging work out, especially given the brisk pace. The mud added to the difficulty. However, we did at least see plenty of bluebells.

In 2009, after years of campaigning by the Ramblers, the public won the right to walk along the entire coast of England. The dream of the English Coastal Path was born.

By law, the government must create a continuous walking trail around the entire coast of England, with wider access for people to enjoy beaches and open land along the way.

But the Ramblers want the government to continue work on the English Coastal Path without delay.

By acting together, we can realise our dream of the English Coastal Path.

We can show the government how much people want the English Coastal Path. How much they want to walk along the length of the English coast. How much they want to enjoy the wildlife and landscape of our beautiful island nation.

Sign the petition TODAY to tell the Government to create the English Coastal Path.
By acting together, we can make a real difference.

Thank you,
Rhiannon Wadeson
Ramblers Senior Campaigner

The first picture is (I think) of the Long Furlong itself:

As the next few photos demonstrate, we passed through “horsey” country on the route before lunch:

The pub “The Worlds End” was an attractive spot to stop for lunch:

It is part of the “Hall & Woodhouse” chain that own many pubs in Sussex:

On our way back we passed several farms, including this one:

The walk started from the green at Wisborough Green, near the Cricketers Arms.

We walked south then east, past the village pond:

After walking through the Church graveyard and turning south, we crossed the A272 and passed through some farmland before reaching a disused section of the Wey and Arun canal. Travelling along it in a north-easterly direction, we soon came across a restored bridge, which was part of a now-defunct flood gate:

There was a plaque on the bridge, recording its successful restoration:

We continued along the route of the canal, which in places had been filled in, until we reached New Bridge, which carries the A272 over the restored canal:

The route now straightened to move in a northerly direction. On the way we passed another impressive piece of reconstruction:

We crossed the canal at another restored bridge:

It was then only a short walk to the west to reach the Bat & Ball Inn at Newpound Common, where we had lunch.

After lunch, it was only a short walk back to the start, past a farm that breeds Alpacas:

Many thanks to all who attended the walk – and please feel free to leave a comment if you did.

Special thanks are due to Mark Seeger, who took the above photos.

Many thanks to Steve for leading the walk. If you attended and want to leave a comment, feel free to do so.