Bubble walk 23rd December 2020

The last walk of the year was undertaken only by those who were brave/foolish enough to walk in spite of a poor weather forecast - we were also joined by two brave guest walkers, Kathryn and Geoff. In spite of the gloomy forecast, we assembled in the Grange car park with grey skies above us. As it turned out we saw no rain apart from a light shower at the very end as we sheltered with a welcome coffee in the Market Square.

We started by walking over St Ann's Hill and down into the Wharf area. The path up to West Lavington proved the most difficult part of our walk with a lot of mud and water forcing us to take a detour into the nearby wood. Once we reached the road, the going was much better and we reached the church of St Mary Magdelene in good order and had time to recharge spirits with a small amount of seasonal cheer. The church was made redundant in 2008; it is now closed for worship, although it remains consecrated. The reformer Richard Cobden was buried here in 1865, with one of his pall bearers being William Gladstone, later to become Prime Minister. A wander down the road took us over the route of the Pulborough to Midhurst Railway line, opened in 1864 and eventually closed in 1955. Taking a footpath behind The Royal Oak brought us back to Midhurst Market Square and after a coffee we returned to the Grange car park. The walk was about 4 miles.