Fernhurst Long Walk 10th May 2024

The six long walkers met up at the Fernhurst Green recreation park car park for Jay and Lindsay’s walk. All the wet weather kit, fleeces and jumpers were left at home because they had picked glorious sunshine and warm weather for us. The walk was in two halves, up Blackdown in the morning to the Temple of the Winds before coming back for lunch at the Red Lion the second leg in the afternoon we headed up to Marley Heights before descending to Shulebrede Priory and returning through Oakreeds Wood.

Heading north we took the footpath up the hill until we reached Copyhold Lane continuing the climb to veer onto the footpath through the woods at Upper Sopers, crossing Fernden Lane, still climbing past Lye Wood into the woods at Ridden Corner. The climb slackened off as we turned onto the Sussex Border Path on Black Down. The landscape opened to heathland where we encountered our first Belted Galloway cattle grazing beside a pond. Turning south we arrived at the Temple of Winds admiring the views joined by a Belted Galloway calf for our coffee break. The path back down to Fernhurst proved exceptionally muddy, needing a small detour to avoid it. Our al fresco lunch at the Red Lion hit the spot, turbo charging our afternoon walk.

The second stint took us alongside Vann Common and up into Kingsley Copse on Marley Heights before descending to the remains of the Augustinian Priory of Shulbrede. Walking through Oakreeds Wood we came out near Greenhill House where we admired the red Hawthorn bushes in the garden. Crossing fields and a lane we came to Vann Road and hence back to our start.