South Downs, Shere and Gomshall

 May 2026

A bit away from the South Downs, actually, but on our way home to Cambridgeshire.

We started from the village of Shere, between Guildford and Dorking. The circular walk of just 3.5 miles, (Walking World 2953) offered extensive views, including the North Downs. 

It also lead us past the church of St James, Shere. There was almost certainly a Saxon church here, but the current church of St James dates to around 1190 and is cruciform in plan. The church is approached up a cobbled lane, through a lych gate designed by Edwin Lutyens in 1902.

For lunch we visited Gomshall Mill, which offered a wide range of menus.

Our trip home was, predictably, slow, as it so often is on the M25 on a Friday.

To round off another very good few days walking and talking, John produced a map showing where we have stayed, approximately south of The Wash, over the years - as an aid to deciding where to go next. Any great areas that we might have missed? Where next?

South Downs, Cissbury Ring

 May 2026

Thursday was our day at the Cissbury Ring.

The mighty earthwork of Cissbury Ring has a history going back over 5,000 years, yet still stands out and provides a broad panorama from its crown. It has been a neolithic flint mine, a bronze age burial site, an iron age hill fort, a Roman mint, a Tudor vantage point, a Victorian archaeology site and a second world war gun emplacement.

Lunch was at the Black Horse at Findon.

St Mary The Virgin, North Stoke, was certainly worth a visit for its medieval wall paintings.

Supper was at the Five Bells, West Chitlington.

South Downs, Amberley

May 2026

 On Wednesday we constructed our various breakfasts in the spacious kitchen and headed out into the South Downs National Park.

Today we walked from North Stoke to Amberley ...

... in delightful, if rather windy, weather. 

For lunch we ate at the Amberley Bridge Inn, where the car park was scintillating with highly polished and powerful motor bikes, mainly of the Harley Davidson style.

In the afternoon we found the Amberley Working Museum, which was excellent, like a smaller version of the Beamish Museum in County Durham. Here were old household utensils, a print works, steam engines, leather and wood working sheds and a working smithy. We took a narrow gauge train to the far end and caught a coach coming back even though it was all easily walkable. Recommended!

John alights from the narrow gauge shunter

After tea and rest hour back at Nutbourne we returned to The Sportsman at Amberley for supper.

South Downs, Nutbourne

 April 2026

We drove down to the South Downs and took lunch at the Rising Sun in Nutbourne. A good traditional pub with good value food.

Our afternoon walk was nearby, near Pulborough, anti-clockwise from West Chiltington church (St Mary's) to Nutbourne and back. It is Walking World ID 4315, desscribed as 

"A circular walk including a very pleasant old English village (having an ancient church with famous medieval paintings and village stocks and whipping-post from the 1600s), through a vineyard with views of the South Downs, woodland and farmland."

The Chiltington church has remarkable medieval wall paintings and an unusual wood tile steeple.

Our Airbnb was just right, a short distance out of Nutbourne, with a bedroom each and ample communal space. On a farm, we were free to roam and our hosts were very friendly.

In the evening we ate at Frankland Arms, Washington. Again good range of pub food and very good value.