Warninglid circular

By Ben Perkins

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Warninglid sits just a little more than a mile away from the busy A23 main road but the delightful, if short, village street could be many miles from the buzz of modern traffic.

On this walk we head-off to the south and then traverse west, on a track we have used on earlier walks, passing through woodland and along hidden, flooded valleys that are evidence of the earlier Wealden iron industry.

1.Walk south from the crossroads along The Street in Warninglid, descending, after the last houses, towards the prominent final building that was once The Rifleman Inn. Leave the road where it bears to the right and take the bridleway along a drive, to the right of Rifleman’s Cottage.

In 100 yards the bridleway veers to the left, leaving the driveway, to descend over a bridge in a short distance, then branching left, and climbs right.

In 300 yards the drive arrives at the gated entrance to the hilltop Rout Farm. Continue towards the farm buildings and beside a new, low-level barn on the left, turn left. In 40 yards turn right through a bridle gate.

2.The route then begins a descent between fences over several fields for nearly three-quarters of a mile; there is a small, dammed lake down to the right in the shallow hollow. Pass through gates and in the final half of the descent continue beside the left hedgeline towards the dwellings next to Colwood Park.

Just after passing the first house the path turns sharply right and in a few yards goes left down a metalled drive to a minor road.

3.Turn right along the road for about 75 yards and beside a house called Westlands, where the road goes to the right, take the signed footpath in the left corner that descends to a metal kissing gate.

Climb out from the gate, beside woodland on the right, to a sloping meadow and follow a path that makes its way between two field-centre trees to a second metal gate at the top of the rise in 200 yards.

Enter a rhododendronbordered section of path going to the right, which soon becomes a balcony track above a steepsided valley, dropping to the left, with watercourses and ponds.

The obvious path winds its way through the elevated landscape, passing some derelict buildings, to arrive at a metalled drive in a quarter of a mile.

Turn right, passing a house called Broomsticks and then dropping to a minor road. Cross the road, taking a few paces up the opposite slope and then turn right, passing across the front drive of Bee Houses cottage, to the enclosed bridleway called Earwig Lane.

This track makes a gradual ascent, in places between earthen banks, for more than half a mile and is a route we have used on other walks. Speculation could lead the seasoned Sussex walker to believe this to be a remnant of one of the many ancient droving roads that existed on The Weald, marking the way to markets or summer pastures.

4.On arriving at a minor road, turn left. In 100 yards, just after April Cottage on the left, take the footpath on the right, through a white gate, which is concealed in a hedge. The path winds its way beside a chestnut paling fence through woodland and is joined by a bridleway coming from the left in 400 yards.

From this point keep to the main bridleway track, taking none of the tempting paths leading off, to come to Steep Wood. After a distance of nearly a mile the track passes across the end of a large pond, clearing the woodland and climbing to a gate. Continue along a right hedgeline to a four-way path junction beside an isolated cottage.

Turn right up the bridleway, passing the cottage down to the right, climbing more steeply to a bridleway junction in 200 yards.

Turn right around a metal gate and follow the track, which contours through Minepits Wood, above the obvious lake called Furnace Pond, which can be seen through the trees. All of the ponds and lakes seen in this section of the walk are part of an extensive system that was created to supply waterpower for the Wealden iron industry.

5.In a quarter of a mile the track turns abruptly across the embankment that separates New Pond and Furnace Pond and at the far side, above the gully, climbs between banks in woodland.

Having climbed across the spur of the wooded hill the path descends to a stone slab bridge over a stream in 200 yards, beside a three-way sign.

Take the left path on a bridleway that climbs gradually up the valley beneath Freechase Hill. The bridleway winds its way for a little over half-a-mile to a four-way path junction. Do not turn off the main bridleway but continue in a north-easterly direction in William’s Wood.

In 400 yards, at a footpath junction, keep to the main bridleway heading towards Stonedelf. At a wide track, in about 75 yards, bear slightly left on the bridleway, descending steeply to the left and crossing a bridge over a stream.

Climb out to the right, along a track that passes a brick building and water treatment plant at the top of the slope. The bridleway continues ahead to arrive beside Warninglid Lane in 100 yards.

Turn right along the enclosed bridleway and in 400 yards cross the busy road to the opposite grass verge and turn right to head back to the crossroads in Warninglid.