Horam circular

After about one and a half miles, at a signed crossing bridleway (GR 587156), turn left along a wide unfenced track, across a field, over a wide bridge in a dip and up to join a road.

2 - Cross the road, turn left along the opposite verge and, shortly, fork right along a lane, signed to Rushlake Green. After about 400 yards, turn left along the access drive to Riversdale Cottage. Just past this property, which is a solid, red-brick house, turn left over a stile and drop down across a small paddock to a gateway in the far corner.

Bear right along the floor of a valley to a stile, in the same direction across another meadow, soon veering slightly left to pass through a wide gap.

Cross a low-lying meadow, go over a footbridge, then bear right with a stream nearby on your right to reach and cross a second footbridge. Maintain direction through another field to a third footbridge.

Continue, skirting to the left of a small pond. Join and follow a stream on your left to pass through a gate in a high fence. Go through a gate in a second fence and, after a few yards, go through a gate on your left at a fence corner.

Cross a paddock to a stile, over a drive and the footbridge opposite, then through a meadow to join a lane via a bridle gate. Turn left.

3 - After about 200 yards, turn left over a stile. Part of the path from here through to the next road was, until recently, obstructed and difficult to follow. Following enforcement action and maintenance work by East Sussex County Council, it is now fully open and easy to use.

From the stile at the road, bear right between high banks. Where the banks open out, go through a squeeze stile, forward for ten yards, then right along the edge of pasture to a gate and on beside a right-hand fence.

Cross a combined bridge and squeeze stile and turn left along the left edge of a paddock. Once through a gate, turn right along a right field edge, skirting to the left of a garden to find a stile.

Continue along the right edge of a field, down to the corner where you will find a wrought-iron gate. Go ahead through trees for 40 yards, out into a field corner, then half- right across the middle of a field to a gate and on for 60 yards to join a road at Marle Green. Turn right.

4 - At a road junction, fork right along Laundry Lane and, after ten yards only, fork left along a fenced path to a stile and on in the same direction across a field.

Go over a stile and bear half-left downhill across the next field where a fine and unexpected view opens out ahead. Continue without change of direction across another field to exit via a stile and a short, enclosed path, on to a road.

5 - You now have a choice of two parallel access drives on the other side of the road. Yours is the one on the left, indicated as a public footpath with a stone plinth. The drive narrows to a path between fence and hedge. Where this path ends at a stile, go ahead along a track with a field sometimes occupied by Jacob’s Sheep and an orchard over to your left.

Go over a stile and forward along a tree-lined path. Over another stile, go ahead along a track between two picturesque ponds to cross a third stile to the right of a gate and then go ahead along a right field-edge.

6 - After about 200 yards, when opposite a stile on your right (not for you), turn squarely left across the field to a stile and in the same direction downhill to another stile with access into a wood.

Some care is now needed as it is possible to go astray. About 60 yards inside the wood, fork left along a downhill path which soon crosses, in quick succession, a plank sleeper bridge across a minor stream and then a more substantial footbridge.

Leave the wood through a gate, walk forward along a left field-edge to a stile and on in the same direction beside a left-hand fence at first, then straight on up across a field to join a lane over a stile and turn left.

Cross the B2203 at Maynard’s Green and follow Tubwell Lane, opposite. After about 150 yards, fork left along a path which ramps up to rejoin the Cuckoo Trail, which you can now follow southwards for about a mile back to the start of the walk at Horam. Watch out for speeding cyclists.

*Distance/Time: Five and a half miles/ two and a half hours.

*By Car: Start from the large village of Horam on the A267 Heathfield-to Eastbourne road a few miles south of Heathfield.

Park in the Cuckoo Trail car park which is signed from the B2203 road a few yards from the A267/B2203 junction in the centre of the village at GR 578174.

*By Public Transport: There is an hourly weekday bus service to Horam from Eastbourne, Heathfield and Tunbridge Wells.

*What’s underfoot: Generally easy walking along field paths and tracks as well as the hard-surfaced Cuckoo Trail on the old railway.

*Thirsty Work: Pub and tea rooms at Horam.

*So you don’t get lost: OS Explorer 123.