"Leith Hill, Leith Hill; so good they climbed it twice"
Sunday 11 October
A small group of us are climbing Leith Hill twice in one day. The top of the tower on Leith Hill is the highest point in South East England (just over 1000 feet above sea level). Supposedly you can see 14 counties and with a telescope you can make out the English Channel and the clockface on Big Ben
This is a figure-of-8 walk climbing the hill twice from different directions. To make it a bit easier, it's only about 7 miles and we're using a minibus to get to the bottom rather than having to walk from the nearest station (which is why we need to know if you want to join us). But you do need to be fairly fit and be up for climbing it twice. Moderate pace; not suitable for slow walkers.
So why do it?
a) Autumn colour (the trees are already starting to turn)
b) Trees. Plenty of them. An arboretum, conifers and a landslip full of more trees
c) High sandy open heathland with a view to show how high you've climbed (twice)
d) Very steep steps and slopes (good aerobic exercise)
The walk starts outside Leith Hill Place (the home of Vaughan Williams). It follows a woodland trail past the walled garden and an avenue of limes. We go up through the woods to the top of the hill where we will stop for coffee at the refreshment kiosk
You have the option of climbing some more steps up to the top of Leith Hill Tower for the view. This costs £1.50 (or is free if you're a member of the National Trust)
Then we go down again exploring the landslip of Frank's Wood and Mosses Wood
Then we climb back up past the highest cricket pitch in the South East where we will stop for lunch. Bring a packed lunch for a picnic
We continue climbing on open heathland past the source of the River Tillingbourne to reach the top again by a different route
We will have an ice cream stop and you have the option of running up the tower again if you wish!
Then we go down again following the Greensand Way to the rhododendron wood and past Darwin's Wormstone (he was related to Vaughan Williams). We end at Leith Hill Place where we started
If you wish to go on this walk you need to contact the organiser as there are limited places.
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start__dateTime(11th October at 9am)
end__dateTime(11th October at 5pm)
