Greensand Way 1 : Witley to Haslemere via Thursley, Surrey Hills walk
Greensand Way Stage 1 : Gibbet Hill, Devil's Punch Bowl and Hindhead Common
Length | 10.8 miles/17.3 km |
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Toughness | 5 out of 10 (362m of ascent, mainly 1 prolonged climb after lunch) |
Walk Notes |
This is the start of the Greensand Way (GW), but for logistical reasons, it's recommended you do it in reverse, as Haslemere is a better place to finish, having pubs, tea rooms, and more regular trains. It's a lovely walk through wooded countryside climbing a hill overlooking Devil's Punchbowl after lunch. It makes a lovely autumn walk with leaf colour, sweet chesnuts, and iconic Fly Agaric toadstool mushrooms. The walks starts gently through woods, and crosses the A3 (safely) to Thursley. Thursley's St Michael and All Angels church is worth a visit. There are some benches with a lovely view in the churchyard (a good picnic spot). A nearby grave has a poignant 'husband died 1917 wife died 1980' epitaph. Lunch is in The Three Horseshoes, a community owned pub with a nice beer garden, 500m off the route, north of the church. After lunch there's a direct route via a sunken byway to Gibbet Hill (272 metres / 892 ft) which climbs a now peaceful spur of the hill, with dramatic views into Devil's Punch Bowl after first crosses the punchbowl itself. The area was once notorious for highwaymen. In 1786, a sailor (buried in Thursley's church, and commemorated by the Sailor's Stone) was robbed and murdered after drinking at a pub in Thursley. The 3 murderers were caught and hung here. This area is now peaceful as the A3 was diverted in a tunnel under the hill in 2011 (so older OS maps will be out of date here). The former road is now grassed over. After the summit, the walk follows the rim to Hindhead (NT visitor centre and cafe, pub). Finally, its down a rim on the south side of the hill into Haslemere. The centre has some nice old buildings, 2 pubs and 2 tea rooms. The station is about 10 mins walk away, where you'll find a pub/bistro opposite. The walk is fairly easy to follow. Its waymarked with yellow, or older blue 'GW' markers, but not well enough to follow without a map or GPS. |
Travel |
Suggested Train : Nearest to 10.00am |
Lunch |
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Early Tea |
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Greensand Way |
This walk is one of 11 stages of the Greensand Way - a regional long distance path in the Southeast of England |
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Links |
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Tea |
Haslemere town centre (about 10 mins walks from the station)
Haslemere station
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Profile | |
Help Us! |
After the walk, please leave a comment, it really helps. Thanks! You can also upload photos to the SWC Group on Flickr (upload your photos) and videos to Youtube. This walk's tags are: |
By Train |
Out (not a train station) Back (not a train station) |
By Car |
Start GU8 5TB Map Directions Return to the start: Finish GU27 2PD Map Directions Travel to the start: |
Map Walk | This walk requires an OS map and a compass or GPS for navigation. You can print out OS maps using the link above. |
Amazon | |
Help |
National Rail: 03457 48 49 50 • Traveline (bus times): 0871 200 22 33 (12p/min) • TFL (London) : 0343 222 1234 |
Version |
Oct-22 Andrew |
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