Robust Rambles

Section 25 (Out)

Dawes Green to Betchworth

Walk Details

Walk Instructions

With the ‘Seven Stars’ pub on your left, turn left off the main road up Tapner Road for ½ mile. Where the Gadbrook Road comes in on the left, turn right, off the road along a tarmac drive.

Pass a pond and, at the end of a brick wall, turn right. Go forward to a stile by the gates to Gadbrook Cottage. Cross into a field and bear diagonally left down the field to a concrete bridge. Over this bear left up to a stile in the top hedge.

Over the stile turn left along the field edge with a hedge on your left. At a corner, cross a stile into the next field. Bear slightly right across this field aiming for a power cable pole. At a fieldgate bear right to a concealed stile, then immediately left following the hedge on your left.

At the end of the field go across a footbridge and stile concealed in the hedge and keep straight on in the next field with a hedge on your right. Aim for a lone tree ahead opposite a barn. Just before the tree turn sharp left on a path going diagonally back across the field to a stile in the opposite hedge.

Over this stile keep on in the same direction bearing slightly diagonally left downhill across the field towards a lone tree by a cable pole. Beyond cross a pair of stiles with a long footbridge between leading to a meadow.

Continue uphill towards a treeline. In a corner of the trees ahead, turn right down to a concrete footbridge over a river. Cross to a wide track through trees. This soon reaches a junction of ways. Ignore a stile on your right and keep left on the main track.

At the end of the wood, look for a double metal fieldgate on your left just before a garden hedge. Cross a stile by these gates and turn right with a hedge on your right. Where the garden ends keep on following the hedge on your right under power cables, to walk the full length of the field.

Keep ahead over a stream into a further field and again keep straight on now towards a distant mill building. Just before the end of the field reach and cross a stile on your left into a thicket and follow the footpath through to a footbridge and then a road by the mill (being converted like everything else in this country into apartments).

Turn left on the road and soon, at the back of the mill, turn right, up a concrete path, ignore the stile on the left and walk along the concrete path for a few metres. Turn left onto a grassy path and go up passing the mill pond on your right. Soon reach a stile into a horse paddock.

Cross and go up the paddock bearing slightly left towards a stile in the top left corner. Cross into a further paddock and keep on up to a stile into an enclosed path which passes Dungate’s Farm on your right and emerges onto a country road called Dungate’s Lane. Turn left up the road for ½ mile, ignore the Greensand Way turning off left halfway up.

At the top emerge by a village store into Buckland village. Cross the main road with great care to the village green and go away from the road up an asphalt path, passing the village pond over on your right. Soon meet a road, Rectory Lane, and continue on in the same direction as before.

Stay on the road for some way, first dropping downhill then going up. Near the top of the rise, look for a footpath going left just before the entrance to Glebe Cottage. Go along this enclosed path to a kissing gate at the end and enter a field. Keep along by the hedge on your right down to double wooden fieldgates in the bottom corner. Turn right through these and over a rough wooden plank bridge into a field.

Walk up the field parallel with the hedge some 50 metres over on your right. Pass a house over on your right near the top of the field and reach a railway embankment. Go through a metal swing gate and turn left on an enclosed path by the side of the railway. Follow this all the way to emerge onto a road at Betchworth Station.

Cross the road and turn right over the level crossing. Cross a side road and join an asphalt path going up the bank ahead. Stay on this path as it climbs uphill for some way. Turn left on reaching a roadway called ‘The Coombe’. This is part of the North Downs Way. Soon turn left again still on the North Downs Way to pass in front of cottages.

Where these end keep on through a gate to a steeply rising path. This area was once a vast quarry and then a landfill site. Cross a vehicle access track and continue with extensive views to your left. Soon look for a footpath leaving the North Downs Way and dropping steeply left downhill.

Go down finally down a few steps to meet a broad level track. Turn right on this. It soon begins to drop downhill and continues near the edge of the wood with a field beyond. Having dropped quite steeply the path begins to rise again including a flight of steps.

Continue for some way looking out for a cross path (there is a new wooden fingerpost but don’t rely on it being there). Turn left on this path down to a stile into a large field. Go straight down the field to a farm bridge over the railway at the bottom.

Cross into a further pasture and go forward on a grassy farm track swinging left for a short distance. As soon as the track reaches a line of trees on your right, turn right and walk down with the treeline on your right. At the bottom leave the field over a stile onto the busy A25 road.Cross with great care to a stile opposite.

Over the stile follow a clear path (although it is a diversion from the OS map) across the field to a gap in the hedge ahead. Through this turn left to follow a wire fence on your right for some way round an excavation behind an earth bank on the right.

Keep on around the edge of a field passing the end of gardens, then going through an enclosed section to emerge by allotment type gardens. Go down the side of these then turn left on another enclosed section passing a sheltered housing complex on your right. Emerge onto a road.

Turn left to pass Betchworth Post Office and immediately turn right over the road to a footpath going down behind a bus shelter. Follow this asphalt path for some way downhill along a field edge by a hedge on your left. Pass a school and eventually emerge onto a road. Keep forward down the road to ‘The Dophin’ pub and the end of the section.