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| A pleasant walk in the northern
area of the parish of Forest Row. Hammerwood House, sign-posted near Hammerwood
Church is open to the public during summer months.
This house is worth a visit as it was built by Benjamin Latrobe in 1792 who is also noted for his work on The White House, The Capitol and Baltimore Cathedral in the USA. Another of Latrobe’s works is Ashdown House, the preparatory school in Forest Row. There is good car parking space in a lay-by/bus stop approximately 100 yards to the west of Hammerwood Church on the A264. Alternatively a good starting point will be on the Maypole Road, Ashurst Wood near the entrance to Little Water Farm, map reference: 425376. This point is half way round the walk and is marked with an asterisk(*) in the text of the walk directions. Starting from Hammerwood Church walk along the A264 westwards to a stone footpath marker and a small gate in the hedge opposite Cleavers Farm. Follow the right-hand edge of the field into an enclosed path. Follow this path all the way to a broken gateway into a field with a fine view southwards. Look half right across the field to a field gate at the end of the fence opposite and cross straight over to it. This brings you to a short enclosed track with a gate at the far end. Go forward to this gate ignoring the gate and stile on your right. This is now part of the Vanguard Way. Continue southwards to follow the field boundary downhill to another field gate entering a wood. The path runs straight ahead, over a stream and uphill to a lane. The grey mansion to your left is Hammerwood House, frequently open to the public. Bear left along the lane passing Dog Gate Lodge on your left. The lane leads downhill to Owletts Farm. Pass straight through the farm yard into another lane. This dips to a stream, and a few yards beyond the stream turn right over stile into a field. Keep ahead along the edge of this field with the stream and house on your right. At the stile and footbridge on your right cross the stream to another stile in the left hand corner. Cross stile and turn left along the track as far as a hedge coming down from the right. Now turn right and follow this hedge now on your left up to a concrete slab over the ditch to stile. Cross this stile and bear right to follow the fence uphill to pass over stile or through a field gate and straight on to two more stiles and again straight on to a third stile which brings you into a lane. Thornhill House and farm is away on your left. Turn right in the lane. In about 350 yards look for a stone marker on your left opposite Barton House. Pass through trees to a stile. The path now follows a straight course alongside the hedge on your right for approximately 300 yards crossing a stile into an enclosed section before finally coming to the tarmac drive between Little Water and Great Water Farms. Turn left and follow the drive out to the Homestall Road. *This is the suggested alternative parking spot. Ashurst Wood village is to the left. Cross the road and go slightly left to cross stile with fingerpost by a gate. Walk diagonally across Stoke Brunswick School golf course to a stile in the far right hand corner. Cross over into the next field, turn left to keep alongside the wall and hedge on the left to a stile into the lane which passes Stoke Brunswick School here. This is now a preparatory school housed in Dutton-Homestall once the home of the Dewar family, of whisky fame. Ignore path opposite and turn right in the lane and follow it for approximately 400 yards when you will come to Homestall Road again. The farm you have passed up on the left is Shovelstrode, once the home of a family of that name. It is recorded as a Manor in the Doomsday Book although it did not have manorial rights. Cross over the road to enter the drive which is fenced on both sides, leading to Homestall Stud, now a small housing complex. Keep to the main track, passing the houses on the left and through a gate to pass along a private drive in front of “Homestall Farm” (a right of way) and continue along the enclosed lane. Where the lane makes a right angled bend, go straight on over a stile into a field then straight on downhill to a second stile with gate leading onto the lane. Bear left then go right with Brooklands on your left. Continue straight on to pass two buildings on your left in the grounds of Brooklands recently constructed in a style similar to the existing Brooklands. A garage is on the right. At the end of this lane on your left is the main drive and entrance to Brooklands, go right uphill. At the corner of a wood on your right, where the drive bends slightly, go up through a small opening into an enclosed path. Go ahead with the wood on your left to a field gate and stile. This gate you passed in the early part of the walk. You now retrace you steps back to the A264 by turning left to the field gate then diagonally across the field to the broken gateway into the enclosed path. Carry straight on to the A264 and Cleavers Farm. The car park is to the right
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