A walk starting in Lindfield, of approximately 16 miles

sketch map of a 16-mile walk around Haywards Heath

By Chris Best

The walk starts from the Wilderness car park. Head back out of the car park and turn left along the footpath. There are houses on the left and when you reach a high brick wall straight ahead, turn right. The signpost here is hidden at the moment behind an Elderberry bush. There are some great iron work gates on the left with a very large Redwood in the garden behind. There is a fence on the right and when this finishes, a field either side. Keep going along this path and when it joins another path, bear left. The field on the left is now Hangman’s Acre. Turn right when you reach a concrete road. You will cross a concrete bridge and go up a slight hill with Christmas trees growing on the right. Just before a metal gate blocks the road, the footpath goes left, marked with a signpost.

Cross a stream via a wooden bridge and then another which is via two planks of wood. Turn right at the end of the path and go along a tarmac road, Snowflakes Lane. At the end, cross over the road, East Mascalls Lane, and carry on across the field opposite, signposted. Cross a tarmac drive and go through a metal gate. Head right and at the end of the field go over a style, signposted. Walk with a wooden garage on the left and head straight on past a metal gate into a field. Go over a type of barrier/gate into a field of horses. Bear slightly left and follow the worn grass down the small hill through a metal gate and into a wood. Go over a wooden bridge and bear right. At the junction with another path, turn left.

When you leave the wood there is a wide grass track crossing you. Turn left with the electricity cables above you. When the track forks, take the right-hand route, sign posted. This route brings you out on Church Road. Turn right and go past St Augustine’s Church. Cross over the main A272 and go left with The Farmers pub on the right. The next footpath is not marked from the road but is on the right just after the bollards in the road, (picture 1). The footpath goes to the left of the houses in Swallow Rise by a fence. The path drops down here and is very wet over quite a long section before joining a tarmac road with a couple of houses. Head down the road, very short, then take the path on the right where it meets another tarmac road, sign posted. Go over the style and keep to the right of the field to the next style. Go over this and keep straight ahead.

Go through a wooden gate at the end of the field, the path drops to the left going down concrete blocks as steps to a signpost. Follow this to the right going up a short bank which is waymarked at the top. Follow the hedge on the right going downhill. The path further down moves away from the hedge and joins Ham Lane. Go straight over and past Hooters Garage. The footpath, which is waymarked, is immediately after the garage and to the left of the tarmac drive, (picture 2). The path veers left with a motorbike scrambling track in the trees. Cross over the tarmac drive and turn left. Go over a style, built by the Monday group. You will go over a number of these built by the Monday Group during this walk.

The path goes across the field to the right and is clear to follow. At the end of the field, go over the style and keep straight ahead. Go over another style which then takes you between two fields. Cross over a stream via a concrete bridge and then the path looks like it goes to the right. Ignore this and carry on, passing a wooden gate on the left. The path rises now in a gulley. It is an old track, which is the continuation of Ham Lane. This section is quite long and you will pass a spruce plantation on the right as you go downhill, which has lots of bluebells in it. There is a line of hornbeams on the left which forms a rough hedge. The plantation on the right changes to oak further down the hill.

When the field on the left finishes it becomes a pine plantation. It can lie very wet here. When you come out of the wood, the path goes under pylons. 50 to 100 metres further on the footpath turns left as is signposted, (picture 3). It is very wet here. The path goes uphill and is very windy and muddy. At the junction with a track, turn left and then right. The footpath sign is on a tree. You will see a metal gate ahead and the style is to the right. Follow the track on the left of the field with a wood the other side of the fence. There is a signpost about 200 metres along here on the right direction you across the field. There is a building ahead on the left and a fence coming into the field which has a hedge on its furthest point. There is a waymark on the corner post, (picture 4). Follow the direction of the arrow and walk between two oak trees and then take the left-hand path which passes just to the right of another oak tree. Follow the path up the gentle hill, going between two more oak trees. There is a wooden building to the left beyond a track. At the top of the field there is a crossroads of footpaths with a sign, Hole Farm.

Turn right before the style and keep to the left of the field. Go over the next style and bear right across the field. The next style can be seen ahead of you. This path goes between two fences heading towards some trees. On the right is Wivelsfield Hall. Go over the style at the end of the trees and head straight across the next field. At the end of this field there is a signpost with a metal swing gate. Go through this, ignoring the path off to the left. Turn left after the gate and cross over Slugwash Lane. Go through the wooden gate on the other side of the road with a footpath sign. The path goes straight ahead with a house on the right. The path then veers left to a style which takes you into a field. The next two fields are extremely rough in dry weather, as the cows have made the ground very uneven. Head across the field to the right of the lake and aiming to go between two metal animal watering troughs.

Once past these troughs the path becomes a concrete track. This is More House Farm. At the end of the concrete track, go over the style on the left and follow the signpost exactly, as this will take you to the style, which is at the end of the field with the Haywards Heath to Ditchling road on the other side. Cross the road and take the path opposite via a metal gate. There is a footpath sign here and the path is very clear to see. Go through the next metal gate, head to the right aiming for where the wooden fence meets the wall to the cemetery. (The signpost sends you straight across the field and not as I have directed. It maybe that they are trying to get you to use the other footpath rather than this one. Both paths do end up in the same place, just outside the gates to Lunces Hall.)

Go over the style and follow the path between a house and St Peter & St John the Baptist church, Wivelsfield. The path along here is over grown. The path joins a tarmac road, turn left and go through an open gate with a footpath sign on the right, just after passing the Old School. The drive goes down an avenue of Horse Chestnut trees. Just before the gates to Lunces Hall take the footpath on the right. (The left footpath takes you behind the houses you have just past on the left and then on towards the church to the point I mentioned earlier at a metal gate.)

The path goes left between a metal fence and a hedge, signposted. Go through a metal gate and down a few steps into a field. There are three paths, although the signpost for the middle path is missing. Take this path across the middle of the field. This goes downhill and into a wood via an overgrown style which you can pass to the side. Cross the stream via a concrete bridge, which has a lot of wild garlic around it and then over a style, through a narrow wooden gate, passing a house on the right. Go straight over a track to a style, signposted and the short path to a tarmac drive. Turn right and go between some wooden sheds. The footpath sign can be seen at the rear of the shed on the left. The path takes you behind this shed and then past Multon Farm on the right and a pond on the left.

Go over a tarmac drive, taking the footpath straight ahead as signposted. This goes downhill till a style with a muddy track the other side. Go over this and the style opposite. The path is clear to see going slightly downhill before going over a wooden bridge with metal hand rails. Go under some overhead electricity cables, then over a style into a farmyard with metal containers on the left and buildings on the right. Go over the style ahead of you, which is to the left of the metal double gates. Turn left onto a gravel road and keep going until you join the road from Haywards Heath to Burgess Hill, Rocky Lane. Turn right going under the railway bridge, (be very careful on this stretch of road) and then left down a hard surface road which is covered in mud and has a large tree trunk across its entrance to stop vehicles entering, signposted bridleway.

Go past a road/path off to the right and take the next left, which is signposted, going past a metal gate. Go under the electricity cables with a pylon on the right, then a brick building on the right with a small car park next to it. Keep straight ahead with a pond on the left. About 30 metres beyond the car park go down the steep brick steps on the right, (picture 5) no signpost here. The path veers right in some trees keeping the stream on your left. Very quickly you come out into a field with trees on either side. The path veers left and you can see the footpath sign pointing to go over a wooden bridge, crossing the stream and into a wood. Go up the steps and follow the waymark to the right which leads to another waymark directing you right again. Ignore the unmarked path on the left and then on the right. Go down the hill to a footpath sign. Turn right, go over a wooden bridge crossing the stream again, (picture 6).

Pass another footpath sign on the left and go up a short hill which brings you out of the wood. The path goes right with a field on the left and the wood on the right. When you reach a tarmac drive turn right and then go left, which is waymarked. This brings you out onto Isaccs Lane, another Haywards Heath to Burgess Hill, road. Turn right and walk along the road. The traffic travels fast along here, so be careful. Go past a road on the right and then turn left down a concrete drive to Hookhouse Stables. The path goes to the left of the brick building, which is straight ahead. The footpath sign is slightly hidden in the hedge on the left, with an overgrown pond on the right. Beyond the end of the barn on the right, there is a waymark. Follow the track with a hedge on the right. The path drops down into a wood, crossing a stream before rising up the other side.

Go past a pond on the left and then the tracks bends to the right past another pond on the left, which is quite well hidden. Keep on the track until you see a 3-way footpath sign on the right with a wooden gate. Turn right and walk up the left-hand side of the field with trees on the left. Go into another field keeping straight ahead. There is an entrance on the left with a sign, Private Property. Ahead, is a wood and when you reach this, the footpath sign directs you right, keeping to the edge of the same field. The path then turns sharp left along the edge of the same field with the wood still on the left. Follow the waymark to the left on a concrete track and then immediately right. The waymark is on the right here.

At the 3-way footpath sign, keep straight ahead keeping the house on the right. Keep straight ahead again at the next 3-way footpath sign. As the main track goes right in front of a wood, bear left into the wood, which has a waymark sign and a footpath sign. Keep to the main track. Go over the style and turn right at the junction with another footpath. Go across the field going downhill. At the end of the field, go down some steps and past a metal gate onto a tarmac drive with a house in front of you. Turn right and when you reach the end of the garden to the house, turn left at the signpost and go over a wooden bridge into a wood. Go up the hill into a field and turn right keeping to the edge of the field, signposted. At the end of the field bear right, signposted. Join the track and go right passing a 3-way signpost on the right. Go over a wooden bridge and pass to the left of a house.

The path veers left going downhill into a wood. Go down some steps, over a wooden bridge and then up some steps the other side. Leave the wood via a style and go across the field with a fence on the left. Pass a signpost on the left and go through a metal gate. Pass a sewerage treatment works on the right and go through two metal gates before you meet the Cuckfield bypass. The traffic travels very fast along this stretch of road. Cross over and take the signposted path opposite. Go past a metal gate and up the track. This turns into a hard surfaced drive and goes between buildings. At the junction with a drive at the end, turn left with The Holy Trinity Church, Cuckfield on the right, (picture 7).

The track turns into a tarmac road, Newbury Lane and joins Church Platt. Cross over South Street opposite and enter the track. Immediately take the signposted path via a wooden gate on the left. Keep to the left of the field and go through a metal gate into the next field. Turn right, the signpost is just ahead of the metal gate on the left. The path is easy to see across this field going to the left of a large oak tree. Keep to the right of the field after this and not follow the path going across the middle of the field. At the end of the field go through a metal gate and turn left, indicated by a 3-way signpost. Go down the hill with the fence on the left, going past another 3-way signpost and follow the sign straight ahead which takes you into some trees.

Go down some steps, over a style and then a wooden bridge. Go up the steps the other side, ignoring the path to the right. Keep straight ahead at the next 3-way signpost and then bear left at the next sign post which is only about 25 metres ahead. The path is clear to follow going uphill. Ignore the side paths as you continue uphill and pass another 3-way signpost on the right. You are walking along a Wealden Walkway which will eventually take you to some playing fields on the left. Keep to the footpath to the side of the playing field. The path opens up into a lane with houses on the left.

The lane bears right, Cherry Trees Lane. This ends at the road from Cuckfield to the A23. Turn left and then cross the road taking the driveway on the right to Inholmes Cottages, signposted. The road turns into a gravel road and when you reach an oak tree on the left with a Russel’s Spinney sign on it, (picture 8) take the signposted footpath through a metal gate and across a field keeping to the right-hand side. Follow the waymark round to the right and down a hill. Go through a metal gate and into a wood where the path splits. Take the right hand one. The path splits again. Take the left one that has a metal railing fence on the left. As you come out of the trees, there is a 3-way footpath sign. Go to the left of the hawthorn bush in front of you and the path becomes clear as you walk downhill.

There are good views as you walk down the hill. Cuckfield golf course is on the left. At the bottom of the hill go up into a clump of trees. You can clearly see a footpath sign ahead of you pointing to the right. Go over the style into the field and follow the path on the left of the field. There is a house ahead and to the right which is Lower Sparks Farm. Go over a style keeping straight ahead and then over another style with a footpath sign directing you straight ahead. The path veers right at the end of the field before it turns left over a style and then right along two wooden planks, short distance. The path goes between two hedges before turning left down a couple of steps and over a two-plank bridge. There is a 4-way signpost here. Turn right, which is a bridleway and also a tarmac road, Sparks Lane.

Further along the lane you will pass some topiary of a rabbit on the right before going over a bridge and then up hill. At the end of the lane is the Cuckfield to Balcombe Road, Brook Street, turn right past an old red telephone box. Cross the road by Chapel Gallery on the other side of the road and go down the gravel track, which is signposted. The car park to the gallery is on the left as you enter the track. Head towards a wooden post on the right which is waymarked. Go down this track and not the one to the left. There is an old house on the right and then a property on the left with a stream on the right. You now have a choice of routes as a permissive path has been added. If you take the actual public footpath, go over the style next to a metal gate. Keep to the right of the field until you see a small gap in the hedge with a footpath sign the other side. Leave the field here and you will find you have met up with the other end of the permissive path, (picture 9). If you take the permissive path, which is probably easier, go over the style and head up the hill, keeping to the left of the field until you reach the style at the top. Go over this and bear left where you will join the route from the actual public footpath.

Turn left and keep to the left of the field which curves to the right before going into a wood. There is no signpost here but the path is clear. The path veers left passing a pond on the right and then crosses a wooden bridge as you leave the wood and go into a field, waymarked. Follow the hedge on the right and when it veers more sharply to the right, there is a footpath sign in the hedge on your right. Head straight across the field. The path is not clear here, but look ahead to the far side of the field and aim for the gap in the bracken, as this is where the style is. Go over and head towards the next field which has another style to go over or walk around to the left if the barbed wire fence is still down. Keep right going up the field with a larch plantation on the right. The path veers right between two horse chestnut trees and then across the field to the style next to a metal gate.

There is a signpost here pointing across the next field. You will see a pine tree ahead and the path goes to the right into the corner of the field. Go through the wooden gate and take the track straight ahead. There is a 4-way footpath sign here. Go through a wooden gate and keep straight ahead, signposted. After you pass a works yard on the left, you will be walking past Borde Hill gardens on the left. Continue past the entrance to the gardens, waymarked and then through a car park. In front of you is the Haywards Heath to Balcombe Road with a lodge house on the left. Turn left and walk along the road. Be very careful as the traffic moves fast along here. Turn right into Copyhold Lane, signposted to Ardingly. This stretch of road takes you over the London to Brighton railway line and it is about 0.5 miles before you take the footpath on the right through a metal gate. There is a footpath on the left which goes to Ardingly reservoir.

After about 30 metres, turn left and then bear left on the path, which is a permissive path, not signposted. This whole area has a lot of permissive paths and it also lies very wet in the Winter. Take the 3rd path on the right, about 15 metres from the public footpath, which has a bank on the left. Bear left along a track made by tractors and go up hill. Take the path on the right into the wood and follow this as it twists its way through the trees. When you meet another track going across the path, keep straight ahead. Ignore the next path to the right and go across an area of cut woodland. The path bears right at a line of oak trees. Keep these on the left with a field the other side. Watch out for a piece of wire which goes across the path as you start to face the field. The path takes you over a fallen oak tree. Keep the field fairly close on the left as the path isn’t always clear to follow.

You eventually come to the Haywards Heath to Ardingly College road. This can be busy at times with fast moving vehicles, so be careful crossing over, as you need to go down the drive towards Kenwards Farm opposite, signposted. When you reach some metal gates the path/track goes right, waymarked. Straight ahead is private. The track goes around the garden of the farm before turning right between two hedges with fields either side. You enter a wood taking the left-hand route downhill. It lies wet here for most of the year. As you start to go uphill there is a place on the right which sells eggs and has some stables. As you near the top of the hill there are some buildings on the right.

Just past these, take the left-hand footpath, signposted. This can be wet in the Winter and sometimes over grown in the Summer. The houses on the right are park of The Welkin. There was a metal gate at the end of this path, but it is no more. Turn right. Signposted by a garage and go between some houses. Bear left down the drive to the top of Lindfield High Street. All Saints Church is opposite on the right. Turn left, then cross the road going down Francis Road. Old Place is on the left at the top of Francis Road. Go past the church, (picture 10) and head towards a house. Go between two houses and around the back of The Tiger into The Wilderness car park.