East Dean
Children will enjoy a village duck pond, a nearby milkshake vending machine and a couple of totem poles!
The Basics
Time: 1 hour
Distance: 3.4 km
Terrain: Fields, woodland tracks, very quiet country lane
Pushchair: No
Dogs: Yes, but will need to be on leads through field of sheep
Refreshments: The Star and Garter pub or picnic benches beside village hall. Also see our tip below for The Milk Hut.
Toilets: No
Parking: Free parking at the village hall if no events on or on road parking around the village (Postcode: PO18 0JG - W3W: energy/feasted/steadily)
East Dean is a peaceful West Sussex village with pretty flint cottages surrounding a village duck pond and green. Our walk starts from this idyllic scene and climbs through bluebell woodland, passing farm animals and a surprising totem pole. When in the area, children will enjoy visiting the milkshake vending machine at a nearby dairy farm.
The Route
From the village hall, follow the pavement up the road towards the bus shelter. Turn left onto Newhouse Lane. As you go up the quiet lane, you will very soon see a path with a finger post to your right. Follow this path until you arrive at the field fence and wooden shelter (there are lots of lambs in this field as of April 2024). Turn left and follow the path back out onto Newhouse Lane.
Continue along the quiet lane until just after a collection of farm machinery and trailers, you will see a path going into the field. Take the path and cross the field to the opposite side. Go through the gate and then left onto the track.
The track will gradually rise through a fringe of woodland and near to the top you will see drifts of bluebells in April/May. Continue until you reach the green Charlton Forest sign that is currently looking a little worse for wear! Fork left and you will find yourself walking with woodland to your right and a far reaching countryside view opening up through trees to your left.
When you come to a T junction and finger post, turn left. Follow this path as it leads you back down hill across open land. Bend right towards the end as the path leads you back down to Newhouse Lane.
At Newhouse Lane, turn left and follow the road, passing West’s of East Dean which is a wood working business. Children will enjoy looking out for the dragon carved into a tall post in the field and the totem pole just outside the entrance to the property.
As you return to the village, we suggest sticking with the road this time so that you can take the short diversion up on your right to the 12th century church that commands lovely views over the south downs. Return to the main street and head down into the village centre to find the pub and the duck pond.
Please note that on our visit in April 2024, there was some rather unsightly work being carried out at the village pond by Southern Water. The pond contains the source of the River Lavant and to my understanding there has been issues with sewage leaking into the waterway from flooded drains. Until this is sorted, the beautiful pond and green has had to be fenced off.
As part of your visit to East Dean, we highly recommend a visit to The Milk Hut at Ide’s Barn, Droke Lane , PO18 0JJ. Freshly pasteurised milk from the farm’s cows is pumped out of a vending machine where you can also purchase glass bottles (card payments). There is a wide selection of self service milkshake syrups to add. You can walk here along Droke Lane from East Dean, but as it would add an extra 15 minutes each way on foot, we decided to do the short drive. There is plenty of parking space and a little picnic area where you can drink your milkshakes. We also enjoyed seeing the cows in the barn and saying thank-you to them for our milk!
Did You Know?
East Dean is one of a string of equally charming flint villages close to The Goodwood Estate. The next to the west is Charlton with its brilliant pub, The Fox Goes Free. The garden is an absolute delight in summer with views of The South Downs. Next along is Singleton which is home to the excellent Weald and Downland Living Museum, one of our favourite family days out.