Horsell Common
Woking
Children will enjoy playing in the fords and a giant natural sandpit.
There are two fords where children and dogs can play - we advise wellies as the water is not crystal clear and you won’t see the bottom.
The Basics
Time: 1hr 40mins (or you could do a shorter walk around the wetlands)
Distance: 5.8 km / 3.6 miles
Terrain: Flat, boardwalks, firm forest paths, one short section on a rougher sandy path with a few tree roots across.
Pushchairs: Pushchairs will make it around, with just the one tricky bit in step 7 below.
Dogs: Dogs are welcome on this walk.
Refreshments: Heather Farm Café is beside the car park and has seating overlooking the wetlands, as well as a few wooden animals kids can climb on.
Toilets: There are toilets at the café.
Public Transport: There is no public transport to the start point, but plenty of busses do serve the area and you can access the common through other points.
Parking: Free car park at Heather Farm, Chobham Road (Postcode: GU21 4XY - W3W: ///such.jump.weedy)
The sand-pit where children will enjoy digging and playing.
Horsell Common has a mixture of landscapes, all of which can be explored on this walk. You will find yourself crossing rivers, wetlands, meadows, woodland and sandy heath. The walk starts and finishes at Heather Farm Cafe which overlooks the wetlands. Children will love playing at the huge natural sandpit half-way around. There are lots of paths and options for making this route shorter or longer.
The Route
From the car park at Heather Farm, walk up to the noticeboard, with the outside area of the cafe to your right. Walk up an avenue of young trees and then cross the river into Mimbridge Meadows.
Keep right, with the River Bourne directly to your right and sweep around the edge of the meadows until you reach a bridge and a ford. Children in wellies and dogs will enjoy playing in the water here. Cross the bridge into Bourne Fields.
Continue straight ahead onto the boardwalk. At the opposite end of the meadow, the boardwalk will pass through a gap in the hedge.
On the other side of the hedge is a T-junction, where you should turn right and then immediately left to continue on the boardwalk. At the end of the boardwalk, you will reach a two-way finger post. Take the right turn towards Horsell Common/Fair Oaks Airport.
You will soon come to another ford. This time, do not cross the bridge, but take the right hand turn down a shady woodland track, signposted Horsell Common. Continue down the track, passing a couple of properties before coming to a cross paths. Turn left and walk down the old perimeter track.
This track will take you in a mostly straight line along the wooded edge of the common for just under a kilometre. You will pass Scotcher’s Farm on your left*. After around a kilometre, towards the end of the perimeter path, you will pass a house on your left.
Just after the house, look out for a green arrow directing you away from the track and into the woodland. This next section of path is sandier, rougher and may have some tree roots making it bumpy. This will be the hardest part for pushchairs of the walk. You will see glimpses of the heather-clad heathland to your right. Continue until you meet the wide Sandy Track. Turn right onto Sandy Track.
Very shortly, you will see on your left the sand-pit, where children may want to stop and play. Head back to Sandy Track afterwards.
Continue along Sandy Track for nearly 2km. You will pass Danewell Gutter Pond on your left, where children might like to stop on the sandy shore and look for wildlife such as dragonflies. At Sandy Track car park, continue straight ahead and join the straight, flat cycle track on the other side. This will lead you all the way back to the entrance road to Heather Farm, where you should turn right to return to your car and cafe.
*If you want a diversion into McLaren Park, after approx 900 m, look out for a flat, wooden bridge on your left going into the woodland. Take this and the after a few metres the path reaches a boardwalk. Follow this to the edge of the woodland and then, at the meadow, go straight up the hill towards the clump of trees. Pass the trees to your left and then turn right, coming down the meadow towards the McLaren building. Turn right at the Heras fencing, and walk towards some insect homes. Follow the path back towards the common, passing a house on your right as you meet the perimeter path again and re-join the walk at step 7.
If you want a much shorter route for young children, there is an easy trail around the wetlands next to the café. Enter using the gate on your right by the noticeboard.
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Did you know?
In H.G. Well's’ War of the Worlds, Horsell Common sandpit is the location for the first Martian landing.
If you enjoyed this walk…
…try the huge sand-pit at Rockford Common in the New Forest
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