Warnham Circular Walk - 6th January 2013

Martin had gone out cycling for  the morning, so although it was very misty, I decided it was time to start walking again, so this is the first reasonable distance walk of 2013.

I was going on a regular walk of just under 6 miles.

I left home at 09.20 and followed the route along the river path, across the golf course to the entrance to the Warnham Nature Reserve.

This was how foggy it was on one of the fairways, there were a few people trying to play golf.

The footpath then goes across the golf course and up to the A24 dual carriageway.  After crossing the road and going through the oak tree plantation the path joins up with the old A24 which you follow for a few hundred yards before the path turns left.

The footpath then got quite muddy, but when it then went across a ploughed field there is only one word to describe it - YUK!!!!  it was clay and just stuck to my boots.  The fog was getting worse and you could not see the hedgerow and the end of the field.

After trudging through this field the path was still muddy, but a lot easier to walk on as I approached Warnham Village.  It was then nice to walk on the road for a while, and on a dry path alongside some of the deer enclosures of Bailing Hill Farm.

After crossing the road and entering the Deer Park I was wondering why I had even bothered to carry a camera this morning as is was so foggy, then there was my answer - there were 2 red deer stags under a tree and another walking towards them.

I have walked through the Deer Park many times, but have never seen them this close before, it was nice to to stand and watch them for a while.

After being out for nearly 2 hours the fog was probably worse than when I left, and there was no one playing golf as I crossed the fairway to return to the river path and home for a nice hot coffee.

Although foggy it was an enjoyable walk, very still and quite mild for 6th January - about 8 deg C.