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Winterfold Forest

3.7 miles (6 km)

Ordnance Survey Map Open Streetmap This lovely area of the Surrey Hills is a popular place for walkers and cyclists. Winterfold Wood and the adjacent Hurt Wood have many miles of footpaths and bridleways which are suitable for mountain bikers.
There are Hurtwood Control car parks on Greensand Lane where you can start your walk or ride. The car park is near to a number of mountain bike trails including the Charles Bronson and the Northern Monkey. These are located just south of the car park. You can see them marked on the open street map link below. There's also the Secret Santa trail. See the video below to give you an idea of what you can expect on this exhilarating ride.
For walkers there are miles of woodland trails with some decent climbs, picnic areas and great viewpoints.
This circular route starts at the Hurtwood Control car park on Winterfold Hill and follows bridleways to the northern part of the forest, visiting Winterfold Heath and Reynards Hill.
The Greensand Way long distance footpath passes through the woods. If you follow it east you can visit Hurt Wood, Pitch Hill and climb to Holmbury Hill. The hill stands at an impressive 856 feet (261 m), giving fine views over the surrounding area.

Postcode

GU5 9EN - Please note: Postcode may be approximate for some rural locations

Winterfold Forest OS Map Ordnance survey map - Mobile GPS OS Map with Location tracking

Winterfold Forest Open Street Map Open Streetmap - Mobile GPS Map with Location tracking

Pubs/Cafes

On the southern side of the forest there's the pretty village of Cranleigh where you could visit the 17th century Three Horseshoes pub. The old fashioned village inn has a delightful interior with wooden floors, nooks, crannies and beams and even an inglenook fireplace with a roaring fire in winter. Outside there's a lovely garden area with lots of plants and herbs and private "wine huts" available for booking.
They serve good quality food and have a fine selection of real ales too.
You can find them on the High Street with postcode GU6 8AE for your sat navs.

Further Information and Other Local Ideas

A few miles to the east of the forest then you could enjoy a climb to the noteworthy Leith Hill, the highest point on the Greensand Ridge. Around here you'll also find the expansive Abinger Common and Holmwood Common with miles of good walking trails to try. The circular Friday Street Walk can be picked up on nearby Abinger Common. It explores the pretty Friday Street Mill Pond and the 17th century Wotton House Estate before heading to the Tillingbourne Waterfall on the River Tillingbourne.

Cycle Routes and Walking Routes Nearby

Photos

Winterfold Forest - geograph.org.uk - 988043

Winterfold Forest. Bridleway flanked by bracken and birchwoods, heading gently uphill towards Ewhurst Windmill.

Pond in Winterfold Forest - geograph.org.uk - 988344

Rectangular pond on the east side of the bridleway. The brown water is surrounded by birch trees.

Winterfold Forest Hillside - geograph.org.uk - 988312

A sandy hillside with birches growing above the bracken.

Winterfold Gateway - geograph.org.uk - 986719

Winterfold Gateway. Railings line the road at Row Lane beside this substantial gateway into the forest.

Madgehole Lane - geograph.org.uk - 1388200

Madgehole Lane. Attractive vernacular tile-hung cottage amongst grassy fields and pieces of woodland on the Greensand Ridge.

Horse tracks on Kiln Hanger. - geograph.org.uk - 1386984

Horse tracks on Kiln Hanger. The public bridleway is to the right. Sandy tracks criss-cross the woodland.

Jelleys Hollow - geograph.org.uk - 1777018

Jelleys Hollow. The wooded ravine from the Greensand Ridge widens into a grassy valley above Fowls Copse.

Dry Well, Winterfold - geograph.org.uk - 987968

Dry Well. 2008 saw one of the wettest Augusts recorded, followed by one of the dryest Septembers, and the result here in Winterfold Forest is a dry well on the western edge of the bridleway.

Video

GPS Files

GPX File

Winterfold Forest.gpx (On Desktop:Right Click>Save As. On Ipad/Iphone:Click and hold>Download Linked File)

Memory Map Route

Winterfold Forest.mmo (On Desktop:Right Click>Save As. On Ipad/Iphone:Click and hold >Download Linked File)