Pete's Walks - Coombe Hill and Great Kimble (page 1 of 4)
If you are considering walking this route yourself, please see my disclaimer. You may also like to see these notes about the maps and GPX files.
Google map of the walkDownload GPX file of the walk
I did this 11.8 mile circular walk on Saturday, 26th November 2011. This was a repeat of a walk I did in February this year, but in the opposite direction. The title I've given the walk is a little misleading, as the route follows a very indirect route from Coombe Hill to Great Kimble, which comes about two-thirds of the way into the walk. Note: there is a more up-to-date description of this walk with more photos (from September 2021) here.
I started walking from the car park on Coombe Hill about 9.35am, starting down the broad and rather muddy avenue that begins at the far end of the car park. This continued for some distance, gradually narrowing and becoming a 'hollow way' or sunken lane as it gradually descended the wooded western slopes of Bacombe Hill. When the trees on my right gave way to a paddock, I went over a stile and crossed the sloping paddock diagonally to reach the hamlet of Bacombe.
Start of the path from the car park on Coombe Hill
The path continuing from Coombe Hill to Bacombe Hill
The path descending Bacombe Hill
The path descending Bacombe Hill
The path from Bacombe Hill to Bacombe, with the valley of The Hale in the background.
I went a short distance left along the lane, before taking a bridleway on the right. This was soon running between fences with paddocks or pastures either side. On the far side of these the bridleway turned right (a path continued ahead towards Coxgrove Wood), initially with the hedges on both sides overhanging to form a green tunnel. It then continued between fences, with fields to the left and some attractive beech trees on the right. I was now gradually gaining height, as the bridleway continued on its way towards the wood called High Scrubs. There were generally fields to my left and trees on the right. Towards the top of the slope I entered a wood, and carried on to reach a path crossroads in High Scrubs.
The bridleway from Bacombe
The bridleway near Bacombe
The bridleway from Bacombe
The bridleway from Bacombe
The bridleway from Bacombe
The bridleway from Bacombe, now in the woods near upper Bacombe
A footpath continued straight on through the wood, as it curved left I took a path going right, which ran close to a garden boundary and went downhill to lane. Just a few yards to the left, another path started on the other side, heading into Fugsdon Wood.
The footpath that continues from the end of the bridleway, in High Scrubs
Footpath in High Scrubs, descending to a lane
Start of the path through Fugsdon Wood
Fugsdon Wood