Country walk: Heyshott Down
Heyshott’s north-facing escarpment on the South Downs is famous as being the finest site in Europe for mosses and liverworts. The parish also boasts wild flower meadows of high quality on the plain below, especially around the village and its C13 of St James. So let us take a ramble to see both. Parking, if you are using the Unicorn Public House for roadside near the church, for this 3.4 mile (5,5kms) climb up the steep height to the top.
Take the road leading to Manor Farm and leave the road at a sharp corner continuing south along a stony track with its tunnel avenue of hazel and field maple. Leave the track as it turns right, west, and just continue south on the New Lipchis Way bridle path stop.
We enter the nature reserve managed by Murray Downland Trust and start to climb up with all the rare plants of this reserve now beginning to show themselves under the trees. The rare musk orchid grows to the right. It is one of the smallest of our orchids, usually only three inches or less in height, like the frog orchid. It has dense clusters of greenish yellow flowers smelling of honey. White helleborines flower here under the beech trees. You should see this week the first of all the orchids, the early purple. Soon to follow will be spotted orchids in mid-may, then pyramid orchids in late June.
Apart from the large species list of mosses, there is also a fine flora of downland plants such as birds-foot trefoil, ladies bedstraw, squinancywort and marjoram. Many of which support about 32 species of butterfly whose caterpillars feed on the buds and leaves.
The track climbs past steep gulleys, one of which is called Gadd’s bottom. I am always reminded of the Alps and its precipitous walks across overhangs. Keep left all the way up until you reach the South Downs
Way and keep left along it to admire the Bronze Age tombs which today support a fine downland flora and are another part of the Murray Downland Trust’s nature reserve holdings. Fine views here of the Surrey Hills and Blackdown.
Now return west for half a mile along the SDW to find New Lipchis Way near an ancient earthwork, where turn right, north, on the bridleway straight back downhill to Heyshott. This again takes you through the remarkable flora of the reserve. It is at its best now and for the next four months, as different species of wild flower unfold. Century old yew trees clothe the slope in places too.
The final part of the walk is across fields between hedges and also a different display of flowers that grow on the Greensand. Look for woundwort, black bryony and crosswort among others.
The path comes out near the Cobden Hall, named after the famous country writer and agriculturist whose name is also remembered in the church.