Broadmoor to Westcott
On this walk children will enjoy a café in a secret garden and a waterfall.
Hot soup is served from the pot at Brewbird cafe
The Basics
Time: 1hour 40mins
Distance: 4.7 km
Terrain: Woodland paths, bridleways, fields, a stile, some steep sections and some muddy sections
Pushchair: No
Dogs: Yes and they are welcome on leads at Brewbird
Refreshments: Brewbird Coffee Van tucked away in a garden on the edge of the woods and only accessible on foot (Sat&Sun 10-3)
Toilets: None
Public Transport: There is no public transport to this location
Parking: Broadmoor car park, free, Sheephouse Lane, Wotton (Postcode: RH5 6JY - W3W: prop/corn/slices)
Much of the walk is through woodland
This walk sets off through the woodland of the lower slopes of Leith Hill. It makes its way past Tillingbourne Waterfall, which, when running, can be glimpsed from the bridleway. The next destination on the other side of the woods is a coffee van hidden at the end of a secret garden. There are usually seasonal activities for children and hot soup brewing over the fire in winter.
The Route
Standing with your back to the car park entrance, look for the thin path leaving through the bracken at the lower end of the car park. Go downhill and veer left at the first fork. Go straight over at a small cross paths then step over a series of small logs. At a tiny T-junction with a tree straight ahead, turn left. After about five metres, go right where there is a small holly bush (currently with a green dog poo bag tied around it) and descend steeply.
At the bottom of the hill you will see the end of a garden with a blue boat propped up against a shed, a blue hosepipe and some chickens. Keep going straight and follow the path to the left of the property, which will bring you out onto a quiet road. Turn left.
Walk along the road passing a series of cottages, including some selling honey, jams and chutneys. Opposite Home Farm Cottage, you will see a yellow salt grit box and a footpath to you right. Ignore this one and instead take the next footpath on your right forking away from the road with a ‘private road’ sign.
Along this track, look out for Tillingbourne Waterfall on your right. It is behind an overgrown fence as it is on private property, but you can view it from the track. Be aware the waterflow is adjusted manually and is prone to blockages so it is not always running. On our visit, it was dry, which is why we have no pictures! You will need to Google the waterfall to see what it can look like!
Continue along the track after the waterfall and keep going until the point where there is a fence/field ahead of you and the path splits. Take the right hand path through the kissing gate and follow it as it goes narrowly between a barbed wire fence and the hedge. Go over the stile at the top and then turn left when you hit the track.
Pass a line of beautiful trees until you reach a sign for a public byway on your right where the finger post is above a log laid on the ground. This path will lead narrowly between a barbed wire fence and a hedge but will now have lovely Surrey Hills views to your left. Continue straight, keeping left, all the way down the track until you pass some houses. Look out for the little board on your right for Brewbird and enter through the gap in the garden hedge. Note, Brewbird is only open weekends 10-3 and will be closed for the whole of December 2024.
After leaving Brewbird, turn left immediately onto the bridleway. This return leg tends to be the muddiest over less even ground. At the fork, go right and keep straight on with the sign that says footpath rather than bridlepath. Continue through the woodland until the metal kissing gate.
Veer left after the gate along a skinny path and soon go over an old wooden footbridge under a holly bush. Continue along the field edge and pass the old barns of Squire’s Farm on your left. Once past the farmhouse, go through the gate into the woodland and take the right fork going up hill.
At the next junction, go right. After a steep climb, you will come to a meeting of five paths. Keep going up the hill on the path straight ahead. Go up and up, ignoring paths to the left and right. At the top, go over a low metal barrier with a sign about horse riding permits. The path continues on the opposite side, slightly to your right, over another low metal barrier.
Pass an old beech tree and then go through the wooden posts with ‘Summer Lightning’ bike course signs on. Continue with a barded wire fence to your right. Descend steeply until you arrive at the entrance to Tillingbourne Cottage and Simon’s Cottage. The track will climb again until you reach a junction with a bridleway. Turn right until you find your self at Home Farm Cottage again. Retrace your steps back to the car park.
Did you know?
Tillingbourne Waterfall is the highest waterfall you will find on any of our walks in Surrey, Hampshire or Sussex!
