Ebernoe Common
Petworth
Children will love the tree swing on the common and the freedom of an open access woodland where wildlife rules!
Look out for the swing on the common. Picture perfect when the bluebells are out!
The Basics
Time: 1hr 25mins (with options for making it shorter described below)
Distance: 4.6km
Terrain: Muddy patches in winter, rough paths that are sometimes narrow, chances of trees being across paths, narrow footbridges over the worst mud, mostly flat.
Pushchairs: This walk is not suitable for pushchairs.
Dogs: Dogs are allowed in the nature reserve, but as this is a designated haven for wildlife, we would recommend that they should be under close control or on leads. There is an optional section through a meadow with cows.
Refreshments: There are no picnic tables or refreshment options on this walk.
Toilets: There are no public toilets on this walk.
Public Transport: There is no public transport to this location.
Parking: Free parking is found in the Holy Trinity church car park, see signs off Streel’s Lane as you drive through Ebernoe (Postcode: GU28 9LD - W3W: ///applauded.shoving.tripled)
A labyrinth of paths and gates take you around this ‘land that time forgot’!
Ebernoe Common Nature Reserve is made up of ancient wood pasture interspersed with ponds, streams and meadows. It has a special atmosphere that makes you feel like you have completely stepped away from the modern world. You will be likely to see very few people, spot only a glimpse of the odd farmstead and hear no traffic. There are bluebells, violets, wood anemone and wild orchids in spring and some interesting remnants from the brick making industry hidden in the trees.
The Route
This was very much an explorative route for us, so we lapped much of the perimeter to see what we could find. There are lots of open access paths, so with a mapping app on your phone, you could work out your own route to suit your own length and ability.
Follow the track to the left of the church down towards the common. Turn left when you see the sign for Furnace Meadow. Go through the gate and turn immediately left. The path will lead you across the top edge of the meadow where gorse and other scrub grows and cows graze. When you see a path veering downhill to your right, head downwards towards a gate and a footbridge on the other side.
If you want to miss out the meadow with the cows, you could continue straight instead of turning left at the sign for the meadow and head directly to the woods. Keep forking left forking left and join this walk at the pond mentioned in section two below.
Climb the steps on the other side and follow the path through the woodland ahead. When you reach another gate, go through it and continue. At a junction with a much wider track, turn left and pass a pond on your right. Just after a right of way finger post, the path will fork. Take the right hand fork.
The path will eventually hit the boundary fence. Turn right with the path and walk with the fence to your left. The path will leave the fence and then wind its way through the woodland. Look out for patches of bluebells in spring. Stick with the same path until you come to two little boardwalks that will take you over a wet ditch. Go upwards on the other side of these and continue in the same direction. You will eventually reach an open clearing in the middle of the woodland and at this point, turn left, following the public footpath post.
If you want a shorter walk, you could turn right at the clearing and follow the public footpath back to the church.
Continue in this direction until your reach a gate. Go through the gate and walk straight ahead over a causeway that cuts across a pond (swamp!) and then over a single plank bridge. After the slim footbridge, bear right and then you will soon see a public footpath arrow reassuring you that you chose the right path. The path will bring you out onto a farm track, which will be the most substantial path you will have seen so far. Turn right.
When you reach the next public footpath post, turn right and head back onto the common. The next time you see a footpath finger post, turn right and walk with a barbed wire fence to your left. Not long after this, veer left, again following the footpath arrows. The next distinguishable feature will be a little wooden bridge taking you over a muddy section of path. Ignore two gates leading out to your left, but instead turn right at the second gate, following the footpath arrows.
Go over another wooden plank bridge and shortly after, another one that consists of just two planks. Keep with the same path and go through a gate where farmland starts to come into view to your left and the path lightens up. Pass Siblands Farm on your left and the path will now be a much wider farm track.
Following the farm access track, you will eventually come to a cattle grid. Just after this, look out for an unmarked path on your left. It will take you over a stream and then up to Furnace Pond. Keep the water to your left and then climb the steps back up to the church where you parked.
Not all the paths are marked on this map, so we suggest using this as a guide and then also having a good mapping app on your phone:
Did you know?
Old wood pasture refers to habitats where animals such as cows and pigs were once turned out by commoners to browse on young trees and scrub, graze in the meadows and forage for acorns. After this practice stopped in the mid twentieth century, the area became more overgrown, something that the Sussex Wildlife Trust have been trying to reverse since they bought the site in 1980 and turned it into a nature reserve.
If you enjoyed this walk…
…try this one at West Dean, another woodland nature reserve deep in the countryside.
We are passionate about keeping The Ambling Path as a free resource available to everyone, forever. If you have enjoyed using our walking guides, then please consider leaving us a donation. This will help to cover our costs as well as rewarding the considerable time and effort needed to maintain the site. Thank you.
Follow us on social media to see our new walks and get regular updates on our old ones:
