Acres Down

22nd June 2009

I'd decided I was going for a walk and chose Acres Down. I got up in good time and then whiffled around for ages doing other things, so I wasn't ready to go until about 1.45pm. Then I forgot my boots (how?), after which the road to the motorway from home was "Police-Closed" (I never did find out why). I turned back, found another way around and still managed to hit my revised target time to reach my destination as the M27 was clear.

Driving through Minstead was fun. Cows everywhere. On the verges, on the road. They were very purposeful wherever they were heading at 2.20 in the afternoon. It was very amusing, driving at cow walking-pace. I even got overtaken by one! There were cars going my way, cars coming the other way, and at one point a man in a van had time to stop and ask me for directions to a Farm. And cows everywhere. At the fork, all the cows decided to go left. All the traffic (about 3 cars) went right!

Having reached my objective, I put on my boots and set off, deciding to go around the lower path that runs along the side of Acres Down and into Highland Inclosure, rather than going over the Down. I'm pretty sure the lower path is not marked on the map - all paths seem to go over according to that.

It was interesting to watch the behaviour of a group of ponies in this shallow valley. There was an obvious leader, a grey mare. She led them right across the path in front of me (as they do) then she trotted on ahead while the first little band of the group sort of ambled along behind until she stopped in a grove of trees. The first band caught up with her, then the next lot followed down. The one in the lead of this group was black with a Black Beauty star and two or three others behind and they all trotted down to the grove of trees. It was interesting to watch the way they trotted, they moved so easily and naturally with a gait to make a dressage rider weep for joy. You try getting that smooth, natural pace on demand! The ponies went off into the thicker woodland beyond and I walked on.

I went past a tree full of chaffinches! and down into woodland through a gate where I stopped for a moment just to enjoy the surroundings and the quiet.

So on, and following much the same route I've trodden before, over a bridge, left at a T-junction and over the ford at Highland Water. As I walked along the path something moved in front of me. I thought it was an old leaf but it was moving strangely and when I looked closer it was a little rust-coloured toad.

A little further along, I came across a woman sitting on an old fallen tree reading a book with a little terrier snuffling around on a long lead. "Typical!" I thought, wryly, "you think you've found a bit of peace to read your book and someone comes along. " We exchanged "good afternoon" and I walked on.

I went straight up to a gate out of the Inclosure to a road and was trying to find a path that, according to the map, should go over two footbridges through Mark Ash Wood but the only footbridge I found was in the wrong direction and everything else was overgrown with bracken. So I returned to the road and found another gate back into Highland Water Inclosure. It was time to be heading back.

I came down through trees to a cycle track and decided to follow this back to the car park. The sun came out but not for long as the clouds regrouped. It was becoming hot and rather hunid.

The walk was lovely and the whole day was full of interesting stuff, what with the cows, the ponies, chaffinches and the toad. I had a very relaxed and content afternoon.

And when I got home, I discovered I'd driven all the way back in my boots!