From Guildford to Westhumble: A Journey Through Hills, Woods, and Temptations
Sun, Scenic Views, and the Inevitable Call of the Pub
Date: 15 March 2025
Start: Guildford, 10.15
Finish: Westhumble, 17.15
Duration: 6h30’
Distance: 25km
Elevation Gain: 450m
Route Type: Point to Point
Weather: sunny and great
Companions: SCMC core group; Peter, Jose and Nat
Despite the beautiful sunny day ahead for today’s walk, only four of us are outside Guildford Station. As always, we set off in high spirits from the point where we left off about a month ago at the end of the first stage.
We pass once again in front of the Britannia, now famous among the readers of this blog, and follow the River Wey. After crossing the bridge, the Spanish-speaking contingent immediately attempts to escape south—probably driven by ancestral calls to their homelands—but I manage to convince them to continue east toward our first pilgrimage stop of the day: Saint Martha’s Church, perched atop the hill of the same name.
We take in the landscape, and I point out the monument marking the start of the Downs Link. We leave it to our right and continue along the North Downs Way to another famous viewpoint, Newlands Corner, where the stunning scenery is complemented by a sleek black Ferrari parked nearby.
We push on and, despite the temptation, resist stopping at the halfway snack kiosk (at West Hanger car park), ignoring the alluring scent of sausage rolls and instead opting for a scenic bench overlooking Little King’s Wood. We’re feeling cheeky as we also choose a sunny detour with a view rather than the classic NDW route just before Ranmore Common. From this point on, the countdown to the pub begins, and as we pass Denbies vineyards, it’s all we can think about.
Knees, shoulders, and backs of the group’s injured members start to ache, but we bravely soldier on. In the end, there’s nothing a Guinness or a Neck Oil—though now at gold-standard prices—can’t fix. At the Westhumble pub, we happily toast to another stage completed. Soon, we’ll continue with the next ones!
