Wealdway: Camp Hill to Blackboys

The Wealdway passes through three AONBs to connect the Thames Estuary with the English Channel, through the Weald of Kent and Sussex. Much of the walk is quiet and remote, with only the occasional tiny village to interrupt a varied succession of woodland, arable field, river bank, heath, orchard and downland pasture. This section drops down from the southern extreme of the Ashdown Forest and stays low as it traverses woods and farmland, sliding carefully between villages and the town of Uckfield before launching itself east to the little settlement of Blackboys.

From Camp Hill, pass to the right of the clump and to the left of a trig. point to reach the B2188 road. Follow the road, signposted to Crowborough, opposite. After a few yards of road, cross a stile on the right. The Wealdway bears right across open heathland to Crest Farm, where there is a sensational view southwards to the distant South Downs.

From here to Oldlands Corner, route-finding requires some care and concentration. Waymarks and wooden posts indicate the line of the Wealdway but may be hidden by bracken, particularly in late summer. After a short distance along a track, go left over two stiles, join another track for a few yards and then drop down across another heathy area.

Skirt to the left of a cottage at grid ref. TQ474280, and go ahead on a narrow path down through woodland to a stream crossing by Brown’s Brook Cottage. Follow the access drive from the cottage,
keeping a lookout for a path to the right which crosses another area of open forest for 0.5 miles (800m) or so, to reach the road opposite the entrance to Oldlands Hall.

A short distance along the road, the path breaks away to the left through the bracken. The village of Fairwarp is 0.25 miles (400m) ahead along the road from this point and has a pub as well as bed-and-breakfast accommodation.

The Wealdway crosses a field and a stream before climbing through Furnace Wood. Continue through this Forestry Commission area, where a slippery scramble up one steep slope has been much
improved by the provision of a flight of rough steps.

Beyond the wood, skirt to the left of a cottage and to the right of Hendall Manor Farm, who provide accommodation in a converted barn. The Way now drops down across fields and climbs more steeply through the remains of Hendall Wood, before crossing a large field, once part of the wood, but clear-felled some years ago. After a stile in the far field corner, the path traverses a patch of heath beside the busy A26, before crossing the main road at the start of the new bypass road at Five Ash
Down.

There is the Pig and Butcher pub and a post office down the road, but the Wealdway continues beside a garage forecourt. A field path leads through to the A272 Maresfield–Buxted road. After 0.25 miles (400m) along this road, the Wealdway heads south through Buxted Park, passing the church and Buxted Park Hotel. Bear left across pasture down to the edge of the River Uck, and go ahead beside the stream to reach Hempstead Mill and Hempstead Lane.

Uckfield is 0.75 miles (1.2km) along the lane to the right at this point (grid ref. TQ483217) and is a useful centre with all services, including a railway station and a good bus service.

The Wealdway turns its back on the town, crossing the River Uck. From the bridge there is an excellent view of Hempstead Mill. After a few more yards, a stile on the left provides access to a field path, which climbs out of the valley, crosses the railway in a deep cutting and continues to a lane near Highlands Pond.

The next path, from the lane at grid ref. TQ498217, follows a stream along a remote and peaceful valley for over a mile (1.6km) to Tickerage Mill, crossing two minor roads. It is an attractive spot, tempting the walker to linger and admire, in spite of written exhortations to keep moving. For a short distance, the route of the Wealdway coincides with that of the Vanguard Way, a roughly parallel long-distance path across the Weald. The route reaches the B2102 at grid ref. TQ516205, Blackboys is 0.25 miles (400m) to the left. There is a shop, the 14th-century Blackboys Inn and, north of the village, the youth hostel at grid ref. TQ521215.