5th May 2011: It took a long time to get through the traffic to arrive at Cocking to leave one of our cars today. Gabrielle only arrived at 9.50am and Jo and I arrived at 10 am instead of 9.30. So by the time we drove back to Whiteways it was 11 am before we started!
My dear friends trusted me when I said it was only 8.5 miles today, so we should finish early. I did say that there were two steepish hills! What I did not know either, was that these two hills were two of the steepest of the South Downs! We were very cheerful climbing those hills, and enjoyed the views. Especially along the top past Bignor Hill when we had flocks of sheep all around and in fenced fields on either side of the path. Then we saw a lone little lamb bleating on our side of the fence with its mother and siblings within the fenced field (I thought this is like two days ago, when we couldn't get the lamb back in the field with its mother). However, Gabrielle used to live near a farm and with great skill organised us to quarter off the lamb to stop it running in either direction, whilst she opened the gate. The lamb eventually took the hint and ran back in with the fold! The mother actually came to the fence and looked at us as though to say thank you.
The last part of today's journey was the flattest, but the worst, because it was still high, and sometimes undulated lengthily, and we wondered when it would start to go downwards. The path was hard, uneven and sometimes flint and stones, and the last major part went for several miles through a closed in forest - we did not have a view of anything and we were having to watch the uneven path non stop. Occasionally we came to a signpost that was confusing, like 'this is not an authorised through route' when it was marked as a South Downs Way. We found out later by another notice on a gate, that it meant no motor cycles!
The 'South Downsmen' are busy putting up new signs and new gates and fences, so some of the route here was unfinished. We met some cyclists coming along the track, who said it was about 3 miles to Cocking, but by our reckoning he underestimated by a couple of miles, so we were a bit despondent when we were still walking an hour and a half later! By now, we had sore feet and aching legs. It surely must have been more than 8.5 miles today. At last we reached sight of the Cocking road and, my goodness, the upward path on the horizon I will have to climb tomorrow (Jo and Gabrielle saying, glad they will not be doing it!). It took about another half an hour to reach the car park by the SDW. What a relief! What a long day. 4.30p.m. when we thought we would finish in time for lunch at The Bluebell!
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| The start of today at Whiteways - Jo, Elsena and Gabrielle |
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| A lamb rescued and returned to Mum! |
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| Mum saying thank you I think! |
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| We have to go up there! Elsena and Jo |
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| That is where we came from today over that far hill! |
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| Another day ended - hooray! |
Tomorrow, we will leave at 8 am. Mick will go in his car, and Jane and me in my car, on the A3 to Queen Elizabeth Country Park, south of Petersfield, to leave one car, and then drive along the 272 to Midhurst and south to the Cocking car park on the SDW. It is 13 miles. Who know when we will finish!
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