1. With Busbridge Church on your left, set off along Hambledon Road up a gentle gradient until the road becomes blocked. Cross over Home Farm Road and continue along Hambledon Road. After about 100 metres, the gradient turns downhill and you enter a natural gulley with steep sides. After a half mile descent, the road flattens, with a small ephemeral lake in a field on the left and an inconspicuous statue behind, and Busbridge Lakes on the right, home to various resident waterfowl. The statue is of a German pilot whose plane crashed nearby during WWII. The road continues round a corner with a steep but short ascent before flattening out, but the road continues to ascend gradually. Make a left turn along Clock Barn Lane (the route returns from the right later), with woods on either sides, and pass the Cheshire Home on the right, before reaching a T-junction with Hydon’s Ball car park opposite. Turn left along Hydon Heath, with a coppice after 200 metres on the left and Hydon’s Ball on the right, when the highest point of the ride is reached and the road descends.
2. Take care on the short but steep descent and follow the road round right at the bottom where the road becomes Markwick Lane, ignoring Mare Lane on the left. The lane leaves the woods momentarily, with a farm on the right, before re-entering. Eventually the road reaches the Brighton Road at a T-junction; before this junction, a small gauge disused railway track may be seen through the hedge on the right. It is not clear what it was used for originally; possibly for use on a farm. Turn right along the Brighton Road then turn right again after 50 metres along Hookhouse Road, a pleasant, twisting descent with farms on either side. Dunsfold Church, which supposedly has the oldest pews in England, is signposted right; continue straight on down a steep hill then follow the road round left up a similarly steep ascent; at this point the road is called Shoppe Hill, which opens out in Dunsfold. Turn right at the T-junction along Dunsfold Common Road. There is a row of houses on the right, with a village shop amongst them which provides a good opportunity to take on some calories should the need arise. There are also some benches here making it a good lunch stop. Alternatively, there is also The Sun pub a little further on the row of houses. Continue along Dunsfold Common Road, passing the village green, before descending, when the road becomes Wrotham Hill. At the bottom of the hill, the road forks; follow the road right, where it becomes Chiddingfold Road.
3. The road ascends gradually for just over a mile, becoming High Street Green. Bear right along White Beech Lane, a quiet rolling road, before reaching Vann Lane at a T-junction. Turn right downhill, passing an attractive cottage on the left, before the road flattens out, then the road turns uphill. There is a long straight section, that was used as a filming location for the BBC adaptation of Howard’s End, for a scene involving an Edwardian-era car with the road covered in mud for a more authentic feel. Bear round to the left, ignoring the cul-de-sac Upper Vann Lane on the apex of the corner. Continue, ignoring the cul-de-sac Roundals Lane on the left as you do so, before taking a right up Woodlands Road, a short but steep hill which meets Malthouse Lane (which becomes Hambledon Road) at a T-junction. Turn right uphill, which passes through Hambledon Village. Soon, The Merry Harriers pub appears on the left, which can provide any final refreshments for the last section, and also llama trekking (for another occasion). Continue along Hambledon Road with fields on both sides, passing Badger Park, the home of Hambledon Football Club, on the right. Go straight on at the Hydestile Crossroads, before a gradual ascent that rejoins the earlier section at Clock Barn Lane. Retrace your steps, still along Hambledon Road, until reaching Home Farm Road at a T-junction. Cross over and follow Hambledon Road opposite back to Busbridge Church.
DISTANCE: 13.5 miles
START POINT: Busbridge Church, Hambledon Road, Godalming.
HOW TO GET THERE: Follow the Brighton Road (B2130) from the traffic lights at the junction of Flambard Way, Wharf Street and Brighton Road in Godalming, then make a right turn along The Drive, before turning immediately left into Hambledon Road with Busbridge Church on your left. If transporting bikes to the start there is sufficient parking space further up Hambledon Road before the road ends. It is best to avoid parking during school collection times as there are three schools within about 200 metres of each other, but otherwise it is quiet.
Condensed directions
(for easier navigation, take a photo of these)← or → indicates a left/right turn onto a minor road
↰ or ↱ indicates left/right at a T-junction
⤉ indicates head straight over at a crossroadsFrom Busbridge Church, heading uphill along Hambledon Road:
⤉ Cross Home Farm Road, ahead along Hambledon Road
← Clock Barn Lane
↰ Hydon Heath (becomes Markwick Lane)
↱ Brighton Road (B2130)
→ Hookhouse Road (becomes Shoppe Hill)
↱ Dunsfold Common Road (becomes Wrotham Hill, then Chiddingfold Road, then High Street Green)
→ White Beech Lane
↱ Vann Lane
→ Woodlands Road
↱ Malthouse Lane (becomes Hambledon Road)
⤉ Hambledon Road (cross Home Farm Road)
