Weekend Walk: Capel figure of 8 (5 + 5 miles)
This walk is in a figure of eight, both roughly 5 miles, so if you want a shorter walk, you could do one leg at a time. The walk description is provided by Guildford Rambling Club and readers are welcome to join them on their walks (guildfordramblingclub.org.uk).
1. Walk down the road for a ¼ mile from the village hall to pass the church and the Capel News offices and reach a small green on the left. Take the path left along the side of this green. Follow it into a hedge corridor and on along a wider track. Ignore a fork right, continue forward to take a right turn at a T-junction. At a 3-way signpost, turn right and follow the path down a slight slope for over a ¼ mile to a road. Turn left and walk to the A24. Cross across the near end of the big roundabout. On the far side, go right and up a road signed to Grenehurst Park. Take the rightmost of the two entrances and continue along the road.
2. At its end continue forward along a wide grassy track. Soon reach a railway crossing. On the other side, emerge on a road and turn right. Almost immediately turn left into Vann Lake Road. Now walk for almost ¾ mile along the road. Pass mobile homes, ignore a right turn signed Vann Lake, pass various houses, the road becomes a track and, eventually, immediately before Rill Cottage, follow a signpost right and into trees. The path runs along the end of Vann Lake for a short distance and then enters trees and quickly reaches a 3-way signpost.
3. Turn right. The path skirts Vann House (over on its righthand side) to reach a road. Turn right, ignore the right turn into Vann Farm Road and continue forward to pass Vann Cottage and, immediately after it, turn right at a (hidden) 3-way. The path soon runs along the lefthand side of two fields. Ignore a path, go straight on and over a stile to another field. Walk along its lefthand side and around the first corner to turn left through a gap into another field. Go straight across to a road. Turn right and walk down to cross Ockley Court Bridge and pass Ockley Church. Continue on to a point, by a house, where the road turns sharp right.
4. Here, take the track forking off left to pass the house and go out into fields. The (concrete) track reaches trees. Continue forward. Ignore a wide grassy track right. After another 50 yards, take a track right following a byway arrow. The track takes you over a railway bridge and to the side of the A24. Go straight across to a stile into a field. Continue forward across this field and through a few trees into another field. Cross this, keeping a farm to your left to reach another field and continue on over it and double stiles into the next. Head a ¼ left to another stile and another field. And continue on until, in the final field before the houses of Capel, crossing half-right to find a exit between a red brick and a (grubby) white house. Emerge on a road with the village hall a little way to your right.
5. After lunch, opposite the church, walk left, along Vicarage Lane for about ¼ mile. Pass the old school (now apartments) and a 30 limit sign. Then, quickly reach and cross a stream and immediately take a footpath left. Continue forward, ignoring a footpath left, to reach a driveway. Turn right and walk to a road. Turn left and, after 200 yards and immediately beyond a barn, take a path right. This becomes a wide grassy track and then swings right and enters a field, over a stile. Walk along the lefthand edge and, at the far end, into a wood by the righthand side of a small section of wood rail fencing. Follow the path through trees to a T-junction with a track where you turn left.
6. Walk in trees to reach an open area where powerlines cross above the track. Here, find a yellow arrow post hidden in heather to take you on a narrow path to the right. Walk through a wood and over a plank footbridge to enter a field at a 3-way signpost. Turn left and walk along the edge of the field. At the first corner, go through a gate onto a wide vehicle track. Jink left 5 yards to find a plank footbridge and gate to take you right. Walk along a field edge to find a gate right. Go clockwise around the next field and out at the second corner. Walk along the lefthand edge of a field to reach a road and house. Turn left and walk 100 yards to Newdigate Church and the Six Bells.
7. Turn into Church Lane. Walk as far as the vets and cross over to take a footpath right, into a field by the side of the vets. Head out parallel to the righthand side of the field at first but continue forward when the field expands out to the right. Go through a gate into another field and go half-right to cross it. Go through a gate and along the lefthand edge of the next field. Exit over a footbridge and continue straight ahead and through a gap into another field. (See a farm and caravans off to your left.) Cross the field and go over a stile onto a wide track at a 4-way signpost. Turn right and walk 1/3 mile to reach Home Farm. Just beyond the barns and a gate, reach a junction and turn right to follow the (part metalled, part not) access road (Dukes Road). Follow this to its junction with Rusper Road.
8. Turn right, cross and, after 50 yards, take a footpath left into a field. Walk along the righthand side of this and the next field, cross a footbridge and again walk along the righthand side of a field. Go straight past a 3-way signpost and quickly reach a gate and a 2-way signpost. Cross a footbridge to follow the bridleway forward. Go through a few trees to reach a field. Here, turn left and walk to the far end. Go through a gap and along a wide, grassy avenue. At its end, at a 3-way signpost, turn left. Follow the righthand edge for 100 yards to find a gate on the right. Now follow the righthand edge to the far side of a field and into the next. You are now walking parallel to a drive.
9. At the far side exit from the corner onto a road and turn right. Look for the second signpost on the left, hidden in the hedge opposite Aldhurst Farm. Go straight across a field into trees and follow the path through them to the next field. Head across it to enter trees again. On the other side go through the trees then walk alongside a hedge to find a gap, right, that leads you through more trees. Emerge in another field and walk forward for 20 yards to find a hidden stile, right. Enter a field and cross to the far left corner. Go through a gate to walk along the lefthand side of the next field and then pass a garden fence. Enter another field through two gates and head for the far left corner and a stile into Vicarage Lane. Turn left and walk to the road through the centre of Capel. Turn right and walk to the start.
DISTANCE: 5 plus 5 miles
OS MAPS: Explorer 146 (Dorking, Box Hill and Reigate)
STARTING POINT: Park in Capel Village Hall (RH5 5EN) or on the road nearby
REFRESHMENTS: The Crown in Capel