Singleton is just north of Chichester and there’s plenty of reasons to visit this area, which include the nearby Weald and Download Museum, West Dean and the Levin Down Nature Reserve. It’s also a pretty Sussex village with flintstone houses, thatched roofs and a history that dates back to the Domesday Book. This 10 km circular walk, which starts and finishes in the village, is one of my all-time favourite West Sussex walks, despite the fact I got lost! It has stunning views, wild woods, and a great sense of adventure about it.
Walk practicalities
The walk is roughly 10.5 km. I’d recommend taking an Ordnance Survey Explorer (OL8) map or having the Map App to hand. I didn’t, and I regretted it. I’d also suggest you pack light refreshments because you don’t pass anywhere you can buy something on the way. Not a pub in sight!
The start point is What3Words:harmonica.archives.diamond. You are taking the New Lipchis Way north and it starts with a steep ascent north from the village (near the school). By the time you’ve conquered that, you’ll be nicely warmed up! This is definitely one of the hardest parts of the walk, so don’t let it put you off. Instead, when you get to the first gate, stop and look back at the magnificent slopes facing you on the other side of the village. Hard as it is to believe, that’s where your route finishes!
The map isn’t always easy to follow. When you’ve crossed Levin Down you will come to a gate. Straight ahead is the New Lipchis Way but you want to take the bridleway to the left of that to Broadham House. At Broadham House, stick to the bridleway and go straight ahead. Follow this all the way until you come out on the A286. At the A286, you have to turn right and walk along the road for a short distance until you come to a house and a bridleway into the woods on the opposite side of the road. There is an earlier footpath into the woods on the opposite side of the road, but when we walked this way, it was so overgrown that it was impassable, so we walked further up. I hope that has been rectified, but I will recheck it soon.
A forgotten land
One of the highlights of this walk has to be as you leave the A286 behind you and enter a series of breathtaking forests that lead you into the West Dean Estate. The wooded path starts with an archway of golden larch, leading to a beech tree forest and then, like a scene from Little Red Riding Hood or The Gruffalo, suddenly takes you into a shaded tunnel of fern and pine trees.
It’s silent, it’s stunning, it’s secluded, and I would rate it as one of the most beautiful places I’ve been all year. I still find it hard to believe that there’s such outstanding and unspoilt beauty right on our doorstep, and it really does feel like a place that time has forgotten!
Heading for home
Stick to the bridleway, bearing left at the first and second junctions. Eventually, you break free from the woods and see a long, meandering path that takes you past a beautifully remote house (Colworth Barn) and up to Colworth Farm. You really feel like you’re in a scene from Tess of the d’Urbervilles by now. Just after Colworth Farm, take the footpath to your left, and then after a short distance, turn right. This footpath will take you all the way back to Singleton dropping down Hat Hill and Chills Down – the slopes you saw at the start and offering views of Goodwood racecourse.
Down time
The South Downs route planner recommends you allow 3 ½ hrs for this walk, but we did it in 2 ½, and that included an extra 2 km when we got lost. As we tumbled down back into the village, it felt euphoric. Better still, there’s a great little pub in the village perfect for restoring your strength before you head home for a hot bath.
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