Ditchling Brunch Classic

BURGESS HILL, BATCHELORS FARM NATURE RESERVE, OLDLAND WINDMILL, DITCHLING LOOP

Everybody needs a non-thinking, quick jaunt of a route that'll get them somewhere a bit different. I'd promised C a birthday lunch and we settled for brunch to get us done and dusted by midday. No dog. Eating meant we missed what must have been a bit of a downpour as there were some sizeable puddles on our way back. A win.

This is an out a back walk with a short section of annoying road. From Burgess Hill station head south on the east side of the track, pause if you need to, (you must), on the railway bridge to wave at trains and cross Batchelors Farm Nature Reserve to head to the water tower. At the top corner, exit onto Ockley Lane and go south, carefully until you meet the footpath heading east. I hate walking on the road, it's quite a busy stretch and I just wish there was a footpath alongside here. Just at the junction, a big hand-made sign gave the depressing news that someone wants to fell an old oak tree. Sigh.

From here, keep south onto Oldlands Lane. This will take you to Oldland Windmill, an 18th century restored and occasionally working post mill. South onto Lodge Hill Lane and you'll reach the tarmac which takes you round the bottom of Lodge Hill. This is the site of mesolithic and bronze age workings and the old east-west Roman road runs along it's southern edge.

You can cross the green next to the Ditchling Museum, go through the churchyard and head east to the crossroads. The Green Welly is at the Junction but The Bull and The White Horse could be options. The Green Welly is quite genuinely one of my favourites, friendly for dogs, good for people-watching, lovely staff and nice food. We ate, drank and chatted about our normal domestic woes before heading back the way we came.