Join us for a short weekend of walking near Royal Tunbridge Wells, taking in the woods which inspired A.A. Milne’s inspirational characters and the High Weald Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.
Booking is required for this trip, which is limited to 20 people. Please sign up by completing this form.
Costs
- Travel, if driving = petrol costs + £2.50 bus ticket for Sunday’s walk
- Travel, if using public transport = £31.65 or £48 for train ticket + £5 bus tickets for Saturday’s walk + £2.50 bus tickets for Sunday’s walk
- Accommodation Saturday night (book your own) = £35-70+
- Dinner Saturday night (optional) = £15+
- You may also want to buy tea/coffee from Pooh Corner after the walk on Saturday.
Travel to Hartfield, Saturday Morning
By car
I’d suggest driving directly to the walk start in Hartfield which takes 1.5–2 hours from central Reading.
By public transport
Royal Tunbridge Wells is just over 2 hours from Reading by train/tube. To make it in time for the bus to the walk, National Rail suggests the following route:
- Take the 08:31 GWR train from Reading to London Paddington, arriving 08:55.
- Take the Bakerloo line southbound from Paddington to Charing Cross.
- Take the 09:38 Southeastern train from Charing Cross to Tunbridge Wells, arriving 10:34.
(£48 without a railcard or £31.65 with a railcard – Network Railcards are valid on this route).
Hartfield is then a 30-minute bus journey from Tunbridge Wells: catch the 10:55 bus number 291 from Railway Station (Stop U) to Church Street, Hartfield, arriving 11:17.
The Winnie the Pooh Walk, 8 miles, easy/moderate, Saturday Afternoon
- Start point: Pooh Corner, High St, Hartfield, TN7 4AE.
- Start time: 11:30
- End time: 16:00
- Ascent: 310m
Come explore the slightly hilly (Five) Hundred Acre Wood, pay Piglet a visit, climb to the North Pole and join us for a game of Poohsticks
So… The Hundred Aker Wood is a real place? A.A. Milne imagined his lovable creation around Ashdown Woods, where you can find features such as the Enchanted Place, the Sandy Pit and Eeyore’s Gloomy Place.
We’ll start the walk at the Pooh Corner café / shop / museum, and head up the hill to the Poohsticks bridge, where I have been reliably informed we will pass Pooh’s house, Piglet’s house, and Owl’s Treehouse.
We’ll then take a tour around Ashdown Forest at the top of the hill, spotting the famous tree “clumps”, the A.A. Milne and E.H. Shepard Memorial and the North Pole…
We’ll then descend through the Five Hundred Acre Wood, following the Wealdway back into Hartfield. There will then be a chance to explore Pooh Corner, which shuts at 5pm. Note that it’s important we get the walk done first, as we need to make the most of the available daylight.
Parking: Please park safely and considerately in the village.
Public transport: Return buses (number 291) from Hartfield to Royal Tunbridge Wells leave hourly and take about 30 minutes. There are buses timetabled to leave Hartfield at 16:03 and 17:13.
Dinner, Saturday Evening
I’ve made a booking for dinner at Pizza Express in Royal Tunbridge Wells at 19:30. Please let me know if you are coming or not when you sign up for the trip 😊.
Accommodation, Saturday Night
Please book your own accommodation for the Saturday night. Tunbridge Wells has many options. I intend to stay in the Premier Inn near the station which has plenty of rooms for £70, and you could share twin rooms there to halve the cost. Note this price is non-refundable, but you can change the date you stay if something comes up.
Rocks, Rocks and more Rocks, 4 or 8 miles, easy/moderate, Sunday Morning
- Start point: Eridge Green
- Start time: 09:20
- End point: Tunbridge Wells Railway Station
- End time: 13:00
- Ascent: 247m
This eight-mile linear walk from Eridge takes in Harrison’s Rocks, Eridge Rocks and Wellington Rocks, as well as the peaceful Broadwater Warren Nature Reserve, before returning to the railway station at Royal Tunbridge Wells.
Description: Starting at Eridge Railway Station, we’ll follow the Spa Valley Railway line until we reach Harrison’s Rocks. We’ll pass by the toilets at Aytton’s Wood, and the follow the High Weald Landscape trail to Eridge Rocks, where it is possible to join or leave the walk and catch the bus back to Royal Tunbridge Wells.
We’ll head north past Eridge Rocks and follow the boardwalk in the Broadwater Warren Nature Reserve. We’ll rejoin the Spa Valley Railway line at High Rocks, which are privately owned, and I don’t think we will be able to see from the ground. We’ll then head through Tunbridge Wells Common and past the Wellington Rocks to Tunbridge Wells Railway Station.
Parking: Park in Royal Tunbridge Wells and catch the 29 bus to start point – see public transport section.
Public transport: If you are doing the whole walk, catch the 09:03 bus number 29 from the Railway Station Stop T in Royal Tunbridge Wells to Eridge Railway Station. This should take about 15 minutes.
This walk will pass near to the Eridge Green, Church bus stop after 4 miles, so there is the chance either to drop out or join the walk there. If you intend to join the walk there, please catch the 11:03 bus for a 11:20 start, and make sure you let me know so I can wait for you.
Travel back to Reading, Sunday Afternoon
Trains from Tunbridge Wells run twice an hour back into London (Charing Cross) on Sundays, at 11 and 40 minutes past the hour.