VGW Section 1

About trip

CROYDON - CHELSHAM COMMON 106km from the suburbs of Croydon to the sea at Newhaven. On the way you will pass through a National Park, two areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty, a Heritage Coast, and 3 scheduled sites of national or regional interest. There are great views throughout the route, including two of the best in Britain: the Cuckmere meanders and the Seven Sisters. Nearly all of the route is on public rights of way, and goes mostly through open countryside and woodland. The route is well served by public transport, so you can easily walk it on day trips. A free printable description of the route is available at www.vanguardway.org.uk This section of the route sets off through the residential outskirts of Croydon (where Park Hill Recreation Ground is worth a detour), but you soon reach open space in Lloyd Park. After that it is nearly all in woodland, with a few short stretches through residential areas. The section starts and finishes on generally level terrain, but it is quite hilly in between and there are some steep slopes - remember that you are in the foothills of the North Downs. The route leaves central Croydon by following the historic Fairfield Path to Lloyd Park, and in Littleheath Wood joins the London Loop for 3 km, including Selsdon Wood Nature Reserve. Along the way you pass the pretty gardens of Coombe Wood and a delightful Saxon church at Farleigh.