Thirteen of us, including two newcomers trying out our group, met up at the far end of Kings Ride in Camberley for a 7½ mile walk on the heath. Sue - the leader of this walk, and not to be confused with other Sues in our group who lead walks - gave a short speech about the area in which we would be walking before setting off.
Entering the heath at Wishmoor Bottom, we turned west and headed toward the army training area and followed its fenced boundary northward. Sue explained that when she did the recce for this walk, she could hear some gunfire, but it was all quiet on the western part of this walk today.
We reached Lower Star Post, which marks the crossing point of four paths, or the joining point of eight paths, whichever you prefer. Anyway, Sue confidently directed us along the correct route out, which headed south-east to New England Hill. This area is much loved by mountain bikers, many of which passed us on our walk. Luckily the paths are wide enough for us all to get along with each other.
We stopped to have a look at Mill Pond and the few ducks it was supporting before heading eastward to Rapley Farm and Rapley Lake. Here we stopped for our lunch break, sitting on a large fallen tree. Very convenient.
After lunch we Headed south-west, passing Cobblers Hole and crossing Vicarage Lane on our way to Bagshot Heath. Here there is a hill and an impressive aerial mast, which I can see from my office on the fourth floor of a building in Aldershot, some eight miles away.
We headed up this hill, with everyone going at their own pace and then congregating at the top to admire the view - and to get our breath back! When we were ready, we continued the walk, taking a slightly zigzag path through Bagshot Heath.
Following a long, straight path heading south-west, we suddenly found ourselves at the place where we had started the walk. See our route on Google Maps. Despite a couple of very minor navigational hiccups in Bagshot Heath, the walk still clocked in at just over 7½ miles. This included 350m (1,150 ft) of ascent in total, so I should sleep well tonight.
Thank you to Sue H for leading this walk.
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