Thursley Common

Leave the car park and turn left onto Dyehouse Road heading to the centre of the village. Continue straight on at the junction in the centre of the village signed to Godalming and Milford. On the right here on the grass triangle you'll see the Thursley Village Sign which depicts the Norse god of thunder, Thor. The name of the village translates from Old English literally as Thor's meadow. Continue ahead past the village hall on the left and the village pub, The Three Horseshoes, on the right. Go past Foldsdown House on the left and ignore the bridleway immediately after it. Continue on the pavement until you reach a Thursley National Nature Reserve sign set back into the hedgeline.(Note: This sign may be missing, so just look for a gap in the hedge on the left).

Turn left here to enter the common and then turn immediately right onto the wide sandy footpath. Follow the path running parallel with the road on the right and you will come to a fork. Take the left hand fork signed with a blue arrow. The path emerges out into the common and you will be able to enjoy stunning views for almost 180 degrees. At the next waymark take the very narrow righthand fork, again signed with the blue arrow, and follow this path bending to the right between gorse bushes. Continue along the narrow winding path surrounded by gorse and thick carpets of heather. After a little distance the path begins to descend downhill and becomes sandy. At the bottom, go straight on over a cross roads with a wide sandy track. A few paces later you will come to grass path crossing the track. Ahead of you through the trees is Hammer Pond, a large lake.

Turn left onto the grass path between the trees. Continue straight ahead at the next crossroads and follow the path to reach a second staggered crossroads. Go straight ahead, still following the blue arrow. Follow the path as it bends to the left with a small belt of young trees on the left. Follow the path winding ahead and over to the left you will see three hill mounds. You will come to a waymarker post ahead, marking the blue arrows both left and right. Turn right here for just a few paces and then turn left onto the Wide Sand Path running directly underneath the power lines.

Follow the main sandy track ahead for more than half a mile through the centre of the common. Thursley Common is one of the largest surviving tracts of heathland that once covered this section of Surrey. It is a mix of wet and dry heath and provides a rich habitat for dragonflies and damselflies along with many other species including rare ground nesting birds such as the woodlark and Dartford warbler. Go ahead past a metal vehicle gate and follow the mud vehicle track as it bends round to the right with properties on the left, until you reach the road.

Turn left onto the road and follow it as it bends right, then as it bends sharp left, turn right down the lane marked with a wooden bridleway sign. On the right you will pass Truxford Cottage and then October Farm. Eventually you will come to a cross roads with a track, and a wooden signpost marking bridleways in all four directions. Turn left here onto the wide stone track. You are now entering part of the MOD training area so take care to obey any signs. Follow this stone track with woodland each side for almost a mile. As the path begins to head down hill you will come to the wooden gates for a private property ahead.

Follow the path as it bends to the left in front of the gates, and then a few paces later fork right up the footpath on the far side of the second set of gates for Hounmere House. Follow this narrow mud footpath with steep banks climbing fairly steeply uphill. You will emerge onto the road. Cross over and turn left walking in the road edge with care. After just a short distance turn right onto the public footpath marked with the wooden sign. Follow the path with the wooden fence to your right, taking care of the exposed tree roots. Follow the path as it bends to the right and then over a narrow wooden footbridge with a stream below. Continue following the path downhill. Go though the gap alongside a wooden gate and out into a meadow. Keep the fence boundary to your left and follow it to cross a bridge over the meandering stream. A few paces later pass over a stile to reach a tarmac lane. Turn right onto the lane heading uphill. Continue past two properties on the left, Hollies and Little Shavings. On the right you will reach Smallbrook Farm.

As you come to the end of the buildings for Smallbrook Farm, turn left up a concrete slope marked with a footpath sign for Greensand Way. Pass through the small gate to enter a grass footpath fenced between horse paddocks. Pass through a kissing gate and alongside a disused stile, and follow the narrow mud footpath as it enters a small tunnel of holly trees. Follow the path for some distance and pass through another kissing gate, which is in memory of the founder member of the Farnham Ramblers. Turn right immediately in front of the church and follow the narrow gravel path ahead. Pass over the low stone stile to reach the road. This small parish church is dedicated to St Michael and All Angels and has a finely carved Anglo-Saxon font and two surviving Anglo-Saxon windows in the chancel, which, exceptionally, retain their original wooden frames. Its small wooden shingled belfry boasts a sundial with the Latin expression Hora Pars Vitae, meaning every hour is a part of life. Turn left onto the village road heading downhill. Follow the road until you come back to the triangular grass verge holding the village sign. On the left is Street House, a pink house which was the childhood home of Sir Edwyn Lutyens, born in 1869. Lutyens is best known for his work in India, designing New Delhi, and also his work for the Imperial War Graves Commission in designing monuments to commemorate the dead, including the Cenotaph in Whitehall. Turn left onto Dyehouse Road and you will reach the car park on your right.