Drovers at Singleton HeartSmart Walk

HeartSmarts Drovers Walk at Singleton
This is the link to open the KMZ file in Google maps and Google Earth

This is probably the best walk yet with Heartsmart since I first joined in October 2011.

Today it was a very cloudy, blustery and generally overcast day. Had the weather been any worse I'm sure none of us would have made the effort to drive to Singleton.  Fiona our walk leader had decided that the best walk for us today would have to be Levin Down and the Drovers walk.  Leading us through Singleton to the infant school, we started the climb up a the steep side of Levin Down following the New Lipchis Way.  We did not continue to the very top of Levin down we cut down toward Collicks Copes, meandering along this area it was lovely to see the bright yellow cowslips.  Then down a forest track to the bottom of Lady Wood where we followed the footpath to a tarmacadam road.  Once on the road and the rain started to fall quite heavily. Turning northward we followed the road bearing eastward,  which brought us down behind Drovers North Lodge.  This is quite picturesque with lovely white buildings beyond lush green fields.  Leaving north lodge behind us we headed across a field north west this took us into nightingale wood and thankfully  the rain had now ceased an was to be seen no more throughout the remainder of this walk.  Throughout the forest floor we could see the bluebells starting to bloom through the canopy of rotting leaves.  The lovely blues intermittently spotted by the yellow primroses, it was truly wonderful to see.  Following a bridleway we climbed once more up up and up.  As we were leaving the forest Fiona noticed a  single-stem phalaenopsis orchid.  A truly lovely flower and you could say it compares to rose amongst thorns.  Only decent florist hand expensive supermarkets would sell this item.

Continuing along the bridle way we skirted Singleton forest, and made our way down past Broadham house.  Climbing once more we continued till we crossed the New Lipchis Way.  Following  a very narrow  footpath due South we could see the West Sussex Literary Trail on the other side of the valley.  Continuing along this Track and till we reach the corner where we overlooked  the river Lavant and Charlton village, if we once again client and upwards along Levin Down.  Skirting below Levin Down Clump to we continued upwards until once again we collided with and turned left onto the New Lipchis Way.  From this point forward it was downhill all the way back to our cars.  With magnificent views over towards Goodwood racecourse and the hill known as Trundle. 

The Fiona our leader and Peter our back marker had guided us for  just over 2 hours.  Covering four and ¾ miles with so many views and experiences, truly a walk superior to most walks.  The hardest part of the walk with was the gradient on our first climb and a forest path downwards where I almost slid on the mud and decaying leaves.