Hill, Colley Hill & Walton Oaks - 11.5km

500 m 1000 ft Map Data © OpenStreetMap Contributors surreywalks Reigate Hill, Colley Hill & Walton Oaks Loop - 11.5km Start to Jordan Heights From the car park (RH2 0HX), head past the food and drinks hut, crossing a white bridge just to the left of it and joining the Way. At the first crossroads you come to, turn left heading downhill. Shortly afterwards the path will fork. Bear left, continuing downhill, taking care with the steep gradient and sometimes slippery ground underfoot. You'll soon emerge on a corner of the A217. Stay on the side of the road you're already on and walk past the houses to your right. You'll be able to do this without walking in the road. Shortly after the houses (about 20m), turn right onto a path marked as a Public Bridleway. Immediately, the path will fork. Take the left hand footpath. As you follow this path you'll soon pass the Jordan Heights campsite on your right, used by the Reigate District Scouts.

Jordan Heights to Buckland Lane At the next junction, continue straight, following the Orange arrows on the waymarkers, indicating the Circular Walk. Be careful on this path as there are a number of tree roots that can easily trip you up. They may also get quite slippery after some wet weather. As you come to a fork, head right, which keeps you on the relatively higher ground. Follow this path as it bends round, hugging the contours of the hills on your right. At the next fork, bear left, again following the path as it curves (this time to the left). You'll come to a crossroads where, ignoring the paths to the left and right, you can continue straight on, again following the Orange waymarkers. surreywalks

Stay on this path as it bends almost 90 degrees to the left, at a point loosely resembling a T-junction. The path then bends another 90 degrees, this time to the right, before leading you up some stairs. Continue straight, still following the Orange waymarkers. You'll now be able to stay on this path for some time, taking in some great views across the fields on your left. When you reach a crossroads, again continue straight, sticking to the path and following the contour of the hills on your right. You'll come to one last crossroads where you can once again go straight over before forking left. After about 800m, you'll walk down some stairs to a T Junction with Buckland Lane.

Buckland Lane to The Hermitage Turn right onto Buckland Lane, following the Red arrow for the North Downs Way. At the next fork, head right, leading uphill. Continue straight on this path, passing through a metal vehicle barrier and heading towards Walton Oaks. This incline is steep and relatively long, but it's pretty much the only major climb on the route. You may also be sharing this path with cyclists, so keep an eye out for bikes coming towards you heading downhill at speed. Stay on this path and you'll emerge with the Pfizer headquarters on your right and a roundabout on your left. Cross over the road at the island and follow it around to the right for a few paces. You'll see a small way marker with a Purple and Orange arrow, pointing to another waymarker with a Yellow arrow. Turn right onto this narrow footpath. You'll soon emerge onto a private access road by The Hermitage, turn right and then immediately left, staying on the access road. surreywalks

The Hermitage to Colley Hill Pass some houses on your right before veering left off the access road just as it starts to curve right into private property. Continue on this path as it runs parallel to the M25 on your left. When you reach the footbridge over the M25 on your left, turn right, following the Yellow waymarker. Continue on this path and you'll soon go down some steps, emerging at an amazing viewpoint looking South. Turn left and, at the next fork, bear right to join an unmade track. Stay on this path until you reach a junction with a small white post at your 11 o'clock. This is one of the remaining 210 coal tax posts that surround the boundary of London, signifying the point at which tax on imported coal would be due. Turn left here, almost going back on yourself for a few paces, before turning right at the next opportunity onto a footpath marked with a metal post. Continue on this path and you'll reach a gate for Colley Hill. Cattle may be grazing in this area so be careful with dogs from this point onwards.

Colley Hill to Finish At this point, you can be a bit more flexible with your exact path, provided you continue to follow the ridge of the hill heading East. There are a number of benches and fantastic viewpoints in this area, so take some time to appreciate your surroundings. Provided you never go downhill, you'll soon reach the Inglis Memorial structure. Originally used as a drinking fountain for horses, this memorial was donated by Lieutenant Colonel Sir Robert William Inglis in 1909. Take a moment to appeciate the views, but also make sure you look up to check out the fantastic mosaic ceiling of the structure. surreywalks

Continue past the memorial through a gate just beyond it. You're now back on the North Downs Way and very much within touching distance of the finish. You'll pass the Reigate Hill Air Crash Memorial and the Reigate Hill Fort on your right. Take some time to explore these places if possible as they're rich in military history stretching back to the late 19th century. Not long after passing the fort, you'll be retracing your initial steps, crossing over the bridge and returning to the car park where this walk began.

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