Walking holiday (Sussex Downs) - day 3

A wet field in the rain

The walkers were dropping like flies on Monday morning. Having seen the heavy skies and the persistent rain many cried off to do their own thing and keep in the dry. One lady defected to the Discovery Tour who luckily had one spare place. The leader of the harder walk (who no one seemed to want) came with us easy walkers and about nine of us set off in semi-positive mind to the coach on what was called the 'around Petworth' walk.

We got off at a car park with the medium walkers and used the facilities before a short ride to our starting point - walking through Cowdray Park and a golf course. The rain, though constant, was bearable. We arrived at the village of Lodsworth and saw the house where Ernest H Shepard, the illustrator of the book Winnie-the-Pooh, lived. We were then looking for somewhere to stop to get out of the rain for a while. The local pub was closed so we walked on to the little church of St Peter's. Here we were encouraged to eat some of our lunch as it would be the only dry spot until we reached Petworth House around 2pm. It was now 11.30am! We tucked into what we could after a large breakfast and bagged the rest. The church was lovely and had a Millennium Tapestry of the village of Lodsworth which was kept behind a curtain so the light would not fade it.

St Peter's Church, Lodsworth - entrance

The Millennium Tapestry

The grave of Ernest H Shepard

The tree where Queen Elizabeth I shot the deer

Back out into the rain one of our leaders took us to the churchyard to see the grave of Ernest Shepard and then it was off across fields and pathways into wooded areas. I wasn't sure which was worse by then, the pouring rain or the dripping of trees in the wooded section. Nearly everyone by then had wet feet squelching around inside walking shoes/boots. I was the only one without over trousers and my water repellent trousers could no longer cope with the deluge. I was wet through and the trousers were sticking to my legs. At some point (details are a little hazy!) we saw a tree where Queen Elizabeth I shot a deer with an arrow and killed it (how nice) and passed the home of the Mitford family.

Peacock resting on a gate!

The house where the Mitford family lived

Finally there was hope as we reached Petworth Park only to be told we had another hour of walking to the house. There was less chatting as everyone coped in their own way but I think the group helped keep each other going. By now even my knickers were wet and finally the water dripping off the bottom of my trousers had seeped into the top of my walking shoes and I could feel it heading down through my socks slowly into my feet and toes until I too was slopping in water. The grass in the park was so saturated that it was bouncing off the surface as we walked. A range rover drove passed (a staff car) and I was hoping he would offer a lift! But we could now see the house and our misery was coming to an end. I stood under a tree to get a photo of the house and the bedraggled walking party (I took few photos that day) and then we arrived. Some of the group wanted to just go the cafe but we had to pay to go in - £14 for the house unless we went the long way round! I by that time would have paid anything to get out of the rain! In the end just four of us went in and the first place we went was the toilets.

Petworth House

Walking party - we're nearly there!

Once in a cubicle I didn't know where to start but took off my socks and wrung them out in the loo. The trousers were next but I couldn't get the water out. I got dressed again....yuk, everything was sticking and made for the hand drier where I stuck my bum into it! I didn't care by then what it looked like. We headed for the cafe and sipped hot tea with our boots off, making wet patches on the floor. If the radiator had been on I think I would have laid down on it! The only dry thing was my rucksack - I'd packed everything into plastic bags and it was all okay. Reluctantly we pushed our feet back into our wet shoes and boots and headed off to the servants quarters before going outside to cross over into the house. We were able to leave our jackets and were encouraged to leave rucksacks but as I had my money and other worldly goods I wasn't going to. The lady then asked if I could wear it on my front to avoid knocking things over. I ignored her. I was in no mood. Beside which there was no chance of being near enough to anything to knock over.

The house was stunning, a curious chapel, a whole room with art gallery (filled with Turner's), several rooms, one adorned with wood carvings all over the wall - even the picture frames matched. It didn't have a homely atmosphere, it was all a bit dark and the upstairs rooms were not open that day (so should we not have had a reduction?). I soon became aware that the water from my trousers had travelled up into my t.shirt and fleece and I was beginning to get cold. I was keen now to get the day over. We had a walk around the gift shop and then met at the other entrance to walk down through the village of Petworth to the coach. We were on our way back!

A lay in a warm bath and dressing in dry clothes and I felt human again. We had survived. Our boots were now in the drying room stuffed with newspaper but the question remained - what to do about tomorrow? The weather outlook was not good and I could not face another day like I'd just experienced. It was time to have a plan B.....just in case.