Walking holidaysA self-catering walking holiday in the South Downs, on the Octagon Way

Which home for walkers

In winter, choose Keepers or The Old Stables. Both have a wood-burning stove with logs provided, a bath, and a washing machine and tumble dryer for wet kit. Keepers has underfloor heating, which dries boots overnight better than anything.

With a dog, it is Barley Cottage, the only one that takes them. It is also the least expensive, from £896 a week.

A walking group of up to 12 can take all three.

Walks without the car

A footpath crosses the farm from the gate, and a path climbs to a viewpoint at 183 metres with the Isle of Wight in sight on a clear day.

The Octagon walks are nine waymarked routes around the eight villages of this corner of the Downs. The West Marden loop is 2.7 miles and starts in the village. Two Compton loops, 2.9 and 3.2 miles, start within three quarters of a mile. The Octagon Way itself is 15.2 miles with 462 metres of climb, a full day, and it passes a quarter of a mile from the homes. There are pubs on the route at Walderton and Stoughton.

Two long-distance paths come this way as well. The Sussex Border Path, from Emsworth to Rye, passes Compton and West Marden, and the Monarch’s Way runs through Walderton, 2.5 miles down the valley.

This is quiet country. On a winter weekday you can walk for two hours and meet nobody.

The South Downs Way and Kingley Vale

We are not on the South Downs Way. The 100-mile trail from Winchester to Eastbourne follows the ridge to the north. The nearest place to join it is the National Trust car park at Harting Down, 4.8 miles and about 10 minutes by car. Queen Elizabeth Country Park, where the trail passes a café and toilets, is 8 miles and about 15 minutes. So the farm works as a base for walking sections of the trail by day, not as a stop on a through-walk.

Kingley Vale is about 12 minutes by car. The Octagon walk from Stoughton climbs through the yew forest to 205 metres on Bow Hill: 4.1 miles, 168 metres of climb, and the hilliest of the short walks. The Hare and Hounds is at the bottom.

What walkers ask

The area is on Ordnance Survey Explorer map OL8. The National Park’s Octagon booklets have turn-by-turn directions, and our Local page has each route as a GPX file.

Mobile signal comes and goes in the valleys, and at the farm it is poor on every network except EE. Carry a paper map. The chalk is slippery after rain and the valley bottoms are muddy from November to March.

We do not run lifts to trailheads or carry bags. For one-way walks, bus 54 between Chichester and Petersfield stops in West Marden, Compton and Walderton five times a day each way, Monday to Saturday. There is no Sunday bus. The Victoria Inn is a very short walk from the homes, and the nearest shop for sandwiches is in Rowlands Castle, five minutes by car.

When to come and how to book

The walking is good all year. Bluebells are out from late April to mid-May, and October brings the colour to the beech hangers. January to March is the quietest time on the paths and in the homes.

Outside the school holidays we take stays shorter than a week. Ask us for a price. There is a three-night minimum over Goodwood events, Easter, half-terms and Christmas, and no booking fees when you book direct.