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Ripley Canal Circuit

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Ripley is a graceful Georgian village and one time coach stop for people traveling back and forth between Portsmouth and London. The modern A3 now bypasses so it’s probably a little quieter than it used to be. On the north-side of the main road is a beautiful cricket ground and commons and this is where my walk begins. I planned the circuit many years ago and it has become a favourite of ours. It includes a children’s playground with nearby picnic tables, a walk along a canal and the option of stopping at a pub for lunch. There’s some variety but no hills. I once took my gps and the total ascent over three miles was fifteen feet! So a good route for small boys, off road pushchairs and kids on bikes.

Distance: 5km, 3.1 miles
Ascent: Pancake flat
Time: 25 minutes to the pub, 35 minutes back . . . 1 hour of walking but plenty of excuses to stop

Google maps link to the route

Getamap link to the route

We park up on Dunsborough Park under the trees on a sunny day. It’s also the location of the excellent Ripley Farmers market. You could park in the village and walk to Ripley Green on anyone of the many paths and roads that access it.

The play-park is a good motivation for my boys on the last stretch of the circuit. The fence keeps the boys in and dogs out leaving grownups to sit a read the papers on the near by picnic tables! Next to the park is a football come basket ball pitch and a bike circuit. More often than not, Ben finds some boys to have a kick around with.

The walk takes you over mill streams, the river Wey and along the banks of the canal. It also includes some woodland paths and the large open space of Ripley Green.

When I graduated there was a recession on and jobs were scarce. Many of my friends carried on their studies, went travelling or became teachers. This was the early nineties and although I had access to a wordprocessor, there was no internet. There was however a directory in the college library and I set out to write to every firm in the country who I thought I had the right skills for employment. I sent out 273 letters, resulting in one interview and one job in Cobham, Surrey. I discovered the North Downs and area by mountain bike – I didn’t have a car or driving license. Every week, I’d play squash in Woking and cycle there by bike along the canal in this walk. I’d leave work, wind my way to Woking along bridal-ways and towpath, play an hour of squash and then down a couple of pints in the bar. This combination of sport, lack of food and alcohol lead for an interesting return, often in the dark. I’m amazed I never ended up in the canal. I do remember in the depths of winter, the route was deserted and I’d never see a soul. On a sunny weekend afternoon the path is well used by cyclists, walkers and dogs.

The Anchor at Pyrford can get busy. They do cater for large numbers, so although you may have to queue to order service is pretty good. There’s a playground round the back so those of you with small people can relax with a drink and half an eye on offspring enjoying themselves.

As you can see from the pictures, it was a hot summers day when we did this walk. Pip has only stuck her nose in the water, so I was curious to see how she reacted to a walk mostly by water. We saw plenty of Springers and Labs, in and out of the water, leaving their wet trails on the tow path. Pip just wanted to play and showed no interested in following them into the canal. I introduced her to the water where it was shallow and she just stood there giving me that idiot look only a dog can do . . . When we arrived at our picnic destination, I found it a little hard to relax. Boys like water and a busy lock with a fast flowing overflow channel kept me alert. They were happy to sit on the edge away from the lock and dangle their feet in the water. I had Pip securely on the lead wrapped around my wrist. She was tugging a little and then there was a splash. I don’t know what she did as my back was to her, but she was clambering back out of the canal. Her head and her back legs and tail were soaked and her body was dry! This was not a pretty sight. Her puppy body hair was all fluffed up as usual but either end was a scrawny mass of sodden fur. She looked like she’d been chewed up and spat out by some large beast! So on the return leg, I found a still shallow stretch of canal and dropped her in. She swam around for a bit and then leapt out. Inside this big fluffy pup is a small bony dog! She went loopy, haring  up and down the path, shaking, dashing, wagging, yapping. We all laughed at this puppy madness. I can’t see her taking after her cousins Rosie and Shima who both love water. But she’s only a pup and maybe over time will take to the water. I’m not fussed either way. She tolerated an extended grooming session in the evening, but I’ll cover that in a later post.

PS Pip’s brother is called Geo. He lives about as far away from Pip as you can get and still be on mainland Britain. Geo likes to Geocache and has recently set his first cache called Geo’s Cache. I rediscovered this path a few years back when I first started caching. There are many in this area and a few along the canal path. I started caching again last year and Daniel thought ‘Treasure Hunting’ was great fun. I look forward to doing more with boys and dog in the near future and hopefully one day find Geo’s cache.