please empty your brain below
Horsley itself is a wonderful example of an estate village to Horsley Towers, which itself is a fabulous confection. Alas, the underwater smoking room is not accessible.

David | 25.09.23 - 7:26 a.m. | #

Infuriating how much NT stuff in inaccessible without a car.

Tom | 25.09.23 - 7:48 a.m. | #

Reading your last paragraph reminds me that, imho, the one improvement OS could make to their maps would be to show which roads outside towns have pavements.

Marc | 25.09.23 - 7:57 a.m. | #

I visited Clandon Park some years before the fire, with fractious children in tow so rather quickly as I recall, and the one thing that stuck in my mind was the Maori meeting house, Hinemihi.

Truly a remarkable thing to find in a garden in England. There are only four wharenui outside New Zealand: Hinemihi at Clandon, Ruatepupuke in the Field Museum in the Chicago and two at museums in Germany, Rarau in Hamburg and Te Wharepuni-a-Māui in Stuttgart (and the latter was a “model” commissioned by a European from Maori carvers).

As far as I can make out, there are no plans to return the other three. But it sounds like a good idea to replace the historic carvings with new and less important works that might survive better in the open air, and continue to provide the expatriate Pacific community in the UK with a cultural focus.

Oh, and now I recall Clandon also housed the museum of the Surrey Regiment. Destroyed.

Andrew | 25.09.23 - 8:21 a.m. | #

So easy for NT members to call for a partial restoration, and who can blame them. But one can see that the finances required to do that would be sizeable. Reallocating funds from other projects to achieve this would no doubt annoy other members in equal measure.

Stuart R | 25.09.23 - 9:05 a.m. | #

This is very doable by train/bicycle. No need for a car.

felix | 25.09.23 - 9:16 a.m. | #

The nature of most NT country houses is that they are remote, and hence a long way from public transport.

There is sizeable insurance money for Clandon Park, which I presume could be used to partially rebuild it.

Mikey C | 25.09.23 - 11:21 a.m. | #

Was going to suggest that you could have walked across Hatchlands Park to their West Horsley gate. However, that is restricted to local permit holders. Apparently, National Trust excludes most of us.

Mike Jones | 25.09.23 - 11:21 a.m. | #

‘Coping with senility’.
The underwater smoking room is at Witley Park, not far away but not at Horsley.

David B | 25.09.23 - 12:22 p.m. | #

Bus 479 runs from Guildford to Epsom approximately hourly calling at Hatchlands with a stop on the main road near the entrance.

JohnC | 25.09.23 - 12:47 p.m. | #

I should have added every two hours on Sundays.

JohnC | 25.09.23 - 1:11 p.m. | #

I appreciate the War Of The Worlds reference!

Jamesthegill | 25.09.23 - 4:50 p.m. | #

Marc - I've started adding pavement details for my local area of the Mendips to Open Street Map.
It's quite easy, and I wish more people would do it for their own areas.

martin'O'Holcombe | 26.09.23 - 7:47 a.m. | #

The side-gate on the carriage drive entrance to Hatchlands opposite Pincott Lane is kept unlocked, so that the shortest walk to Horsley station is mainly off-road (also using the metalled path alongside the railway between West Horsley Street and East Horsley (where the station is). You can also walk into Hatchlands from East Clandon village. But don't expect the National Trust to tell you this. As it happens, there is a motion before this year's AGM to encourage the Trust to do more to promote access by public transport.

And yes, there is an hourly 479 bus from Epsom to Guildford on weekdays (two-hourly Sundays) — but even here, the Trust could make access from the nearest bus stop, at Blakes Lane, along the old turnpike road, much more welcoming (than expecting visitors to alight at East Clandon and walk along the main road and vehicular entrance).

Hugh | 01.10.23 - 11:55 a.m. | #











TridentScan v2.10.0 | Privacy Policy