A recent walk took us into part of the Wotton Estate with a view of Wotton House in the distance. This was the home of members of the Evelyn family for about four hundred years. During the 161h and I 7th centuries the Evelyns were important industrialists at a time when the Tillingbourne river powered large numbers of water-mills engaged in making gunpowder, paper, iron and brasswork, as well as fulling cloth and grinding corn. The landscapes we walked through were originally laid out by John Evelyn (born 1620). He is now best known for his diaries but he was also a powerful figure in the worlds of politics, literature and science.

We walked from “The Wotton Hatch” pub through woodlands to the Friday Street lake and then followed the tributary of the Tillingbourne from there back towards Wotton House. On this stretch alone four watermills were recorded as existing in the ~ century. Our walk ended with lunch at “The Wotton Hatch”, after which some of us visited Wotton church, where many of the Evelyns are buried.

This is typical of our “gentle” walks, usually four to five miles long, which are on the third Monday of each month, meeting at 9.30 a.m. at the Lower Shott car park in Bookham. New members would be made very welcome.

(Please note that walkers take part entirely at their own risk).