Blog
A selection of articles about aspects of life, nature and the landscape of the Western Weald.
Good Wood
Goodwood is famous for its festivals, racing and award-winning organic farm. Visitors flock to its events and admire the sweep of its parkland. Yet few people ever step behind the scenes to see how the estate manages its 800 hectares of woodland. A recent walk with...
Cast In Stone
If you have read Ken Follett’s Pillars of the Earth you will know that it captures a moment in history when cathedral building changed forever. Architects wanted more light, higher walls and greater spans. To achieve that, masons had to understand forces that builders...
Church Crawling The Cotswolds
At the end of April, I spent three days church-crawling around the Cotswolds. Not on foot for once, but by car, covering roughly 150 miles through villages, narrow lanes and quiet corners you’d be unlikely to stumble across by chance. It was full-on, but utterly...
Mapping The Sacred
If you visited the British Library’s Secret Maps exhibition earlier this year, you will have discovered the many forms that maps can take and the wide range of ideas they can convey. In fact, back in 1996, the academic J. H Andrews attempted to define the word map and...
A Brush With The Downs
If you are looking for a thoughtful gift or a worthy addition to your own bookshelf, I have a recommendation for you. A Celebration of the South Downs National Park is a beautifully curated book of art in which local artist Gordon Rushmer draws together decades of...
An Eye For Churches
I'm sure you have noticed how differently one church can feel to another. Some are dark and weighty, others tall and full of light. In some, your eye is drawn straight to the windows; in others, it’s the height of the interior or the richness of the stonework that...
Champing Anyone?
Many of our most desirable hotels are in beautiful historic buildings, yet a night’s stay in one often comes with a steep price tag. In contrast, our churches are equally remarkable historic buildings, built by skilled medieval craftsmen, that offer a heritage...
Legacy of Belief
Each year, some Rural Strides’ Open Walks follow a shared theme. In 2026, that theme will be Legacy of Belief – a chance to explore how faith and ritual have shaped both our landscape and the lives of past generations. Belief leaves its mark in many ways. You can see...
The Flint Man
I lead a walk called the Flint Stones. Cartoon fans will be disappointed to learn that Fred, Wilma, Barney and Betty don’t put in an appearance, instead the star of the ‘show’ is the rock flint. Here in the Western Weald it is impossible to go for a walk without...
Wheels Within Wheels
As a curious walker, I find myself drawn to the oddities and overlooked objects that dot the countryside. One in particular had caught my attention time and again, a large, tarpaulin-covered piece of machinery tucked away on a favourite walking route. For months it...
Seed To Sapling – Behind the Scenes at Hilliers
On a bright November Sunday, a group of Rural Striders joined Phil Hall, manager of Hilliers' Andlers Ash Farm in Liss, for a guided walk around the nursery. Phil has worked at Hillier’s for more than 30 years - almost as long as the company has been based in Liss -...
Crafting A Broomstick
Autumn in the Western Weald is a season of sensory pleasures. The air turns crisp and clean, tinged with the scent of woodsmoke curling from cottage chimneys. The trees put on their grand finale, scattering leaves in a blaze of gold, russet, and amber. It’s the season...
Pole Position
Among walkers, poles are almost as divisive as Brexit. There is no sitting on the fence. You either embrace them whole-heartedly or won’t touch them with a barge pole. Until a couple of years ago I was firmly in the latter camp. Walking poles represented old age and...
Match Stick
When it comes to Rural Strides, the brand is me—Malinka. In the countryside, you can’t miss me. I’m the one walking along in a scarf and gilet (yes, even in summer), a baseball cap, sunglasses, and, in winter, a bright purple coat. I’m also always accompanied by two...
From Coppice To Crutch: A Local Legacy
I’m forever diving down research rabbit holes, immersing myself in new and unexpected subjects. This year, one of those holes led me deep into the world of walking aids. In Pole Position, I explored the pros and cons of using walking poles, while Match Stick looked at...
A Woody Western Weald
Kipling, Blake, and Woolf all helped the Eastern Downs become known as the fairest and most famous landscape of Southern England. However, not everyone shared this view. Others complained about their bare, nakedness, and compared them to “the limbs and shoulders of...
A Plea From The Trees – How You Can Help
Have you recently returned from a walking holiday or have one planned? If so, be sure to give your boots a good wash both before and after your trip. Wash? Yes, you read that correctly. While a wipe over with a cloth and dab of Nikwax might protect your boots from...
The Walker Beneath The Cap
My name is Malinka and I am Rural Strides. If you've walked with me before, or follow Rural Strides on social media, you'll probably have noticed that I rarely go out walking without a baseball cap. Delve deep into my psychology and there will be a link to me being an...
Why Use A Walking Guide?
Holiday makers roughly split into one of two camps: those who prefer the ease of buying off the shelf and those who like to be more independent. Although I’d put myself in the latter camp, I am not wholly self-sufficient. Money saved on planning and booking my own...
Very Little In Life Is Free
Very little in life is free...... As we contend with the rising cost of living and grasping tentacles of government, never has this statement felt more true. However, we should not forget that many simple pleasures in life have no price tag. Precious moments with...
The Heart & Craft of West’s Wood Fair
Time is precious, so the older I get the less interest I have in spending it on things that don’t bring me genuine pleasure. These days, joy comes from simplicity and authenticity—not from the polished façades or curated aesthetics of gentrification. I therefore...
West Is Best
The rolling, open, hills and large skies of the South Downs calm and captivate the senses. The gentle chalk landscape and images of a bucolic way of rural life, seems the very essence of Englishness. Little wonder the Downs were the backdrop of the war-time poster...
Snaking Along The Serpent Trail
The South Downs Way is often described as one of the UK’s most beautiful long-distance paths. Its charm coming from the panoramic views from the chalk ridge and the way the landscape slowly varies from west to east. No other walk finale can also match the...
Iron ExplORE
A Rural Strides walk is more than just a gentle stroll through beautiful countryside. It's an invitation to become landscape literate - to tune your senses to the traces of history written in the hills, rivers, trees, and stones around us. These walks are designed to...