About
Gallery
Parking
Poo bins?
Self-guided walk
About
Capel is a village in Surrey just north of the border with Sussex and just to the side of the A24, which used to pass through it before the bypass was built. Like so many of these little places in Surrey, it dates back to the Domesday Book. The area around was mainly used for farming but the heavy clay soil also nurtured a thriving brickmaking industry and by the early 19th century there were several brickyards too.
There’s not a lot to say about Capel but it’s a nice village and has a dog-friendly pub, The Crown. There’s even less to say about Dairy House Nature Reserve as it’s private – but it’s crossed by public rights of way (and non-rights of way made by walkers) and the walk on this page goes through it, as well as farm land/fields and woods to the south east of the village.
A lot of these small copses are bluebell woods, and spring is a great time to visit – although if it’s been wet, you’ll find the whole area is muddy. It’s a peril of clay soil.
Gallery: What’s it like here?
Parking
You can park on the Horsham Road in Capel village or opt for one of the residential streets. There’s also The Crown pub car park if you’re walking in the morning – the pub doesn’t open until 12 noon.
WHAT3WORDs: https://w3w.co/sorry.fence.terms
GOOGLEMAPS LINK: https://maps.app.goo.gl/yu9RwNgbTZKuJFZYA
NEAREST POSTCODE: RH5 5EP
Poo bins?
There’s a bin by the footpath that runs down the side of the village green.
Self-guided walk
Here is a Footpath app route from the Horsham Road that passes through Capel village. Also on AllTrails.
The walk starts at the village green, which has a duck pond set back from the road. It goes through the private Dairy House Nature Reserve and through fields and woodland to the south east of Capel village. It’s a quiet walk. I have never encountered another person while walking here.
Length: approximately 2.15 miles/3.4 km
Terrain: Woodland and fields. Paths are well defined, but they are extremely muddy in autumn, winter and spring. There are a couple of flat plank bridges.
Stiles/kissing gates? No stiles, one kissing gate.
Park up in Capel village and head to the village green. With the green in front of you and the road behind you, there’s a footpath along the far left-hand side, skirting a few houses. Head down here, passing the duck pond, which is over to the right, and heading towards a metal kissing gate.
Cross the plank bridge and go through the kissing gate, then follow the surfaced path ahead and round to the left through the open gate. It’ll immediately curve back to the right and then you’re onto a long, straight bit.
There’s a fence on the left along the straight section. When you get to the junction at the end of it, turn left. Follow this round and over another plank bridge, then keep going.
The path takes you through scrub and trees. Keep an eye out for a fork and take the left-hand path, which takes you through the trees and out into an area of rough glassland.
The path is small but should be obvious. Follow it ahead as it goes along the side of a field (to the left) and it’ll bring you down to a muddy stream. You need to cross this. You can go straight ahead or you may find a little detour to the left is marginally better. It’s usually quite muddy – sorry. Cross the water and emerge from the scrubby woods into the field, where you turn left.
Walk along the left-hand edge of the field to the corner…
…and turn right at the field corner, ignoring the teeny, tiny path that goes away slightly left into the woodland. Keep skirting the field but keep an eye out to your left for a break in the foliage that allows you to pass from the field into the woodland. Head into the woods and immediately turn right. During the spring, this is a lovely bluebell wood. It’s not very well known so the flowers haven’t been trampled – enjoy!
Just follow this little path as it winds through the woods. It’ll bring you to a crosspaths with a main footpath where there is a bench ahead. When you reach it, turn right.
Follow the footpath to where it emerges from the woods out into a field. Turn left.
Walk along the left-hand side of the field with woodland on your left and the field stretching away to your right. When you get to the signpost, continue straight ahead, ignoring the path that goes off to the left. Just keep on ahead as the field boundary curves round to the right.
Keep the woods on your immediate left. When you reach a signpost (which has fallen down at time of writing – April 2025), turn left to leave the field on a small footpath that leads into the woods. This path gets REALLY muddy during the wetter months of the year.
Follow this really small path through scrubby woodland. Again, if you’re here in the spring time, you can expect bluebells mixed in with the brambles. When you get to the end of the path, it emerges from the wood at the boundary of a couple of fields.
It should be obvious where the footpath goes, but if it isn’t, you want to continue ahead, but keeping the field boundary on your right-hand side.
As you head up the gentle slope, you’ll see a house on your left. Keep going until you get to a track with a signpost to the right-hand side. Turn right onto the track immediately before the signpost and pass through the open vehicle gate.
After turning right, keep straight ahead, ignoring the field and gate to the left as the footpath you want to be on continues straight ahead with the field boundary to the left.
Walk along the side of the field until the path heads to the left and into the woods at a post.
Go down the small slope and over the footbridge, then up the slope on the other side.
This is Strood Copse and it’s a private woodland (as will be evident from all the signs). Just go straight ahead through this wood, ignoring any cross paths (I think there are two)
Go over the plank bridge and pass through the gap to the left of the stile.
Follow the path straight ahead, ignoring a path off to the right and keeping the hedgerow on your right. When you get to the tree that’s in the way, it doesn’t matter which side you go.
Keep walking ahead until you get to the end of the field. Ignore the path that heads over to the left towards a signpost. Keep hugging the hedgerow on the right and follow the path around to the right.
Take this path down to the gate at the fence. Pass through the gate and continue straight ahead.
This path has an open wooden fence to the left and bushes to the right. Follow it all the way down to the cross paths at its end (where there’s a small post ahead) and then turn left.
After a few paces, you should recognise you’re back near the start of the walk. Continue straight ahead, ignoring the path to the right (which you took earlier when you started this loop).
There are weird trees to the left that seem to be growing sideways.
I posted on Instagram about these weird trees and friend messaged to say: “This is possibly the result of the tree being layed (and yes it is spelled like that – from “layered”). I did something like this years ago with my ex step-father in law. I went out with him in his 70s and cut back a load of trees and layed them. They create a natural fence but also sprout new growth from where you half split the trunks. It’s a dying art now. That was probably done to those trees decades ago and not been tended too since it was done.” Every day is a school day.
Anyway, continue ahead and follow this path back to the village green and you’re done.
Walks with Rena 
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