Brenchley, Shirrenden, Horsmonden Furnace Pond and High Weald Landscape Trail

Exploring the Industrial Past in the Garden of England

The hillsides are clothed with orchards and hop gardens and tranquil streams run through every valley bottom. Yet 300 years ago, this was the industrial black country of England. The dense Wealden forest rang with the sound of axes felling trees to make charcoal, while the earth yielded iron ore for iron-making in furnaces and streams turned water wheels that drove hammers in the forges.

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Start Point

Brenchley

Grid Ref: TQ 67915 41788

Total Distance

3.3 miles (5.4 km)

Total Climbing

108 metres

Estimated Time

2 hours

Difficulty Grade

Easy

Trail Navigation Files:

💾 Download GPX Route Google Earth (KMZ) 📖 About High Weald

Ordnance Survey Explorer Map (1:25,000)

Essential paper map for exploring High Weald, Royal Tunbridge Wells, Cranbrook, Hawkhurst and Bewl Water:

136 High Weald & Royal Tunbridge Wells →

The Walk Report

Starting in the ancient hilltop village of Brenchley (with its 13th-century All Saints Church), the route leads past the 18th-century National Trust property Sprivers and Shirrenden mansion.

Passing Horsmonden Furnace Pond (one of the largest in Kent, which once fed a 17th-century blast furnace producing important ordnance and cannonballs), the walk concludes along the High Weald Landscape Trail back into Brenchley.

Acknowledgment: Text derived from the Out and Out Series; Discovering the Countryside on Foot. Pictures courtesy of Wikipedia.

Brenchley, Shirrenden, Horsmonden Furnace Pond and High Weald Landscape Trail

Ordnance Survey Explorer Map (1:25,000)

The Walk Report

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