After watching the movie, The Holiday, I had a sudden urge to explore the area where it was filmed! Luckily, the lovely little village of Shere in Surrey is close to where I live. The closet train station to Shere is Gomshall, which is around a 20-minute walk.
Now, I am no good at map reading and did get a little lost here and there, but I will provide two links to the different trails I went on. Hopefully, you will be able to follow the trails better than me!
Shere village is where you may have spotted Cameron Diaz and Jude Law walking around in the movie, and in fact one of the villages two pubs (The White Horse) was where one scene was filmed. Shere has also been seen in one of the Bridget Jones movies too!
Situated in between Guildford and Dorking, Shere is a small village with a pretty stream running through where you can see lots of ducks swimming about, there is also a pretty church, museum, a tearoom, and a couple of gift shops. If you are here on a Sunday, be sure to grab a delicious roast lunch from the pub, before or after your walk.
The area by the North Downs has lovely countryside around and is popular with walkers and cyclists.
The Silent Pool, Shere
After exploring the village, I wanted to see the Silent Pool, which is believed to be an old chalk quarry which was made from an underground spring.
I walked on the main road straight to the pool but have since found a much nicer looking route, which is just off the main road.
The pool is beautiful and the water crystal clear, you can see all the stones, underwater plants and fish underneath the water.
This is such a tranquil spot, it really does make you feel calm, and a wonderful place to sit and just admire nature. There is also a gin distillery here, where you can have a tour, or try some of the gin for yourself.
There is actually a rather spooky tale about this place. Long ago, the daughter of a woodcutter was bathing in the pool, when a man tried to lure her out. When she did not move, the man rode his horse into the pool, which forced her to swim out into the deeper water, where she then drowned. When the girlโs father, the woodcutter, found her body in the pool, he also found the hat the man was wearing. The crest of the hat stated that it belonged to Prince John.
After taking some time by the water, I walked up the path next to the silent pool, which is a little steep but does not go on for too long. Once at the top, it came out into gorgeous woodland with huge pine trees either side of a well-defined path.
The path eventually came out to a small car park where there was a mobile coffee truck, mostly used by the many cyclists! I then made my way back down one of the paths back to Shere village. This is a pretty easy walk, so a good one to do with the family. Pretty much all the walks around here can be extended so there are always longer trails for those looking for more adventure.
Shere to Peaslake walk
After some lunch I wanted to do another walk down to Peaslake. This is where I did get a bit lost and most of my route to Peaslake was along a road (although some parts were on public footpaths through fields and wooded sections). Here is a link to a circular walk from Shere to Peaslake, which should take you on more attractive footpaths!
Also, once I arrived at Peaslake, I wanted to do this circular walk but as it was starting to get dark, I only managed half this walk. If you have the time, I would do the full walk as there is plenty to see here.
So, after getting lost I made it to the small village of Peaslake which is even smaller than Shere! But they did have an inviting looking pub! As I mentioned I started part of this walk, which begins just past the village pub and goes around the fields and farmland.
I liked the variety of things to see in this area, from fields, animals, small footpaths, dense woodland, and quaint villages. If you can, spend the full day here to fit everything in, especially if going in the winter months when the light does not last.
There is plenty to do in this area, so I would advise to really look at the map beforehand to get a good grip of what you want to see- it makes a difference haha! Or you can just wander around like me, you never know what you will come across!
More beautiful walks:
- Best Walks in London: Hampstead
- Beautiful Walks in England: Dorchester on Thames
- Beautiful Walks in England: Rye, Sussex
- Best Walks in London: Hampstead
