Knepp

 Welcome to Knepp and the home of the most famous rewilding project in the country. It's been featured in the national press and on television and for that reason amongst many I have avoided it like the plague [I have danced here] even though it's on the doorstep. During the lockdowns it became rammed with people and there's little in the way of parking, but now things are thankfully settling down a bit and it's the quieter time of year I thought I'd chance my arm.

The Knepp Estate has been in the hands of the Burrell family for more than 500 years and the current owner ran it as a farm for many years. However, as the family's ideas have changed it's gradually been transformed into a rewilded area and it's incredible how many species have returned [it is regularly surveyed]. The different habitats are very carefully managed and many larger grazing animals roam freely. It even has a pair of beavers, but they can't be released and has started a successful white stork breeding programme. For anyone wanting to know more Isabella Tree's book "Wilding" is fascinating. Thankfully for me there are a series of public footpaths which crisscross the area and marked walks which make it very clear where you can go. With the weather so glorious it seemed wise to follow the longest route and make the most of our time there.

There's a lot going on at Knepp. They have a campsite and yoga retreat and during the warmer months they run their wildlife safaris. It's one of those places that you never know quite what or who you might encounter. The butterfly creation and arch of antlers is right near the carpark and as for that random column near the gate I've no idea how that fits in!

You pass by all sorts of different environments as you wander round. There are several well considered platforms built in the trees [so they don't damage them] which give you a good birdseye view. The "lake" is the millpond and was originally tied to the 16th century iron industry which flourished here. At the time it was the biggest body of water in the South East, but these days it's half the size it once was.

For some of the time we were following paths which took us out and into the countryside beyond. We passed through the small village of Shipley where the grade II listed windmill can be seen. It used to be owned by the writer Hillaire Belloc and it was the fictional home of Jonathan Creek for anyone who remembers that series. For many years it was run by a group of local volunteers who kept it maintained and it was open to the public. However, it was closed in 2009 and although it's still got the same owners it's looking rather like it's seen better days. I read that it's an octagonal smock mill and although I've encountered the term before, I've only just found out that this is because it was believed to look like a farm worker's smock. Smocks were all the rage here in Sussex and people wore them with pride on high days and holidays too. Some of them were beautifully embroidered.

I felt the urge to take the photo of the front door nearby because of the sheer size of the hinges....definitely a case of go large or go home!

One of the other things the area is famous for is its history. Way back in 1075 William the Conqueror had divided Sussex up into territories...so called Rapes and this one fell into Bramber and was given to his loyal knight William de Braose. By 1125 it was felt that a castle was needed to plug any defensive weaknesses and this paltry piece of masonry is all we have left of it to see today. During its time it saw many Royal visitors, but King John stands out for all the wrong reasons. He had been good friends with William de Braose III [he had stayed there before travelling out to France], but by 1208 they had had a major falling out. He confiscated the lands, killed William and rather charmingly starved his wife and heir. Until his death he used the land as his hunting grounds when it then passed back into the original family's hands. The Roundheads did a good hatchet job on it in 1648 to stop the Cavaliers from having it as a military base and then most of what was left standing was pilfered to make a local road. That said it was rather pleasing to finally discover what is at the top of that mast as normally we only glimpse it from the dual carriageway which runs along the back of it. Thanks to Mr GBT for the closeup.

Well I suppose the question remains...did we see any wildlife. I knew the odds weren't going to be great as it's not the best time of the year for it. Deer were glimpsed in the far off distance, but no pigs were to be seen. However, the very chilled longhorn cattle were in full sight and we saw a Red Kite. They're beginning to make inroads into the area, but we're still far more likely to see buzzards still. There is a little lovely hiding in the final photo too, but you'll have to double click it and squint hard to spot it!

Hope you enjoyed visiting virtually with us.

Arilx