The Welcome Tea Rooms

 Yesterday was a great day out, and a wonderful picnic.  A fitting 75th Anniversary for the DA.  I rode to Brockham with Dave Vine, a lovely ride and a chance to chat with friends.  I told Dave that my afternoon plan was to ride to Farthing Downs, to see the Welcome Tea Rooms, where the DA was established in 1948. To complete the circle, so to speak.  He thought that this was a good idea, and asked me for a short note.

I had brought an electric gravel bike with me, as I planned to do a fair bit of the route off road, and this worked out very well on a sunny afternoon. I went North from Brockham, over the Mole, along the Old Reigate Road to Buckland, then tracks across Reigate Heath, a bridleway alongside the Skimmington Castle to Reigate, around the centre of the town - which would not have been necessary in 1948, as the High Street was two way, then - and up to the bridleway leading to the Royal Alexandra and Albert School. This is a good trackway, shown in part by the OS as the Pilgrims Way.  I'm not sure, the lie of the land is wrong, but no matter, and if you were prepared to ride along a footpath a bit further on it would bring you to the Feathers, in Merstham, which once had a winged wheel. 

A short distance along Rockshaw Road, then left on the North Downs Way, bridleway here, and under the M23.  Ancient trackways hereabouts have been rather messed about, by mining, quarrying, the railway and, lastly, the enormous M23/M25 interchange.  But once you are through the tunnel under the M23 the past reasserts itself.  The trackway goes steeply up hill, with a slightly awkward start, then climbs steadily through a wheat field, where it is well preserved, to the top of the hill.  When I came down it in July the wheat was growing well; by yesterday it had all been harvested.  I wondered how much longer it would be a wheat field, as the terrain is ideal for grapes, an increasingly popular crop in the North Downs.

Oddly, this ancient trackway is also labelled as the Pilgrims Way by the Ordnance Survey, perhaps based on Belloc's book.  Anyway, it's certainly an old trackway, and there is an old cast iron road sign at the top, which merits further investigation.

A few minutes later I was at the trig point at 202m, one of my favourite North Downs viewpoints.

A short run from here down Hilltop Lane and Church Lane, and I was able to lean my bike against the wall of what had once been the Welcome Tea Rooms.

I've found it hard to date this picture, but I would guess at 1935 to about 1955.  It's a private dwelling now, the tall chimney and the Coca Cola sign have gone, but the chimney breast and the small window are still there, as is the archway over what was the door that CTC members would have walked through in 1948.

Thanks to the work of the Friends of Farthing Downs I have been able to find  quite a bit more about the Welcome Tea Rooms, including this brochure.

There's a lot to see in this picture, which is dated as late 1920s.  The cottage/entrance is in the centre, there is an extension behind, which still exists, and beyond that a long, low wooden building.  This is one of the Canadian pre-fabricated buildings that were imported during both the first and second world wars and were widely used, as government buildings, military bases, hospitals and schools.  They were very sound, comfortable and worked well.  This is long gone, replaced by the Keepers' Cottages in the 1960s, and between these and the main building the Downland Cafe stood until the early 1980s.  It wasn't much of a place, by all accounts, but it was right by the swing boats, which are in the picture. 

Also of interest are the parked buses.  These are soft-top 'charabancs', a classic 1920s excursion vehicle, quite likely made by Dennis, in Guildford.  Lastly, it's worth taking a look at Ditches Lane.  It is completely unsurfaced, though by the time of my later picture it had been metalled, but still had no tarmac.

But there's more in the brochure.  The Welcome Tea Rooms could provide seating for 1000, so it was a major establishment.  The picture above shows the interior of the Canadian wooden building, which was only part of the tea rooms.  Providing a room for a couple of hundred or so CTC members would not have been a problem.

There we are.  I don't know if any Wayfarers have childhood memories of the Tea Rooms, but this is where, in 1948, the CTC SW London DA was established.

Mark