Epsom Downs is an area of chalk upland near

Epsom Epsom is the principal town of the Borough of Epsom and Ewell in Surrey, England, about south of central London. The town is first recorded as ''Ebesham'' in the 10th century and its name probably derives from that of a Saxon landowner. The ...

Surrey Surrey () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South East England, bordering Greater London to the south west. Surrey has a large rural area, and several significant urban areas which form part of the Greater London Built-up Area. ...

; in the

North Downs The North Downs are a ridge of chalk hills in south east England that stretch from Farnham in Surrey to the White Cliffs of Dover in Kent. Much of the North Downs comprises two Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONBs): the Surrey Hills and ...

. Part of the area is taken up by the

racecourse A race track (racetrack, racing track or racing circuit) is a facility built for racing of vehicles, athletes, or animals (e.g. horse racing or greyhound racing). A race track also may feature grandstands or concourses. Race tracks are also use ...

, the gallops are part of the land purchased by Stanly Wootton in 1925 and are open to users such as

rambler Rambler or Ramble may refer to: Places * Rambler, Wyoming * Rambler Channel (藍巴勒海峽), separates Tsing Yi Island and the mainland New Territories in Hong Kong * The Ramble and Lake, Central Park, an area within New York City's Centr ...

model aircraft A model aircraft is a small unmanned aircraft. Many are replicas of real aircraft. Model aircraft are divided into two basic groups: flying and non-flying. Non-flying models are also termed static, display, or shelf models. Aircraft manufactur ...

flyers,

golf Golf is a club-and-ball sport in which players use various clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a course in as few strokes as possible. Golf, unlike most ball games, cannot and does not use a standardized playing area, and coping wi ...

ers and

cyclists Cycling, also, when on a two-wheeled bicycle, called bicycling or biking, is the use of Bicycle, cycles for transport, recreation, Physical exercise, exercise or sport. People engaged in cycling are referred to as "cyclists", "bicyclists", ...

. Since January 2006 model aircraft flyers on the Downs have been required to be members of the Epsom Downs Model Aircraft Club. There are over 20 km of routeways for

hack Hack may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Games * ''Hack'' (Unix video game), a 1984 roguelike video game * ''.hack'' (video game series), a series of video games by the multimedia franchise ''.hack'' Music * ''Hack'' (album), a 199 ...

riders. There are

bylaws A by-law (bye-law, by(e)law, by(e) law), or as it is most commonly known in the United States bylaws, is a set of rules or law established by an organization or community so as to regulate itself, as allowed or provided for by some higher authorit ...

for the use of the Downs. There are panoramic views of

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

to the north from the Downs. The area is served by

Epsom Downs Epsom Downs is an area of chalk downland, chalk upland near Epsom, Surrey; in the North Downs. Part of the area is taken up by the Epsom Downs Racecourse, racecourse, the gallops are part of the land purchased by Stanly Wootton in 1925 and are ...

and

Tattenham Corner Tattenham Corner is in north Surrey, UK, the name is principally associated with Epsom Racecourse. The railway station of the same name is in the Tattenhams ward of Reigate and Banstead Borough. Location Tattenham Corner refers to the sharp ...

railway stations.

Conservators

Epsom Downs is managed by the Epsom and Walton Downs

Conservators In certain areas of England, Conservators are statutory bodies which manage areas of countryside for the use of the public. Establishment, Role and Powers Conservators are bodies corporate generally established, and granted their powers, by a ...

, which consists of six

borough A borough is an administrative division in various English-speaking countries. In principle, the term ''borough'' designates a self-governing walled town, although in practice, official use of the term varies widely. History In the Middle Ag ...

councillors, three representatives of the

Epsom Downs Racecourse Epsom Downs is a Grade 1 racecourse on the hills associated with Epsom in Surrey, England which is used for thoroughbred horse racing. The "Downs" referred to in the name are part of the North Downs. The course, which has a crowd capacity of 13 ...

and one from the racehorse trainers. They are responsible for the maintenance and control of the Downs and the cost of this is split in the same proportion as the representation. The Conservators were set up in 1984 to give a voice to the users of the Downs.

References

External links

Healthy walk
{{Epsom and Ewell Epsom Borough of Elmbridge Hills of Surrey Epsom Downs Racecourse