Walking in Kent

Preface

Overview map

Map key

Introduction

The North Downs

The greensand hills

The Weald

Coastline

Rivers

When to go

What to take

Footpaths

Using this guide

The walks

West Kent and the Weald

1 Lullingstone Park to Shoreham

2 Shoreham to Romney Street

3 Westerham to French Street and Chartwell

4 Crockham Hill to Toys Hill and Obriss Farm

5 Toys Hill to Ide Hill, Crockham Hill and French Street

6 Ide Hill to Manor Farm

7 Sevenoaks Weald to Boarhill

8 Shipbourne to Underriver and Ightham Mote

9 Four Elms to Winkhurst Green and Bough Beech

10 Marsh Green to Crippenden Manor

11 Cowden to Horseshoe Green and Bassett’s Farm

12 Cowden to Hoath Corner

13 Chiddingstone to Penshurst

14 Penshurst to Salmans and Nashes Farm

15 Penshurst to Fordcombe

16 Groombridge to Speldhurst

17 Brenchley to Matfield

18 Yalding to Hunton and Buston Manor

19 Teston Bridge to Wateringbury and East Farleigh

20 Linton to Boughton Monchelsea Place

21 Ulcombe Church to Boughton Malherbe and Grafty Green

22 Pluckley to Little Chart and Egerton

23 Wittersham Road station to Small Hythe and Tenterden

24 Appledore to Stone-in-Oxney and Royal Military Canal

North and East Kent

25 Camer Country Park to Luddesdown and Great Buckland

26 Stansted to Fairseat, Hodsoll Street and Ridley

27 Trosley Country Park to Coldrum Stones and Ryarsh

28 Newington to Upchurch and Lower Halstow

29 Leysdown-on-Sea to Shellness and Harty

30 Faversham to Oare Creek, Uplees and Oare

31 Faversham to Ham Marshes and Oare Creek

32 Wye to Crundale and Coombe Manor

33 Wye to Wye Downs and Cold Blow

34 Chilham to Stour Valley

35 Stodmarsh Nature Reserve to Grove Ferry

36 St Nicholas at Wade to Chitty and Sarre

37 Bridge to Patrixbourne, Kingston and Bishopsbourne

38 Elham to Breach

39 Sandwich to Sandwich Bay

40 Dover (White Cliffs Picnic Site) to St Margaret’s at Cliffe

Longer walks

41 The Darent Valley Path

42 The Eden Valley Walk

43 The Elham Valley Way

44 The Greensand Way

45 The High Weald Walk

46 The Medway Valley Walk

47 The North Downs Way

48 The Royal Military Canal Path

49 The Saxon Shore Way

50 The Stour Valley Walk

51 The Wealdway

Appendix A Route summary table

Appendix B Useful addresses

Appendix C Recommended reading

September 2021

Bough Beech Visitor Centre

Good information, excellent maps and lovely photographs

This is the latest walking guide from Kev Reynolds, who has lived in Kent since the 1960s. The book mainly details 40 short (4-10 miles) circular walks in the Garden of England, taking in woodland, clifftops and riversides in a county rich in varied walking terrain.

It's fair to say that short walks like this are of limited interest to LDWA members, although the walk descriptions are very detailed, there is good information about points of interest, there are excellent maps and there are lots of lovely photographs. But what will interest LDWA members are the outlines of 11 longer routes which run through the county, including the 19-mile Darent Valley Path, the 22.5-mile Elham Valley Way (which l did for Elham Walking Festival this year, and have been asked to repeat next year), the High Weald Walk and the Medway Valley Walk, both 28 miles, and the Stour Valley Walk - which, at 51 miles, some Kent LDWA members have been known to complete in a day. There are also details of the 123-mile North Downs Way National Trail, the I I 0-mile Greensand Way and the 163-mile Saxon Shore Way, which all run through large parts of Kent.

There are brief descriptions of all these longer walks, plus details of guide books and/or websites where more information can be obtained. All in all, it's a nice little book, even if there is a far higher proportion of walks in the west of the county than there is in the east.

Graham Smith, the Long-Distance Walkers' Association