February 7, 2019 by ammcculloch49

A brilliant wildlife blog from further west…

I’m often accused of being Kentist or Kentcentric. Maybe north-west-kentcentric. So in the interests of clearing my parochial name, I recommend this magnificent blog on local flora and fauna a bit further west along the North Downs. It’s called ND&B the author of which, Steve Gale, has dedicated years to observing what goes on in his ‘uber-patch’ in north-east Surrey and has racked up an astonishing list of species. On a sombre note, however, he is somewhat downcast about the future of wildlife and has documented a steep decline in bird, plant and invertebrate numbers over recent years. Gale’s writing and photography is of the highest order, and his work is an education for anyone interested in life outside.

February 3, 2019 by ammcculloch49

Snow on the North Downs ridge

Stunning walk at Fackenden Down today. Far more snow than I expected. Just a few extra metres at the top of the ridge made all the difference and there were some reasonable accumulations in Magpie Bottom. I had birdwatcher Dave for company which led to some more exciting sightings than I even manage without him. We saw bullfinch, coal tits, heard linnets, a probable marsh tit and, best of all, saw a short-eared owl hunting low over a rewilded field at Romney St. Big thanks to those who donated to the site today, much appreciated.

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February 3, 2019 by ammcculloch49

Oh dear, he’s asking for donations!

Hi there, dear readers. Don’t be afraid. I haven’t gone all corporate and just come out of a meeting where my shareholders demanded I ‘monetise’ my ramblings. Or fallen on hard times and am now sleeping in my car. It’s just that, well, this website has involved quite a lot of expenditure in the three years it’s been running and a lot of work – which I love doing – but I just thought that if (and only if) you’ve enjoyed one of the walks on this site, particularly with one of the free print-out downloads, you might want to make a small donation. This is possible with PayPal. If you don’t want to, fine, no problemo; but if you do, thanks a lot and it will encourage me to update walks, add new walks, improve my photography etc. Thanks!

Donations

If you’ve enjoyed one of the walks on this site and feel it’s enriched your day, feel free to make a small donation here if you wish. It'll encourage me to add more walks, update information and work harder to improve accuracy and quality. Thanks a lot.

£3.00

January 21, 2019 by ammcculloch49

A proper crisp winter’s day

It’s been cloudy and mild on the whole; dull really, but the past two days have been crisp limpid classics, with a giant full moon thrown in for good measure. Some pictures from yesterday’s stroll at Meenfield Wood/Polhill Bank: walk 18. And, here’s a batch from Cliffe on the Hoo Peninsula from a trip there in mid-January, quite a haunting place in the right light.

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December 29, 2018 by ammcculloch49

Lullingstone country park – perfect for a winter walk in fading light

The open spaces and long valley views of Lullingstone make for a very atmospheric walk at this time of year in clear conditions. The Shoreham-Eynsford stations walk takes in an area of the park, as does Walk 12 but its easy to devise your own stroll from the Visitor’s Centre or from Eynsford’s Roman Villa car park (not free) or train station. There is also parking in Eynsford village or in laybys along the road to the Villa. It’s a bit cloudy as I write but on Thursday the sky was fantastic, though there was no moon.

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December 24, 2018 by ammcculloch49

Merry Christmas to all – and enjoy a winter walk why don’t you

Hope all visitors to this site have a great break and get to enjoy a winter walk over the festive season to clear the head and get the blood circulating. Right now I can’t get enough of the Shoreham/Fackenden Down/Romney St walk. With its views and variety it’s perfect for a crisp clear day, though I love the Lullingstone/Eynsford walks at this time of year, too. On drizzly days, Polhill Bank and Knole come into their own with their super woods and lack the same quantity of mud as, say, One Tree Hill, Ide HIll and Hever. Closer to London, the Chislehurst station to Petts Wood station route is worth a punt on a bad weather day too; it doesn’t have much in the way of views but makes up for that with great trees and atmosphere. Pubs with roaring fires are one of the regional pleasures; check out the pubs page. How lucky to have access to such great places to roam around and enjoy a beverage, as the Big Lebowski’s Dude would say.

I wonder if we’ll get much snow this winter…

Fackenden Down

November 28, 2018 by ammcculloch49

The austere beauty of the Kent Downs in winter

Winter has arrived but it remains mild; with more rainfall the mud has churned up on the most of the walks so it’s time for wellies. But take care: the chalky Darent Valley hillside paths can be a bit slippery at this time of year, particularly where the paths are worn and the chalk is close to the surface. But the austere beauty of the North Downs in winter is now evident, especially on the eastern side of the valley – walks 5, 14 and 19 – and on the Eynsford routes: walks 3 and 12. If the temperature drops a bit take a flask out with some hot chocolate and maybe a shot of something stronger – really works out here in an easterly wind!

Each of the walks on this site have their own character. There’s definitely a split between the southern routes, such as Chiddingstone, Ide Hill and at Hever, which are more wooded and somehow bucolic, and the more hilly, more grassy northern routes of the Darent Valley where the ridgelines are the highest points for an easterly winds for hundreds of miles. It’s all very atmospheric; when walking I often imagine what life was like for Saxons, Romans, Britons and Vikings who settled these parts and picture them on their long, painstaking journeys.

So, here’s a useful way of choosing a walk near SE London … enlarge the map, then just click on the labels and lines to find a walk that suits you. You’ll see there’s quite a spaghetti junction of walks around Shoreham, you can combine them all and stay out all week if you like! My tip this week is Walk 19: Fackenden Down. It’s on the eastern side of the Darent Valley – straight out of Shoreham train station and the views are terrific. The walks are also on the menu at the top. Enjoy…

My walks

An online version of the Ordnance Survey map 147 can be found here but strangely some public footpaths are not included. I’m gradually working on making GPX files for the walks so they can be followed ‘live’ on smartphone, but, ahem, slow progress is being made!

November 28, 2018 by ammcculloch49

Shoreham, Kent – a perfect village for a stroll

Nine of the walks on this site involve the Shoreham neighbourhood, in the Darent Valley. This is good, because Shoreham is a decent little place with its four fine pubs, vineyard, Battle of Britain museum, river walk and houses from down the centuries. And it has a station, served by trains from London Blackfriars (sometimes Victoria too) via Peckham Rye and Bromley South, and Sevenoaks. Otford down the road is alright too. My walks use the valley rims, east and west; the valley floor along the river and the ‘dry’ valleys (geographical feature – not a reference to any shortage of pubs!) that flank the main one. The Darent river itself rises south of Westerham, on the shallow slope of the Greensand ridge and its early stretches can be seen on walks 15 and 21. Try not to drive through the village itself. On the east side of the village there’s a car park by the station and a huge layby almost opposite the station. On the west side there’s a free car park at Filston Lane. Best of all though, arrive by train if possible. There’s only one (tiny) shop in the place, so don’t expect to do your shopping there.

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It’s a great village to stroll around, explore the ancient church and paths that skirt the northern side, around the back of the vineyard. Full details can be found on each Shoreham walk page. The Darent Valley path itself, which the walks here take in stretches of, is 19 miles long, starts by Sevenoaks station and ends at Dartford, as the river enters the Thames. So that’ll take awhile.

The sublime nine Shoreham walks

Shoreham circular 3.5 miles (western side of valley)
Shoreham to Eynsford one way train walk 4 miles (valley floor mostly)
Otford-Romney St-Shoreham-Otford 5.5 miles (eastern side and beyond)
Shoreham-Otford circular 5 miles (western side and valley floor)
Mysterious eastern valleys of Shoreham 5.5 miles (eastern side and beyond)
Shoreham mk2, the eastern rim 3.5 miles (eastern and valley floor)
Shoreham-Polhill Bank 4 miles (western side)
Fackenden Down and Beyond 4 miles – as featured in The Guardian (eastern side)
Polhill Bank and Pluto 4 miles – starts from Andrews Wood/Shacklands Rd car park
Each walk has a PDF download option to print out and GPX map to follow

Shoreham station is most convenient for the eastern walks but it’s only a half-mile walk down Station Rd to connect with the western valley ones, too. Each of the walks can be adapted into something much longer by joining them together.

November 27, 2018 by ammcculloch49

Walking at Fackenden Down and Magpie Bottom, Shoreham, Kent

The diversion to Fackenden Down is a great variation to the Shoreham circular walks. If you walk over the top of the hill and continue to Magpie Bottom you join the Romney Street walk, shortening it slightly. Fackenden Down and Magpie Bottom are both sites of special scientific interest and are examples of chalk upland being rewilded. Both have great biodiversity with rare plants, insects, birds and reptiles. See details (Walk 19). The other walk that can be altered to take in Fackenden Down is the ‘eastern valleys’ walk. Here are some pictures:

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Here’s a map of the near-four-mile route; description here

November 18, 2018 by ammcculloch49

One Tree Hill, Sevenoaks – good place to catch a winter sunset

The Greensand Way route between Ightham Mote, One Tree Hill and its Wilmot Hill derivatives are great for winter light after about 2.30pm at the moment. Picture below is from yesterday about 3.45pm. Love how the sheep reflect the light. It looks darker in the picture than it actually was… trying to get the exposure right for land and sky always a challenge.

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