Extra Walk 253 – L=swc.253
Length: 17 km (10.6 miles). Toughness: 5/10
09:36 Canterbury West train from Victoria, arriving Hollingbourne at 10:49.
Trains back are hourly at 07 minutes past. You could also take an outbound train at 49 minutes past and change at Ashford for a High Speed train to St Pancras, but you'd have to pay a supplement for this.
This newish walk (a spin-off from Extra Walk 221) features a climb onto the North Downs ridge and a circuit of the Woodland Trust's Hucking Estate, returning to an up-market pub on the outskirts of Hollingbourne for lunch. The afternoon section – if you can put up with a noisy link route past motorways and high-speed trains – is a circuit on public footpaths through the scenic grounds of Leeds Castle. Those who'd prefer a quieter Sunday afternoon can simply snooze in the nearby Hollingbourne Meadows before heading for the station.
Late Start option: If a 9:36 train on a Sunday is too much of a struggle, take the train an hour later and do one of the morning short cuts to catch up.
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n=4 w=very-wet-and-windy-and-cool 2 off the train, 2 drove. Armed with walk instructions, map, gps etc we nevertheless struggled with mud, wet fields and knee-high crops. It was not so easy pathfinding in places especially going through the large field of cereal towards Broad Street although we could clearly see 'the way ahead' in the macro sense towards the Pilgrims Way and The North Downs Way.
Precise, or indeed ANY compass bearings would have helped as we struggled uphill with wet pages and poor visability having initially veered off in the wrong direction. By the time we reached the NDW a joint decision to miss out the Hucking loop was arrived at. We still paid homage to the Shepherd at his viewpoint before the gradual descent to Hollingbourne where two enjoyed a sandwich at the village church before a gentle climb to the pub to join the other two for a drink as they equally enjoyed a sumptuous roast (insisting on sharing a dessert with the arrivistes).
Perhaps full, 2 shortcut to the station presumably NOT stopping for a 'loiter'(Mr Author) or a 'snooze' (Mr Walk-poster) in the Meadows whilst 2 braved the southern circular bit around the impressive Leeds Castle. This section, by the lakes would delight birdwatchers; SWIFTLY circling small black & white avians dining on the wing.
Slightly damp we opted for coffee in the pretentious restaurant part of the low-ceilinged, timbered Windmill in Eyhorne Street surrounded by animal skin rugs and horned skulls on shelves before a brisk tarmaced route to the station and the 1707.
Despite it being a foul day this would obviously be a great walk (full version) on a fine day.
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