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This Week's Walks - Archive

Please see the Saturday Walker's Club This Week's Walks page.

This is an archive of walks done by the Saturday Walker's Club. You should only need to use this page if the SWC website is down.

Saturday 10 October 2015

Yalding to Borough Green

Length: 16.8km
Toughness: 3 out of 10

Transport: Take the 10:15 from London Charing Cross to Tonbridge and change to the train to Yalding, arriving at 11:19.
Return trains from Borough Green are at xx:24 and xx:53 to London Victoria

Directions are here.

There are several lunch options corresponding to various walk options. This walk can be muddy after rain.

This is an easy walk through Kent's woods and fields passing two interesting churches and Roydon Hall, a 16th century country house, remodeled in 1870. Some pictures are here.

There is also an optional small variation in the afternoon from point [34] described by these instructions. This variation contains slightly less road walking and a charming descent into a valley. It also used to pass along an orchard but I'm not sure if it is still there:

34.1. ... to continue straight on, your direction 320deg. In 300m turn left onto a footpath.
34.2. In 300m cross a road.
34.3. In 180m turn right with the path
34.4. In 250m continue in the same direction across a field
34.5. In 190m you come out onto a road where you turn left for 160m.
34.6. Turn right here following a footpath sign.
34.7. In 400m you enter a wood where you follow the path to the right descending into the valley.
34.8. In 100m you rejoin the instructions at [38]

7 comments:

Anonymous said...

Just spotted that there is 7 minutes for the change at Tonbridge - I hope that this is enough time
A King

Walker said...

Actually you are much better off getting the 10.10 from Charing Cross (it is only 5 minutes earlier) and taking that all the way to Paddock Wood, arrive 10.58. You are then on the same platform that the 11.11 for Paddock Wood leaves from to go to Yalding at 11.19.

You only really need to get the 10.15 if you just miss the 10.10.

Btw a day return from Yalding is valid from Borough Green (because you can also get to Yalding via Maidstone, if any ticket inspector queries it)

Natalie said...

Seven minuets seems like a long time for a change, unless we all have to change stations as well.

Now I'm worried!

Anonymous said...

Recommend the detour at point 3 to an alternative lunch pub The Swan in West Peckham (details are in the online written directions)

Anonymous said...

n=40 off the train and 25 for lunch at the Swan - well done them for handling us so well.
Excellent food and drink
W=dry_cloudy_grey_but_dry_with_a_little_peak_of_sunshine_at_the_end
Delightful walk with lots of tree cover so ideal for a hot sunny day
Virtually no mud yippee
Did anyone go to the other pub?
Brother Ken Stiles

Anonymous said...

I found that the directions were very difficult to follow. There are too many unessesary directions on where not to turn that make some of the steps opaque ( ie MereworthWoods) or unintelligible (ie step 40).

Also I believe the Queen's Head Pub is dead as it had a sign saying it was closed and thanking the community for its support.....with NOT written below the line.

Another change is that the Beeches Country Pub has new owners and a new name---The Moody Mare. It is a gastro pub and the food looks good. We did not get to try it because there was a private event going on when we arrived. Luckily we were able to buy drinks and the bartender saved us by serving us some baked potatoes cooked in rosemary and olive oil. He really should have received some sort of Good Samaritan prize for that one.

All in all a nice walk with a few annoying features.

Dirk said...

Unfortunately, the Henry Simmonds pub opposite the station has now closed and is boarded up. With this closure Borough Green now does not have any decent tea option any longer and is not a pleasant destination for finishing a walk. The slowest group of the walk (6) had an emergency tea at the surprisingly inviting cafe at Denmark Hill station.