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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.

Sunday 3 July 2016

Sunday Walk 1: A Wealden Walk - The Darling Buds of...er...July

Pluckley Circular
Book 2 walk 21 (with more options online).
Difficulty 1 out of 10 (I'd say 2 or 3 for the longer versions)
Length 7.2, 9.2 or 11.2 miles (11.5, 14.7, or 18 km)

Welcome to Pluckley, the Kent village so haunted they banned Halloween. (Needless to say, SWC walkers have no time for such nonsense and the alleged ghosties have left us well alone) (touch wood).
The land here was owned by one family for 900 years and their influence - distinctive Dering windows and the black horse symbol - can still be seen on many of the buildings. The area was the backdrop for “The Darling Buds of May”. The author was a local and the TV series was filmed hereabouts.
Trains
Get the 09:42 Folkstone train from Victoria (Bromley South 09:59, Orpington 10:07) arriving Pluckley 10:53.
Return trains at xx:40 to Victoria. Get a return to Pluckley. 
(You can also get the 9:37 Folkestone HS1 from St Pancras changing at Ashford for the Victoria-bound 10:34. The xx:53 takes you back the same way. Neither journey is recommended - you save little time and it costs more – but if you've just missed the xx:40, maybe worth upgrading.)
Lunch
The Swan Inn in Little Chart is recommended 01233 840 702. They've got a garden by the stream.
A bit later, in Pluckley, there's the Black Horse  01233 841 948. (Ghost alert: haunted)
Phoning advised for both.
Tea
St Nicholas' Church, Pluckley (haunted) has been known to offer cream teas on Sunday afternoons 2.30-5pm, though I’ve found no posts for this year.
Otherwise, for the short walk, you have a choice between the fore-mentioned Black Horse (which is fine, unless youve just had lunch there) or, later, the Dering Arms, 01233 840 371 opposite the station. It closes at 4:30 on a Sunday so look lively. It's haunted as well so, whatever you do, don’t ask for spirits. And don’t apologise for being late.
Both of the longer options take you past the Rose and Crown at Mundy Bois 01233 840 048. From there, allow 45-50 minutes to the station. Sadly, the George in Egerton 01233 756 304 seems to have closed.  Unless you are a fast walker or being chased by things from another realm, you're unlikely to reach the Dering Arms before it closes.  

Directions All three walk options are available online. Book 2 itself only offers the shortest one.
T=2.21

4 comments:

Terry Wogan said...

What a Lovely flat walk, where the spirits played with our GPS's & we got nicely lots 3 times, great fun was had by all.
Ended up at a rugby BBQ in local haunted pub, instead of cream tea, we had a proper meat feast.
There was a misfortunate lady at the pub with a biggest pair of gnasters I have ever seen "she could eat an apple through a letter box"
We had to run for the train, a different kind of spirit was involved the 3rd time, losing our way in a huge cornfield.
Not to worry! we all just made it, except! for one lady & one dog. The sun was shinning so not a bad day to
spend an hour at a haunted train station.
All the best.
Terry Wogan xxx

Mr M Tiger said...

Dear Terry
Thanks. Hope the lady and the dog were OK. Just one thing. How many were you?
p.s dead celebrities don't count. (Don't count... geddit? It's the way I tell 'em.)

Terry Wogan said...

Ah! Yes' it the way Miss'es
There was a bakers dozen, including the dog.
I'm sure they were fine, the dog was great at
making friends!
All the best,
Terry

Ps Apon request from himself upstairs, that the great
Beeb was lacking talented DJ's. I have been sent back
down in an advisory role, on the QT of course, to clip some
of these young e-jets ear's. Pull up their trousers, tuck in their
shirts and all that!
Mums the word Tiger!

Anonymous said...

n=12