Length: 9.5km (6m)
Toughness: 1/10
Transport: Take the 10:21 train from London Charing Cross, arriving in Hayes at 11:08. Return trains every 15mins. Hayes (Kent) is in Zone 5.
On the day before the shortest day of the year, one of our very short walks. It meanders through woodlands across 3 commons visiting the source of the river Ravensbourne and 2 iron age forts. There are 2 pubs and a cafe for lunch. Bookings are recommended. Back in Hayes there is the unique Real Ale Way pub, which opens at 14:00 and serves real ale, still cider and wine. There are also some cafes.
3 comments:
I booked a table for 4 at Cafe 222 for 13:00
N=15 and a dog set off on a w=sunny-cloudless day. Mostly dry underfoot.
There were attempts at cohesion. but, slowly, inevitably, Mr M Tiger fell behind. (Don't you worry readers, they caught him up eventually). The race continued and, by the time Keston was reached, he was one of two at the back.
He ventured into the Fox where he encountered a group who had taken - let’s not beat about the bush - a shortcut to get there. Their sumptuous meals soon arrived, what they enjoyed. Mr Tiger was on the wrong side of the table for chips, but he managed to grab a couple.
Then on. A very nice day through pleasant easygoing countryside ended with a visit to the Real Ale Way inn where he was reunited with most of the gang. A n=16 th joined.
A wide variety of drinks on offer, including some 8 % still ciders, of which he had a moderate amount.
I thought it would be helpful to add some notes on the culinary options along this walk. Having failed to book a table at the Fox Inn, - its website indicated that it was fully booked, I opted instead to use the walk poster’s booking at the Triple Two Café, despite mixed reviews on Tripadvisor. It was there that we met our 16th walker, who arrived separately.
Five from the original group ate at the café. The service was fast and the food arrived quickly. Most thought it was pretty decent, although one walker described her smoothie as tasteless—which is quite an achievement. Personally, I thought it was on the pricey side for what you get.
One walker was turned away from the café because dogs aren’t allowed. She decamped to the Greyhound instead, a proper traditional pub and extremely dog-friendly, so friendly, in fact, that the dog was immediately offered two biscuits, possibly receiving better service than some of us.
Later, we popped into the Fox Inn, where four other walkers had successfully booked a table simply by phoning them. Once again, the old way triumphed. Their feedback was glowing. All agreed, this is the place to go next time, but note to myself: book early, or be prepared to live on flavorless smoothies.
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