Length: 14 km (8.7 miles). Toughness: 5/10
10:25 Ashford train from Victoria (St Mary Cray 10:56, Swanley 11:00), arriving Otford at 11:08. Note that there are no trains via Bromley South this Sunday, which also means that the slower Thameslink trains aren't running through south London.
There's a direct train back to Victoria at 26 minutes past. You can also take a train in the other direction at xx:16 & xx:46 and change at Sevenoaks for a fast train to London Bridge; that's just as quick and a return to Otford is valid on this route.
This is a variation on the familiar Otford Circular from Book 1, with a shorter morning around the steep-sided hills on the eastern side of the Darent valley and a longer afternoon exploring those on the other side. Like the original it packs a fair amount of climbing into its short length, but there are a couple of shorter options in the afternoon if you want something a little less strenuous.
There are several pubs and other refreshment places in Shoreham, with most walkers choosing between the Kings Arms on Church Street (open again after its fire in March) and The Crown at the other end of the village. At the end of the walk there's also a good choice of watering-holes in Otford, although some of its tearooms seem to close suspiciously early when an SWC walk is in the offing.
You'll need to bring the directions from the L=swc.290
3 comments:
Only two of us got off the appointed train at Otley. We’re lunching at the Crown Inn.
Could it have been the thunder that deterred the Sunday walkers from this lovely walk? Two arrived at Otford meeting a third at Shoreham walking the route from Shoreham back to Otford so that made a total of <3>. The weather was .
It’s a lovely walk. So it was autumn leaves, damp earth and modest amounts of mud underfoot. Lunch was at the Crown Inn that seems to have revamped its menu and is a bit more expensive. We noticed that the Two Brewers is closed and being converted to a private house and the George is now the Samuel Palmer.
The woods after lunch were fertile ground for fungi spotting and we returned to Otford before the torrential rain. The sunset from the train ended an enjoyable autumn walk.
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