The Walk: Starting from where the previous section ended at Detling, the first half of this walk to the village of Hollingbourne follows the higher route along the Downs, including some welcome areas of open downland. The second half to Lenham descends to follow the lower Pilgrims Way along the foot of the Downs.
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| Kent countryside in Summer |
Route
NB The map shows my route, with various diversions and excursions which you may not wish to follow precisely.
The route follows the official NDW trail, except for three short excursions into the White Horse Wood Country Park, the adjacent ruins of Thurnham Castle and the Huckling Estate (Woodland Trust).
Why do it: Ironically, some of the best moments on this section are not actually on the official NDW route.
Upon climbing out of Detling, it is well worth entering the White Horse Wood Country Park and walking up to the viewpoint (probably rather more interesting than the official route lower down). The vista of the Kentish and Sussex Wealds, with the Detling vineyards in the foreground, is impressive.
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| White Horse Country Park Viewpoint |
A descent through a meadow of grassland and wild flowers takes you back to rejoin the official NDW, but it is worth another immediate diversion through the evocative ruins of Thurnham Castle.
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| Thurnham Castle ruins |
Several areas of open downland intrude into the usual woodland and scrub, including Hog Trough Bottom and Cat's Mount, before our third excursion off the trail, namely into the Huckling Estate, which is managed by the Woodland Trust. here, there is another viewpoint with a seat and a wood carved statue of a shepherd.
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| Shepherd, Huckling |
The route descends to the village of Hollingbourne, and from there follows the Pilgrims Way. The adjoining scenery is pleasant enough when not enclosed by trees, but it is another irony that just when the downland is beginning to open up a bit, there seem to be no rights of way along the top of the escarpment.
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| Hollingbourne |
Leaving the NDW trail, it is a short descent through fields to the attractive village of Lenham.
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| Lenham |
Logistics: I parked on the road outside the village hall in Detling. Having arrived in Lenham, I walked down to the station and got the train back to Bearsted, then walked back over the golf course and fields of vines to the start.
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| Walk back from Bearsted to Detling through the vineyard |
The walk parallels the railway line, so if you want to shorten the walk, there are stations at Hollingbourne and Harrietsham.
Distance: 10.5 miles from Detling village hall along the NDW to above Lenham. 1 mile to Lenham station. 2 miles from Bearsted Station back to Detling. 13.5 miles in total. (NB I believe there is a 'Detling Shopper' bus from Bearsted Station to Detling operating on weekdays.)
Challenges:
Expect mud after rain.
The good news: motorway noise is less prevalent than on the previous section (the M20 is a couple of miles away). The bad news: in the latter half of the walk, you are close to the A20, which in places has little screening.
There are extensive periods walking through woods or hedge-lined tracks: shady on a hot day, though lacking in views and rather tedious if trees are not your thing.
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| Hedge-lined section of the Pilgrims Way |
The Pilgrims Way is a popular outing for trail (motor) bikers: most seem considerate, but be prepared to jump into the hedgerow.
It seemed to me there were several places where the signed route on the ground did not match precisely the official route shown on maps and the web (for example, approaching Cat's Mount): only small differences, but disconcerting to nerdy people like me navigating on a GPS.
Refreshments: The friendly Detling community shop beside the village hall does coffee, drinks and snacks (it was open early on a Sunday morning). There is also a pub, the Cock Horse, though it doesn't open till midday.
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| Detling Village Shop |
The Dirty Habit pub (monk based innuendo appropriate to the Pilgrims Way) is closed for refurbishment (July 2024), but would be handy when and if it reopens.
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| Dirty Habit pub, Hollingbourne |
There are pubs, a Co-op and a fish and chip shop in Lenham.
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Lenham
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Nearby WalksFor an overview map of all my walks along the North Downs Way see this page.
Previous section: Cuxton to Detling
Next section: Lenham to Wye (you could play variations on where to break the walk from Detling to Wye using the intermediate stations).
More Photos
Sunny, very hot, Sunday in July
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| Ascending from Detling |
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| Vineyards |
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| At entrance to White Horse Wood |
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| Wild flower meadow descent from White Horse Viewpoint |
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| View to Thurnham Church on Pilgrims Way |
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| Hogs Bottom |
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| At last, proper downland with sheep |
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| Cat's Mount |
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| View back to Cat's Mount |
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| Huckling signboard |
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| Shepherd viewpoint |
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| Towards Hollingbourne |
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| Wavy fields (Eden's Hole) |
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| Hollingbourne Cricket Club |
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| Just when you are wishing that there would be a picnic table in the middle of nowhere.. |
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| On the Pilgrims Way |
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| Typical Pilgrims Way |
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| Nearly harvest time |
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| Pilgrims Rest |
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| Wild Flowers |
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| Grain |
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| Descending from NDW to Lenham |
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| Crossing Bearsted Golf Course |
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| Approaching Detling |
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