Shoreham Circular (Figure-of-8) walk

The steep-sided hills above an attractive village in the Darent valley.

History

This is a list of previous times this walk has been done by the club (since Jan 2010). For more recent events (since April 2015), full details are shown.

Date Option Post # Weather
Sat, 22-Jul-23 Saturday Walk: Shoreham Circular (Figure-of-8) 7 The rain held off in the morning
Thu, 13-Jul-23 Thursday Evening: Lovely Lullingstone Lavender near Shoreham 4 lovely lavender
Sun, 05-Feb-23 a Sunday Walk: Shoreham Figure of 8 14 sunny
Thu, 07-Jul-22 Thursday Evening: Lovely Lullingstone Lavender near Shoreham 10 perfect evening
Sat, 01-Jan-22 Saturday Walk: New Year's Day Walk - Shoreham Circular 20 mild and sunny
Thu, 15-Jul-21 Thursday Evening: Lovely Lullingstone Lavender near Shoreham 7 initially cloudy but clearing later
Thu, 09-Jul-20 Evening Walk: Lovely Lullingstone Lavender near Shoreham 3 heavy slightly muggy
Sun, 21-Jul-19 a Sunday Walk – Lavender fields on the Shoreham Figure-of-8 20 warm mostly cloudy muggy
Sun, 14-Apr-19 Explore the Darent Valley
Sat, 07-Jul-18 Saturday Walk – A lavender farm in the Darent valley (Shoreham Circular) 24 hot hot hot
Wed, 26-Jul-17 Wednesday Walk - Shoreham (Kent) Figure of 8 [New Walk] 9 drizzle to lunch then overcast and gloomy
Sun, 05-Mar-17 a Sunday Walk – New Walk in the Darent Valley 3 sunshine all day
HollieB
12.4 miles / 20 km - Main Walk
(Both loops of this walk can be shortened to give a total walk of 9.4 miles. You can also finish a few miles early at Otford, or after lunch at Shoreham).
If you missed the evening walk last week, here is another chance to catch the lavender fields at Castle Farm (if there's no lavender left in the fields, you can find it in the shop).
The morning (northern) loop takes in both Lullingstone Park and Castle Farm, before heading back to Shoreham for lunch. The afternoon (southern) loop heads down to Otford, from where you can return along the valley, or take a more energetic route through wooded hills back to Shoreham.
Trains: 10:16 London Blackfriars, (10:19 Elephant & Castle), 11:15 Shoreham. Return trains from Shoreham at xx:02 - due to strike action the last trains are at 17:02 and 18:02 (or 3 minutes earlier at Otford).

Lunch: Shoreham has several eating places: The Crown (01959-522903) is at the northern end of the High Street, the King's Arms (01959-523100) is in the centre of the village, nearby is The Mount Vineyard (01959-524008) with a restaurant serving pizzas and sharing boards; and near the church is The Samuel Palmer (07508-440027), an up-market pub/restaurant replacing Ye Olde George Inn.

Tea: As well as the above, there are a couple of tea shops in Shoreham High Street and one at the Aircraft Museum. Otford also has a choice of tea shops and pubs.
  • 20-Jul-23

    As of Thursday afternoon this week the lavender is all still there, you will be pleased to hear. The place smells like a National Trust gift shop….

  • 22-Jul-23

    7 hardy types defied rail strike and dismal weather forecast to venture forth on this walk (two admittedly coming by car). The rain held off in the morning and we enjoyed a fine circuit up onto the downs, with abundant wildflowers (marjoram, basil, thyme, carrot - a positive salad bowl…) and possibly the last two yellowhammers I will hear this year.

    On the Lullingstone golf course two of us….we don’t use the L word in these reports, do we?, but let’s say we took liberties with the stated route. We passed the lavender fields, still in glorious flower, and not sure if we were ahead of or behind the others, took up residence in the Crown Inn in Shoreham and sent out (electronic) emissaries.

    The rest turned up in due course and we all enjoyed a pleasant lunch, not cordon bleu but served in a very friendly manner. Three of us even had puddings.

    One announced she was ending the walk here. The rest of us set off through Shoreham village in the drizzle. Once we got onto the downland it started to rain with more enthusiasm and we “trousered up”.

    Soon after, three announced they were going back to Shoreham. Three of us carried on over Fackenden Down, usually a glorious butterfly site - but alas not so in the rain.

    Approaching Otford, the other two were pulling away, and not wanting to hold them back (nothing to do with the now relentless rain, you understand…), I left them to do the rest of the southern loop and went in search of tea. Alas, the Hospices of Hope had closed early and the other two cafes were also shut. I got tea in the Bull, where I wrote the first draft of this report in the midst of a massive social event that seemed to involve the whole population of Kent bellowing at each other, and then went for the 16.59 train.

    This passed without incident, though not without sundry youth blasting the contents of their social media feeds at me. I presume the early finishers got the 16.02 from Shoreham and hope the non-car driving southern looper got the 18.02, the last train.

SWC 289: Shoreham Circular (North Loop with short cut) t=swc.289

Distance: Approximately 5.5 miles or 9 km for those more metrically minded

Difficulty: 3 out of 10

Train: 18:17 Hasting train from London Bridge with change in Sevenoaks (18:43 arrival/18:52), arriving Shoreham at 19:02

Return: 20:45; 21:02; 21:32; 21:45; 22:02; 22:15; 22:32; 22:45; 23:02 (to a variety of London-bound destinations)

The short northern loop of this walk (with short cut) makes for a lovely little evening country walk….an easy journey from London and gentle undulating countryside….with a splash of purple ….The walk route passes by the usually very impressive lavender field at Castle Farm which should be in good bloom now…

Unfortunately, most of the pubs in Shoreham stop serving evening food rather early (usually about 8:30pm) – but, I have secured a booking at the vineyard at 8:30pm – so, hopefully, we will get fed this year!

More information about the route can be found here.

  • 14-Jul-23

    4 regulars assembled for this lovely lavender walk in cloudy but dry conditions. The north loop of this walk makes a great evening outing in pretty countryside. We took a slight diversion to pick up a path that runs next to the lavender farm. The lavender was in full bloom looking marvelous with large sections of the hillside painted the most intensely deep purple. And, oh, the scent -- the air was heavily perfumed as we passed the main farm fields. We then picked up speed so as not to be too late for our booking at the vineyard....arriving 20 minutes late, we were still welcomed and not at all pressured to order quickly. All enjoyed some of the creative and quirky pizzas on offer and sampled some of the local wine production...I think everyone enjoyed their meals with the only disappointment being the presentation of ice cream in a cardboard pot -- though in the end this facilitated a take away to catch the 10.02 back to London. A fun night out and great to finally have a meal at the end of an evening walk in Shoreham.

Mr M Tiger
Mr M Tiger

Two loops around the attractive Kent village of Shoreham.There is a good mix of woodland and open countryside with some fine views from hills, interspersed with easier stretches along the valley floor. We’re doing the shorter "Alternative walk" that starts at point F in the directions.
Trains
Get a return to Shoreham, Kent.
The 09:43 Sevenoaks train from Blackfriars gets to Shoreham for 10:40.
You can also travel from London Bridge. The 9:55 Hastings train gets to Sevenoaks for10:20 where you change onto the 10:28 to Blackfriars reaching Shoreham at 10:38. This journey, via Sevenoaks, costs slightly more.
Coming back there are direct trains to Blackfriars at xx:08 and xx:38.
and trains at xx:10 and xx:40 towards Sevenoaks to change for London Bridge.
Lunch
The Crown (01959-522903) is at the northern end of Shoreham's High Street. At the other end of the village is the King's Arms (01959-523100); open again after a fire. There's a restaurant and coffee shop at The Mount Vineyard (01959-524008); and The Samuel Palmer (07508-440027) is an up-market pub/restaurant where Ye Olde George Inn used to be.
Tea As well as the above, there's a couple of tea rooms on the High Street and one at the Aircraft Museum
Directions here. For this shorter Alternative Walk, you need to start at Paragraph F. (Click on "Option a Alternative Walk" if that works for you). This version goes the other way round to the main walk.
t=swc.289.a

  • 04-Feb-23

    ANother option is the 9.55 from London Victoria. Change at Otford (arrive 10.31, depart 10.35) and nip over to the other platform to catch the Thameslink Blackfriars train to Shoreham, arriving 10.38

  • 05-Feb-23

    An unlucky thirteen gathered on the platform but a latecomer joined us as were setting off, so we were 14 on a sunny winter's day. He had in fact been forced to park his car a considerable distance away, as it soon transpired that tout le monde had decided to go walking in the Darent Valley today: groups large and small passed us all day long. And they weren't wrong; the conditions were perfect, with no mud to speak of.

    A fairly leisurely southern loop got us back to Shoreham just after 12:30. The Crown looked pretty empty but all the tables inside were reserved; however, it was warm enough to sit outside and the landlady cheerfully persuaded the kitchen to provide baguettes and other stuff for those wanting food. An hour or so later we all left the pub more or less together, but this time the multiple walk options might have resulted in a third of the group inadvertently setting off on the longer afternoon leg instead of the posted one; at any rate there were only nine of us at the end.

    As we returned to Shoreham from the northern loop we encountered a familiar face who explained that he was looking forward to a moonlit walk in the area. The conditions looked perfect for that, too.

Stargazer

SWC 289: Shoreham Circular (North Loop with short cut) t=swc.289

Distance: Approximately 5.5 miles or 9 km for those more metrically minded

Difficulty: 3 out of 10

Train: 18:24 Hasting train from London Bridge with change in Sevenoaks (18:48 arrival/18:52), arriving Shoreham at 19:02

Return: 21:02; 21:15; 21:32; 21:45; 22:02; 22:15; 22:32; 22:45; 23:02 (to a variety of London-bound destinations)

We did this short version of the Shoreham figure-of-eight walk as an evening walk last year at this time and it worked quite nicely….an easy journey from London to enjoy the evening in some lovely gentle undulating countryside….with a splash of purple ….The walk route passes by the usually very impressive lavender field at Castle Farm which should be in good bloom now…

Unfortunately, most of the pubs in Shoreham stop serving evening food rather early (usually about 8:30pm) – but we should be able to at least find a drink and some crisps at the end of the walk in one of the 4 pubs or the vineyard in the village….Also, the vineyard does do pizza and sharing platters until about 9pm…..so we may be able to make it there in time….

More information about the route can be found here

Enjoy the walk!

  • 07-Jul-22

    My inbound train has been canceled, so will miss appointed train. Please start without me and I will hopefully find you somewhere along the route...

  • 09-Jul-22

    9 assembled at Shoreham station with the arrival of the appointed train and set-off on the route in a clockwise direction on a perfect evening . They met up with number 10 near the Castle Farm lavender fields which were looking fab -- lovely deep purple....really a most stunning sight...After admiring the lavender,we carried on to Shoreham where the pubs and vineyard had stopped serving food. So, we settled on enjoying the evening with drinks and crisps on the patio of the completely renovated and renamed George...the something Palmer...before most caught the 9.45pm train back to London.

HollieB
Main walk (north and south loop): 12.3 miles / 19.75 km
Alternate walk (shorter north and south loop): 9.6 miles / 15.5 km
North loop (morning only): 6.5 miles / 10.5 km
South loop (afternoon only): 5.7 miles / 9.25 km
Come and celebrate New Year's Day with a walk in Kent. This is a figure-of-8 walk around the lovely Shoreham Valley. It starts with a northern loop up to Lullingstone Park, before heading back to Shoreham for lunch. And in the afternoon the route heads down to Otford and back. Both loops have shorter versions (together these make up the Alternate Walk in the directions).
There are plentiful refreshment stops along the way, and the SWC tradition to bring something fizzy to toast the new year should ensure that no one is thirsty and all are merry. And if all this means that your progress round the route is slower than expected, well there are plenty of chances for an early finish along the way at Shoreham or Otford.
Best wishes to all for 2022!
Trains: 9:42 Blackfriars, 9:46 Elephant & Castle, 10:18 Bromley South, 10:39 Shoreham.
Return trains at xx:08, xx:38 (3 mins earlier at Otford).
T=swc.289
  • 01-Jan-22

    20 mild and sunny A bright day for the start of the year after a gloomy December. Quite a modest amount of Fizz in the sun with a view down the valley helped us on our

    way. There used to be five pubs in Shoreham but today with only one open it was too busy to serve us food without a wait of an hour. Some caught the train home whilst the sensible walkers with there own provisions went on to at least Otford and back round the loop to Shoreham. A fine day out.

Evening Walk: Shoreham Circular (North Loop with short cut) t=swc.289

Distance: Approximately 5.5 miles or 9 km for those more metrically minded

Difficulty: 3 out of 10

Train: 18:24 Hasting train from London Bridge with change in Sevenoaks (18:48 arrival/18:52), arriving Shoreham at 19:02

Return: 21:32; 21:45; 22:02; 22:15; 22:32; 22:45 (to a variety of London-bound destinations)

We did this short version of the Shoreham figure-of-eight walk as an evening walk last year at this time and it worked quite nicely….an easy journey from London to enjoy the evening in some lovely gentle undulating countryside….with a splash of purple ….The walk route passes by the usually very impressive lavender field at Castle Farm which should be in good bloom now…

Unfortunately, most of the pubs in Shoreham stop serving evening food rather early (usually about 8:30pm) – but we should be able to at least find a drink and some crisps at the end of the walk in one of the 4 pubs or the vineyard in the village….

More information about the route can be found here.

To facilitate collecting track and trace details, please sign up for this walk in advance using the London Walkers User Group site. To report a Covid case after this walk, use covid@lwug.co.uk.

Enjoy the walk!

  • 16-Jul-21

    Four alighted from the designated train to be met by 3 others loitering around Shoreham, making for 7 for this delightful evening walk in the countryside. We inadvertently did the route anti-clockwise, rather than the advertised clockwise, so apologies for anyone else who may have been looking for us. The lavender was a delight -- much already harvested - but still some fields of a vibrant deep purple. Missing a turning we found a zipline which most of us tried before turning back to find our route. The return was magical -- the clouds that had lingered broke to a beautiful evening sun across golden fields with a rainbow..so close we could have found the pot of gold had we tried....Back in Shoreham, we missed the food...but spent some time in the lovely pond garden area of the Mount Vineyard doing some wine tasting -- the Key Flint white exceeded expectations and most would have again, but the Pinot Noir was thin even by pinot noir standards...not really worth the price...All in all, a very enjoyable evening in good company with conditions initially cloudy but clearing later .

Stargazer
SWC 289: Shoreham Circular (Short North Loop)

Distance: Approximately 5.5 miles or 9 km for those more metrically minded

Difficulty: 3 out of 10

Meet: Shoreham Rail Station 19:00 (on public transport the 18:24 Hasting train from London Bridge with change in Sevenoaks 18:48 arrival/18:52 departure should work)

Return: 21:32; 21:45; 22:02; 22:15; 22:32 and 22:45 (to a variety of London-bound destinations)

Something a bit different and a little further afield for our evening repertoire…..I have been interested in posting this short country walk as an evening lavender outing for a couple of years – but the walk usually gets snatched up for a full outing at this time of year – so here is our chance….

The walk route passes by a usually very impressive lavender field at Castle Farm which should be in good bloom now…

Unfortunately, most of the pubs in Shoreham stop serving evening food rather early (usually about 8:30pm) – but we should be able to at least find a drink and some crisps or nuts at the end of the walk in one of the 4 pubs in the village….

More information about the route can be found here.

Enjoy the walk!

T=swc.289


  • Anonymous
    07-Jul-20

    Lavender, even

  • 10-Jul-20

    Just 3 familiar faces on this evening outing....making covid compliance a breeze...Notwithstanding the heavy slightly muggy evening air, it was a very colorful outing -- with vistas of green trees, golden barely fields and of course the crop of honor, purple lavender....with various fields in different stages of development -- some quite bright and others either pre or past peak...

    A very pleasant evening out, with ample time for a post walk bevie in the outdoor space at the Kings Arms (the only one of the 4 pubs open this evening -- but the Crown is apparently also functioning and the George is being renovated).

Extra Walk 289a – Shoreham Figure-of-8
Length: 15½ km (9.6 miles). Toughness: 5/10

10:12 Sevenoaks train from Blackfriars, calling at lots of stations in south London and arriving Shoreham (Kent) at 11:09. Or take the 10:25 Canterbury West train from Victoria and change at Swanley (arr 10:51, dep 11:00) for the Sevenoaks train. Make sure you buy a ticket to Shoreham (Kent), not S-by-Sea.

Trains back from Shoreham to Blackfriars are half-hourly, at xx:08 & xx:38. You could change at Bromley South for Victoria, but you wouldn't get back much quicker.

This is a figure-of-8 walk in the familiar surroundings of the Darent valley: a southern loop via Otford followed by a northern loop via Lullingstone, where the extensive lavender fields of Castle Farm should be in full bloom. As the village at its centre has four lunch pubs and two or three tea places as well, you shouldn't have a problem getting fed and watered en route.

Note that I'm suggesting the shorter version of this figure-of-8 walk, described in the text as the Alternative Walk. Contrarians who do the longer Main Walk instead (by accident or design) might not encounter the others for the rest of the day – a blessing or a curse, depending on your mood.

You'll need to bring the walk directions from the Shoreham Figure-of-8 walk page. Clicking 'Alternative Walk' under Walk Options will save two or three sheets of paper and hopefully make them easier to follow. T=swc.289.a
  • Anonymous
    20-Jul-19

    Hi. Is there an admission charge for the farm? Thank you.

  • 20-Jul-19

    There's no charge to visit the farm shop. Access to the lavender fields is by a 1¼-hour guided tour only, but the footpath passes quite close to them. I've put a link to the farm's website in the walk post. Sean

  • Anonymous
    20-Jul-19

    Thank you.

  • 21-Jul-19

    A warm mostly cloudy muggy day. 12 off the Blackfriars train, 6 off the Victoria train (which was delayed just enough to miss the connection at Swanley. So 4 went on to Otford and picked up the walk there and 2 changed at Swanley for a later connection). 2 drove. How’s your maths? I make that 20 It’s worth mentioning that Blackfriars is an abysmal place to get a ticket early Sunday. No windows open and a massive queue for the one (ONE!!) working ticket machine. The walk itself was fine. Very scenic. There were coos and purrs of praisefor the author. Even grumpy old Mr Tiger managed to remain vaguely positive, even on the final ascent up to the Shoreham Cross.

    Most ate at the Crown, one or two at the Kings Arms. Tea for some was at the Battle of Britain Museum, for others, at the Honeypot which has reopened. There was lavender and some was brought back.

Sun, 14-Apr-19 : Explore the Darent Valley ?
Chris L
Chris L
Shoreham Figure-of-Eight
Length: 19.8km (12.3 miles), 15.1km (9.4 miles), or 10.5km (6.5 miles)
Toughness: from 6/10 to 3/10

09:42 Sevenoaks train from Blackfriars, calling at numerous south London stations, including Bromley South (10:18) and arriving at Shoreham (Kent) at 10:39.
Or 09:55 Ashford International train from Victoria, changing at Bromley South (arr. 10:11; dep. 10:18).

Return trains from Otford to Blackfriars are at xx:05 and xx:35 (journey time 59 minutes), calling at Shoreham at xx:08 and xx:38. Change at Bromley South for Victoria. Return trains from Otford direct to Victoria are at xx:31 (journey time 42 minutes).
Buy a return to Shoreham (Kent) (or to Otford if you intend to finish there).

There are many interlinking walks in the Darent Valley, and this figure-of-8 walk provides a range of shorter or longer options, while allowing everyone to stay together until lunchtime or later. The morning loop follows a route through Lullingstone Park to Lullingstone Castle and back along the Darent Valley Way to Shoreham for lunch. The afternoon loop then goes through hillside nature reserves southwards to Otford, and back along more wooded hills to Shoreham once more. Those wanting only a short walk can finish at lunchtime, those wanting a slightly longer one can finish mid-afternoon in Otford, while the rest can complete the full figure-of-8 back to Shoreham.

There are four lunch pubs in Shoreham, details of which are on the walk’s introduction page.

The walk directions can be downloaded here.

T=swc.289
Extra Walk 289 – Shoreham Figure-of-8
Length: 19¾ km (12.3 miles), with shorter options. Toughness: 6/10

09:46 Sevenoaks train from Blackfriars, calling at lots of stations in south London and arriving Shoreham at 10:45. Or take the 09:55 Ashford train from Victoria and change at Bromley South (arr 10:11, dep 10:23) for the above train.

A return to Otford (the next station down the line) instead of Shoreham (Kent) would allow you to duck out there in the afternoon; whatever you do, don't buy a ticket to Shoreham-by-Sea

Trains back from Shoreham to Blackfriars are half-hourly, at xx:02 & xx:32. Change at Bromley South if you want to return to Victoria.

We had a Saturday walk in the Darent valley at the end of May but it should be a good time of year for another outing as this walk goes past some extensive lavender fields at Castle Farm. It hasn't yet had a Saturday posting and although there's some overlap with the Otford-Eynsford walk, there should be enough new stretches to keep your interest.

The walk is a true figure-of-8 in that it does a loop to the north of Shoreham before lunch, and one to the south afterwards. You can shorten it by diverting to Otford station in mid-afternoon, or simply by heading straight back to Shoreham station after lunch.

There are four pubs in the village so you should be able to find one which appeals for lunch. It also has a couple of tea rooms for refreshment at the end of the walk, now that the Honeypot Tea Rooms have reopened; the other is at the Aircraft Museum. And there's always the four pubs…

You'll need to bring the walk directions from the Shoreham Figure-of-8 walk page. Clicking 'Main Walk' under Walk Options will hide a lot of unnecessary directions for an alternative walk which does a shorter version of the two loops the other way round. T=swc.289
  • Anonymous
    01-Jul-18

    I was out on a different lavender walk yesterday and it's in full bloom at the moment and the scent is wonderful.

  • 06-Jul-18

    The clicking main or any other version to hide non-relevant sections doesn't work in my browser even though I've given permission for features to be displayed. It would be very helpful to have a list of which sections go with each of the walk variants.

  • 06-Jul-18

    MG: This sounds like a 'permissions' thing. In Internet Explorer's Options (Security tab) I've listed the SWC site as a 'Trusted site' with a 'Medium-low' level, and that seems to work.

    Some time ago our webmaster silently changed the site's name from http://www.walkingclub.org.uk to https://www.walkingclub.org.uk and I had to add the new site name (starting https). Have you checked that?

    I'm not very familiar with browsers other than IE but if you say what you're using someone else might be able to help.

    For tomorrow's walk we're simply doing §1-10, plus the final instructions back to the station (if you need them) in §17. If you want to call it a day after lunch and watch the football, skip §5-10. Unless you want to be creative and mix'n'match, you won't need §11-16 which are for the Alternative walk. Hope that helps.

  • 06-Jul-18

    Clarification appreciated!

  • 07-Jul-18

    24 people turned up for this alternative to the various sports on offer on this hot hot hot day. Why else would the lofty peaks of the Kentish Serenghetti hold such an allure? The starting pistol sounded and they were off, along the river and up the first of several hills, as if a lion was after them. One seasoned walker took up the rear, stolidly plodding along at a measured pace, never complaining, always cheerful, with a smile for everyone.

    The advance party kept up their pace past the flowering lavender fields, pausing only to devour the lavender flavoured ice cream available at The Hop Shop, (”can’t taste the lavender” one said later). Then they were off again, the imaginary lion only inches behind them. I came across several of the front runners in the Crown. I never saw the others again (doo doo doo). They presumably distributed themselves amongst the other refreshment establishments in Shoreham. How many completed the course? I don’t know. I myself only managed a figure of 6 finishing at Otford and I know of at least two others only managed a figure of 0. Could I have made it back to Shoreham? “No way, Jose “– as they say in this part of the Serenghetti. As it was, it took copious amounts of fermented apple juice to bring my core temperature down to something still capable of sustaining life.

    Nice walk though, with plenty wild chalkland flowers and plenty butterflies and one particularly colourful big one that wouldn’t stay still long enough to be identified. Possibly the one Val Doonican sang about. The “far corner” in the field atop Fackendon Down was a bit hard to find but I located it eventually by retracing my steps back from the far corner.

Thomas G
Length: 19.8 km (12.3 mi)
Ascent/Descent: approx. 360m; Net Walking Time: 5 hours
Toughness: 6 out of 10
Take the 10.00 Sevenoaks train from St. Pancras I’nal (10.05 Farringdon, 10.12 Blackfriars, 10.16 Elephant & Castle and all stations via Bromley South), arrives Shoreham (Kent) 11.04.
From Victoria: take the 10.22 Canterbury West train and change at Bromley South (10.38/10.44).
Return trains are on xx.10 and on xx.40.
New walk covering the familiar area of the Darent Valley between Eynsford and Otford: two loops centred on Shoreham, with plenty of options to shorten the walk, and even one to lengthen it (a wee bit).
“The northern loop initially follows the route of Book 1 Walk 23 (Otford to Eynsford) and takes a similar route through Lullingstone Park, an attractive landscape of chalk grassland and ancient woodland with an internationally important collection of veteran trees. It comes out by Lullingstone Castle, a historic manor house with limited opening hours, but its grounds contain an unusual parish church (open to the public at all times) and a World Garden. The route back to Shoreham is along the Darent Valley Path and passes extensive lavender fields at Castle Farm, while in Shoreham itself The Mount Vineyard is sometimes open for tastings.
The southern loop goes through a couple of small nature reserves on the hillside to the south-east of Shoreham and joins the route of Extra Walk 59 (Eynsford Circular) into and through the village of Otford, passing its scale model of the Solar System. The village has many interesting old buildings and the full route takes you past the ruins of Otford Palace, a rival to Hampton Court in Tudor times. The remainder of this loop follows the ‘longer afternoon’ route of Walk 59 along the wooded hills on the western side of the valley.”
Lunch: There are four pubs in Shoreham, passed after 9–10 km: the Crown and the Two Brewers on the High Street, followed by the Kings Arms and Ye Olde George Inn on Church Street.
Tea: Pubs as above plus - en route back to Shoreham - the Otford Tea Rooms at the back of the Hospices of Hope (open to 17.00) and the Pond View Café (open to 16.30). There are also two pubs on the High Street in Otford.
For summary, map, height profile, walk directions and gpx/kml files click here.
T=swc.289 Next Week: A Brockenhurst walk
  • Anonymous
    25-Jul-17

    Weather fore-cast doe not look promising tomorrow. Will anyone do the walk even it is raining?

  • Anonymous
    25-Jul-17

    Yes. People will turn up. There may well be some rain fir a while, which will make us appreciate the sun more when it emerges, and emerge it will. Often. Take a mack.

  • Anonymous
    25-Jul-17

    I ll be doing it

  • 28-Jul-17

    8 walkers off the train, and 1 other an hour behind due to some problems with a connecting train, i.e. 9 in drizzle to lunch then overcast and gloomy conditions.

    Nearly having struggled to get out of the station, never mind the proverbial car park, a good pace was had, spurred on by the annoying drizzle. This restricted views from the many ridges and viewpoints en route, but the morning loop through Shoreham and up through Lullingstone and Preston Hill Country Park was full of delights nevertheless: varied woods, large wildflower meadows throughout the Country Park, Lullingstone Castle and parish church, the Darent River Path, several lavender fields and a hop one as well.

    The group somehow lost their leader early on, who in the drizzle wasn't in the mood for waiting, so arrived much earlier at lunch in Shoreham. The Crown provided steady quality (although we later thought that maybe the Two Brewers would've been the better choice).

    The afternoon is somewhat less interesting, with Fackenham Down, Otford Palace and Polhill Bank the highlights. Drinks at The Kings Arms for some, 17.10 train for the majority (so they thought, but the train was cancelled).

New Walk – Shoreham Figure-of-8
Length: 15½ km (9.6 miles). Toughness: 5/10

09:42 Sevenoaks train from Blackfriars, calling at lots of stations in south London and arriving Shoreham at 10:34. Make sure that you buy a ticket to Shoreham (Kent), not the much more expensive Shoreham-by-Sea.

Trains back are half-hourly, at 09 & 39 minutes past. Note that there are no Southeastern services to/from Victoria this Sunday, but you might be able to change at Bromley South for a fast train to Cannon Street.

With the long-running disruption to Southern train services the Darent valley (in Southeastern's territory) has become a popular area for walk posters, so my apologies for inflicting yet another one on Sunday walkers. This misleadingly-named “New Walk” is really a few new bits tacked onto some more familiar stretches, so I hope it won't seem too stale.

On Sunday I suggest doing the Alternative Walk (option a) and saving the longer Main Walk for a summer outing, but of course everyone can choose for themselves. However, the two halves are done in a different order so a splinter group might not meet up with the main group again (especially as Shoreham offers a choice of four pubs for lunch). If you have a favourite hostelry you might want to book a table there when you set off, but I'd be surprised if you couldn't squeeze in somewhere. As it's the first Sunday of the month the Honeypot Tea Rooms should be open (you can check this on your first loop through the village), but if not the same pubs should be able to refresh you for the journey home.

You'll need to print the walk directions from this temporary New Walk page. Clicking 'a. Alternative Walk' under Walk Options will hide a lot of unnecessary directions as well as ensuring that you set off in the right direction. T=swc.289.a
  • Anonymous
    26-Feb-17

    Thank you, very nice walk, enjoyed it this weekend. Just a little correction, the start of the paragraph 1 (quoted below)leads towards Otford rather than to Shoreham high street. I think it stayed from the original walk.

    "From the station forecourt go down a flight of steps near the footbridge and turn right onto Station Road, passing under the railway bridge. Shortly after passing the entrance to Darenth Valley Golf Club you join the Darent Valley Path1 (DVP), which comes in from a footpath on the left."

  • Anonymous
    05-Mar-17

    This comment is for doing the full walk from instruction #1. The alternative walk start from #6. I think the above comment does not apply.

  • Anonymous
    05-Mar-17

    3 , sunshine all day . Three walkers ignored heavy rain forecast and were reawarded with sunshine all day (except a brief downpour while we were in the pub for lunch). Waterproof were off, sunglasses and sun creams were on. Lunch at George Inn with Sunday roast, a visit to the Hob farm, tea in RAF tearoom in Shoreham. A great day out in good company. Does the weatherman ever lose his job when he gets the forecast wrong?....