# Kent Ramblers: Walk 36

![](https://www.kentramblers.org.uk/KentWalks/public/images/banner_036.jpg)

## Points of Interest

### St Paul's Church

Built in the 1880s and designed by Edwin Thomas Hall 
						(who designed Liberty's in Regent Street), St Paul's may 
						be the oldest concrete church in England.  The fine 
						interior contains work by William Lethaby and others in 
						the Arts and Crafts movement.

### Furnace House

This Grade II listed timber framed house was built in 
						the late 16th or early 17th century and the roof later 
						remodelled to create a greater overhang.  The name 
						suggests that the house was built by the owner or 
						manager of a furnace during the heyday of the Wealden 
						iron industry and is indeed very close to two furnaces 
						believed to have been operating around 1589, probably by 
						Thomas Browne whose family was very prominent in the 
						industry.

### Marlpit Wood

There are many references to marl pits on maps of Kent.  
						Marl is a rock layer consisting of a mixture of clay and 
						chalk.  It has been excavated since Roman times as a 
						fertiliser ' the name is derived from a Latin word for 
						fertiliser.  A marl layer is often found in association 
						with ironstone ' hence Furnace House Farm not far from 
						the wood.

### Bough Beech

For many years the area you pass through alongside 
						the reservoir was managed as a nature reserve by Kent 
						Wildlife Trust with a visitor centre at the oast house.

![](https://www.kentramblers.org.uk/KentWalks/public/images/P036a.jpg)

Sadly the visitor centre was closed at the end of 
						2017 and at the time of writing the Trust appears to 
						have withdrawn completely from the site which is owned by Sutton 
						and East Surrey Water.  There is parking on the lane 
						where it divides the reservoir and it is rare not to see 
						birdwatchers here with their binoculars and zoom lenses. 
						The reservoir itself is filled in winter by pumping 
						water from the River Eden for purification and use by 
						SES Water during the drier summer months.

### White "Stiles"

You will see a series of white structures that look a 
						little like stiles but no path goes over them.  These 
						follow the route of a pipeline and are presumably to 
						enable the route to be followed from the air.

### Public Transport

Unfortunately there are no bus or rail services 
						convenient for this walk.

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