Distance: 8.8 Miles (4.5 Hours)
OS Map: Explorer 148 (Start at grid reference TQ848581)
Park in Woodland Trust car park on Hucking Estate. The location is can be reached from junction 8 of M20 by taking A20 towards Lenham, first left through Eyhorne Street and Hollingbourne, follow signs to Hucking then Hook and Hatchet into Church Road when the car park is soon on your left.
Cross Church Road and go over stile into meadow. There is no path but walk parallel to right hand fence and make for metal kissing gate through fence about halfway down. Through gate, follow track through new woodland to lane.
Take path opposite. Follow right hand edge of field to gate. Through gate, go straight down to another gate then down to bottom of dry valley. Turn left along valley bottom through wood, keeping left at fork, to lane.
Take path into wood opposite and soon take a path on right to climb steadily through wood to a field. Go straight across until you reach a stile. Over stile, bear left to far corner of field and over stile into lane.
Turn right and follow lane until there is a path through a gap in a hedge just before a locked gate. Take path uphill with hedge on right and cross orchards. Keep going in a straight line until you are on a stony track that starts to curve left. Follow round the curve with the garden of Swanton Court on your right. At end of garden go through gate into field and cross diagonally to point where line of pylons crosses hedge. Search for stile in hedge and on the other side bear right across paddock to another stile into lane.
Turn right along lane then, immediately opposite driveway to Swanton Court, go over not very visible stile in hedge. Cross field diagonally, go through gate just to right of sheds and cross railway to stile. Cross drive and two more stiles. Maintain direction diagonally across field to far corner and cross railway again, keeping to left of station. Descend bank to wooden gate then cross hawthorn scrub to another wooden gate. Cross next field diagonally right, climbing to stile at highest corner of field.
Turn right down lane and just before the valley bottom take track on left through trees. On reaching asphalt track cross it and go through gate. Follow track across fields, turning left at corner and after a while re-entering woods through gate on right. Follow track for further half mile to lane.
Turn left then take track past barrier on right. After about forty metres take footpath on right (waymark needed here) through hedge then diagonally across field for half a mile into wood. Follow track downhill through wood, soon offering fine views of North Downs on right. On emerging from wood head downhill diagonally across field to hedge. Continue through hedge, down steps, across track and diagonally across field to lane.
Turn right and continue into Hollingbourne. Turn right uphill at the crossroads and take a path up the bank on the left just before the “National Speed Limit” sign (white circle with black diagonal bar). Follow right hand edge of field to gate then bear left steeply uphill to North Downs Way post. Turn left and follow NDW until you re-enter the Woodland Trust’s Hucking Estate. Turn right, leaving NDW which goes left, along broad track passing an old chalk pit inside a fenced area. When track bears right, take path on left then almost immediately go through gap by gate on right. Follow track, which in 350m or so turns left and at first junction turn right. At sign take path through gate on right back to car park.
Bought by the Woodland Trust in 1997, the farmland is being returned to woodland and chalk grassland to encourage restoration of classic downland habitat.
Peacock butterfly at Hucking
Common blue butterfly at Hucking
A train set to envy. More details here.
Attractive old houses and a pub, The Dirty Habit, the name perhaps reflecting the state of dress of travellers on the adjacent Pilgrims Way.
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