Leaving Dover on a bitterly cold December morning, we warm up with a steep climb to the Western Heights and explore The Drop Redoubt (1804), part of the extensive defences to protect the port against a French invasion. Although the fort is closed, we walk around the entire perimeter in the huge defensive ditches. They are so impressive that we do the circuit twice, although this may also be due to an early navigational error!
We descend briefly to cross the A20 packed with long queues of stationary lorries, waiting for the ferries to arrive, before heading up to the clifftop again, passing some precarious allotments. No day is complete without a major diversion so we take a long walk down through a road tunnel and into Samphire Hoe Country Park. It is forty-five hectares of land reclaimed from the English Channel using chalk mined from the Channel Tunnel excavation. Emerging from the road tunnel, the first thing we see is a huge cooling plant. Thankfully the park has wonderful more natural views. There is a vast sea wall. I would love to come back in a storm to experience the waves crashing over the wall. Although Jude helpfully points out that the receding waves would probably drag me over the wall and into the sea. Not so keen on that.
After a late breakfast in the park, we are suitably fortified for the long trek back up to the clifftop to explore a series of observation posts for WWII gun batteries.
The Battle of Britain Memorial Park is on our route and we wander around the gardens, enjoying the Spitfire and Hurricane replicas.
The path gradually descends past a series of Martello Towers to the picturesque Folkestone Harbour Arm, with fishing boats, floating sculptures, and street food outlets with siren scents of fresh coffee and warm pastries. They are only partially resisted. Unfortunately, we fail to discover another Anthony Gormley statue as it is hidden beneath the promenade. There is a trade-off between advance research and the pleasure of an unexpected discovery.
The walk along the Folkestone seafront is entertaining as we pass a jelly mould pavilion on the shingle beach, a steampunk beach hut, and endless rows of newly painted beach huts in vibrant colours. The following four-mile stretch to Hythe in fading light suffers in comparison. There is only the endless cycling of lonely trucks transporting shingle from one end of the beach to the other to rebuild the coastal defences. The trucks are harbingers of things to come. The Dungeness power station looms on the horizon, enticing us next week, or perhaps only I feel the call?
Walk distance: 15 miles.
Total distance: 144 miles.
I didn’t go down to Samphire Hoe Country Park but stuck to the cliff top, I must go back and explore that. I don’t remember the “crashed plane” art work either.
The downed stuka sculpture is permanently on tour so not a fixture. The park is a lot bigger than we had time to explore properly so definitely worth a visit.
This section brings back some memories for me. I remember that Samphire Hoe Country Park being built…. I was working for Trans Manche Link building the tunnel at the time (1989 I think). It wasn’t as nice back then!!!! I worked in the offices at the top of Shakespeare Cliff, I think they’re all gone now and returned to nature, along with the workers’ village just over the hill towards the A20. I haven’t been back since so don’t know what it’s like anymore. It’ll be a few years before my coastal walk gets there too!
Hah, a small world! It is no doubt transformed since you were there. The top of the cliff looks completely natural and undisturbed now.