The Wealdway: Tonbridge to Buxted

Sat 16th Apr 2022

Walk Details:

Event Type
Group Walk
Region / Area
Southern England / Kent
Local Group
London
Distance
24ml.
Start Time
09.05
Route
Tonbridge (Train departs London Charing X 8.15, London Bridge 8.22 Arrives Tonbridge 9am) Return trains from Buxted hourly at .37

We leave Tonbridge passing the Castle (reputedly England’s finest example of a Motte and Bailey), along the River Medway and before too long we climb up onto the High Weald for some far-reaching views. We pass through typically pretty Kentish villages such as Bidborough and Speldhurst and will stop for a late-ish lunch at The Dorset Arms in Withyam (13 miles). A couple of miles later will find us climbing through Five Hundred Acre Wood (the inspiration for A.A. Milne’s 100 Aker Wood) to emerge onto Ashdown Forest. Here were have more stunning views. At Camp Hill we leave the heathland and encounter a mix of farmland and some incredibly pretty woods. We leave the Wealdway at St Margaret the Queen Church and continue onto Buxted station. As there is only one train an hour it seems sensible to have a tea stop at the Buxted Inn (near the station) rather than any earlier in the walk.

For those staying over in Buxted, dinner at the White Hart has been highly recommended and it may be worth booking a table in advance.

OS Explorer 147, 135

General Notes
Joint walk with Surrey Walking Club Over Easter 2022 the London Group has teamed up with the Surrey Walking Club which has planned a four-day walk of The Wealdway and you are extremely welcome to join us for as many or few days as you like. This is an 83 mile LDP that links the Thames Estuary to the English Channel so it is the south-east’s very own coast-to coast path. It crosses through three AONBs, makes a full traverse of Ashdown Forest & links the North Downs Way to the South Downs Way, finishing in Eastbourne
Finish

Entry Details:

Cost

Walk Report

The Wealdway: Tonbridge to Buxted, Saturday 16th April 2022
14 walkers, 24.7 miles - leader Kate Copeland
We exited Tonbridge via the Wealdway/Eden Valley Walk overlap and were immediately submerged in Park Run 5k-ers coming in the opposite direction. They were clearly working far harder than us so we gave way where possible. The walk fairly quickly took us uphill towards Bidborough for some far-reaching, if slightly hazy, views northwards. The weather was perfect - sunny and warm all day and the haze did disappear later on. We paused briefly in Bidborough Churchyard to appreciate the Ukrainian flag they were flying and have a swift snack. We then pressed on via woodland, fields and semi-suburban areas to have our elevenses at Speldhurst. A few of us were buoyed up by the glorious smell from the yellow azalea growing in the graveyard there. We soon entered the very pretty valley of Avery's Wood with early bluebells giving us a hint of what is to come. The route then continued through more farmland with some brilliantly yellow rapeseed flowers in Fordcombe. After Stone Cross we got the really rewarding views across towards Groombridge. We arrived in Withyam in stages with some heading straight to the pub for much-needed refreshment and some preferring to picnic in the churchyard.
The hour after lunch saw a bit of change as some wanted to go faster and some slower. A detour to the King's Standing ice cream van was requested, after which the main group was down from 14 to 10. Ashdown Forest is often a suntrap and didn't disappoint on this occasion, nor did the views. From Camp Hill it is two hours to Buxted station and we could pace ourselves nicely to enjoy some extremely pretty woodland sections.
We said farewell to the Wealdway at the church of St Margaret The Queen. This is along the driveway of the Buxted Park Hotel. Oddly none of the group had opted to stay at the £350 a night property. The main group arrived at Buxted Station at 18.20 which gave just enough time to buy tickets, stretch and be ready for the 18.37 which was on time. Given our previous experiences with this line, we were all incredibly grateful for the timeliness (nay existence) of trains all weekend.
It was a great day and it's always interesting to be a small part of a longer walking trip as you hear tales from the day before and anticipation about the days to come.
Photographs by Gavin Fuller

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Maps:

You can use the interactive controls to zoom in and out and to move around the map, or click on a marker for more info. (interactive map help)

Contains Ordnance Survey data © Crown copyright and database right 2016.
© OpenStreetMap contributors under Open Database Licence.
Rights of way data from selected Local Authorities.
Large scale digital mapping is provided by John Thorn.