Wantsum Wander!!

Today went to check out a route for a Historic Hillwalkers guided walk next weekend, old habit really from vounteering with a Countryside Project...check the route 'works' and it did!! Great scenary, fine weather & a pint of ale in teh best pub in kent for a late lunch!! The route starts at the  Grove Ferry Inn & follow the river Stour for a short way before crossing the railway and up to Upstreet, down Nethergong hill to follow the Nerthergong Penn drainage ditch

Footpath adjoing Nethergong Penn going towards Hersden

 

Old crossing point over the Penn, met a local builder walking his dog & he reckoned the old 'bridge' dated from about 1840 and was superbly built with local bricks

Blackthorn was out in Blossom

Superb open landscape looking back towards Hersden

farm Buildings in the landscape

Approaching Hoath church across the fields mostly down to wheat or peas

gate to Hoath Church

Hoath Church

Interior of Hoath Church towards the Altar, greaty it was open so many churches shut these days

Fantastic wooden carved screen around the altar

interesting brass plaque relating to a local man lost while serving with HMS Brilliant in the Meditteranean

'nice' headstone in the churchyard!!

The old school Hoath now the local village hall

On the way to Boyden Gate in a filed on the right after leaving Hoath is a WW2 Pillbox a reminder that this was a crucial line of Defence in 1940 if operation 'Sealion' (German Invasion of GB) had taken place

From the ridge after leaving Hoath you experience great views across the countryside including this shot over the oilseed rape towards the redundant Richborough Power station (ex oil emulsion fired )with its 'foreteller' of doom an experimental wind turbine (also now non operational)

Sheep grazing with old pollarded willow following a ditch behind them

The best pub in kent & possibly the UK ...the fantastic Gate Inn one of the last refuges of the country local ...Shepherd Neame out of casks in a rack behind the Bar, superb wholesome grub (sausage hot pot is awesome & highly recommended), many locals farm on the land locally, this place is a gem...nice garden out of shot. Famous for it's 'Hoodening plays' at Christmas, lots of local photo's & the famous Chislet Horse!

Leaving The Gate Inn at Boyden gate & back onto the local footpaths whiich nearly all cross drainage ditches or run alongside them....the River Wantsum was the channel that originally seperated Thanet from the rest of Kent.

Rights of Way photo if ever there was one!!

Big open sky's

Er ...local livestock!!!!!!!

Sarre Penn

Chislet Church

...and back to Grove Ferry.... a gentle round trip of 4 hours depending on stopping and pints in the gate!! can be extended by following other footpaths towards St Nicholas at Wade & Sarre to make a longer walk.