Following on from last week’s ramble, on
Friday I decided to
knock off another stage of the
Tunbridge Wells Circular Walk. It was a rushed,
and for me quite hasty decision, but with the weather set fair, and
Mrs PBT’s
tied up with a
tax return, on behalf of yet another jobbing builder, it seemed a
good idea. So, after a hasty breakfast, I donned my trusty walking boots,
grabbed my walking stick, and headed along to the bus stop.
In my haste, I’d forgotten to pack a hat, and I’d also
neglected to apply my knee brace. I realised both omissions, as I was
approaching the bus stop, but with the direct service to Pembury, only running
on an hourly basis, there was no time to return and retrieve these forgotten
items. Fortunately, my knee held out, and there was no need for the additional
support that a brace provides, but the hat was another matter, and one that I soon
regretted.
The
219 bus deposited me at
Pembury Hospital, which has
become something of a major bus hub. I noticed a similar situation in
Norwich, back
in
February, when I took a bus out to the
Woodland Burial Centre at Colney –
see link for explanation. The
Norfolk & Norwich Hospital has expanded
massively, since my last visit in
2015 (visiting my mother, shortly before she
passed away in
February of that year), and it seems as though all bus services
heading out of the city, in a westerly direction, make a point of calling
there.
The starting point of my walk was at the other end of
Pembury, which meant a one-mile trek before starting on the
TWCW, but after
traversing a field, and then crossing the busy
A21 trunk road, by means of a footbridge,
I was transported to a different world of mixed woodland and pasture (mainly
the latter). A series of ridges and gently sloping valleys, stretched away in
front of me, for as far as the eye could see, and by the time I’d descended the
first of these valleys, the traffic noise from the A21, had vanished.
My objective was to follow the footpath as far as the
village of
Frant, which lies to the south of
Tunbridge Wells, enjoy a pint, and
possibly a bite to eat at the
George Inn, before catching a couple of buses
home. I have to say that these
OAP concessionary travel passes are a real
godsend, when it comes to arranging both hikes in the country, and pub visits,
so it’s not all bad growing older. This particular stage was a very doable
5
miles, so I was confident of arriving at the
George in sufficient time to allow
for a couple of pints, plus a sandwich. I perhaps, should have known better, as
the problem I’d encountered the previous week, namely a poorly signposted route
through woodland, surfaced again, not once but twice, as I am about to recall.
I’d been making good progress, largely following a concrete
track running between a series of suitably rustic named farms, when the track
led me into the ominously sounding,
High Wood. At first, I welcomed the
protective shade that the trees afforded, and I even managed not to miss the
point where the path did a sharp diversion to the left, but as it disappeared
into increasingly dense woodland, I encountered the first of several instances
where those who had first drawn up the
TWCW, and the individual who’d written
the guidebook, had skimped on the detail, where it mattered most!. There was a clear fork in the path, and
without the guidance of a way-mark, or instruction in the guide, I took the path
on the left.
With the benefit of that wonderful thing called hindsight, I
should have taken the other, but after a long descent I reached a road which
fortunately, allowed me to re-join the official route. I was not as lucky
further on, as turning off the road, to the right of
Hawkenbury Farm, the track
plunged into a steep and rather narrow descent. Once again, I began wondering
whether I was on the right path or not, but fortunately, a
TWCW way-mark,
indicated that I was. The path itself was rather muddy, despite the recent
spell of dry weather, but being churned up by the hooves of countless horses,
from the nearby stables, clearly hadn’t helped.
This section of the walk was starting to look familiar from
a previous walk, although to my right what at the time were initial earthworks,
had now turned into a full-scale housing development. I could see through the
trees, that many of these new houses were already occupied, as I continued in
what I assumed was the right direction. I was aware from the guidebook that the
path was supposed to take a left turn, but despite keeping a sharp lookout, I
saw no signs indicating this.
Eventually I reached what looked like the turning, although
ominously there were no signs or way-marks indicating the
TWCW. I bit the bullet
and turned to the left. I emerged from the trees into a grassy area, hemmed in
on one side by a security fence. The clue I was looking for, was the railway
line, as according to both map and guide, the footpath follows the line for a
short distance. I had heard the noise of a train earlier, so following my
instincts I continued up a grassy bank where I’d caught a glimpse of the type
of metal fencing used to restrict access to the railway.
My instincts proved correct, and I reached the
Tunbridge
Wells – Hastings rail line at the top of the bank. Had I reached the right
point on the trail though, and did I need to turn left or right? The answer
came in the form of a train, and as it disappeared away to my left, I just
managed to catch a glimpse of the word,
“Hastings” on the rear of the final carriage.
Further confirmation came from a train travelling in the opposite direction,
with the words
“Charing X” on the front of the leading carriage.
Saved from being forced to endlessly walk around a
non-descript area of woodland, I set off with a spring in my step, emerging
back into civilisation at the side of a very nice property called
Windmill
Farm. This was a place I recognised from a previous walk, and shortly afterwards
the path emerged onto
Benhall Mill Road, which crosses the railway, and then
leads to the rather prestigious
Nevill Golf Club. I headed towards the
clubhouse, which again looked familiar, stopping for a brief chat with a couple
of golfers, who confirmed I was heading in the right direction.
I wasn’t quite at the end of the walk, but I was definitely
on the final straight, as after following the wall marking the boundary of
Tunbridge Wells Crematorium and Cemetery, I emerged onto the busy
Bayham Road. A
concrete track, on the other side of the road lead up to
Brickhouse Farm and
then into
Chase Wood. There was no danger of getting lost here, as I have
walked the steep path through this wood, in both directions. It is quite a
climb though, and I was pleased when I eventually emerged from the trees into
the first of two fields that I knew would take me into
Frant.
I arrived at the attractive looking
George Inn at a quarter
to three, and fortunately for me, the pub is open all afternoon on
Fridays, and
at the weekend. Not so fortunate was missing the last orders for food by
15
minutes, but I was much more in need of liquid, rather than solid refreshment.
As if sensing my thirst, an old boy sitting outside, made the rather obvious
observation that I looked in need of a pint, adding there was a nice garden at
the rear the pub. Thanking him for his concern, I stepped inside, turning to
the left, as the area to the right looked more like a restaurant.
It was nice and cool inside this heavily beamed old pub, and
whilst it took a short time for my eyes to adjust to the dark, I spotted on the
bar, a hand pump dispensing
Harvey’s Sussex Best. There was another beer on
sale as well, but I only had eyes for a pint or
Lewes’s finest. I enquired
about food, but learned what I already feared, that the kitchen was now closed.
A packet of crisps would have to suffice, and taking the old boy’s advice I
took pint plus crisps into the large and well laid out garden, where I found a
comfortable chair and convenient table, in the shade of the back of the
building.
You just know I am going to tell you the beer was good, and
boy it certainly was, worth at least a
4.5 on
CAMRA’s NBSS scale. Apart from
me, there was an extended family occupying a couple of the tables in the centre
of the garden, but I was just content to sit there enjoying my
Harvey’s whilst
basking in the self-congratulatory glory of having completed another section of
the
Tunbridge Wells Circular Walk. This was despite poor, or non-existent
signage at crucial junctions, and written directions that were both vague and
rather wishy-washy. It seemed the guide’s author preferred instead to wax lyrical
on geographical features, stately piles, churches, ruins, and other
“Points of
Interest” along the way.
More of that for another time, and returning to the
George,
I had the difficult decision to make of staying for another pint or leaving in
order to catch the bus back to
Tunbridge Wells. The
254 bus is only an hourly
service, so regrettably I drank up and made my way along to the main
A267 for
the
15:17 bus back to
Tunbridge Wells. It was two minutes early as well, so I
was lucky to have caught it, but it dropped me outside the railway station,
where I had a short wait for the bus back to
Tonbridge.
Returning to the
George – the pub seemed popular with
locals, which although a good sign, did mean that with many of them sitting
round the bar, it was difficult to take more than a few photos. The
George is effectively,
still a two-bar pub, even though both areas are linked towards the rear. I
realised that I had been in there at least once before, but it was a long time
ago. I was also convinced there had been another pub in the village, apart from
the
George and the
Abergavenny on the main road. However,
looking at the
1987 local Sussex CAMRA Guide, the one which, according to the
introduction, I had helped survey, this was not the case.
The George seems to function much more as the village local
for Frant, as opposed to the Abergavenny Arms, which is much more food oriented. I like
both establishments, although given the choice, I prefer the George. Next time
though, I might take the bus out there, and revisit both pubs.
