As we enter a new season, the winter months are likely to bring fewer and fewer opportunities for good walking, and so when we woke up one mid-December morning to blue skies and sunshine, we knew we couldn’t let it pass. We got up a little late, so after quickly choosing a route (must learn to do this the night before) and skipping breakfast to save time (this was a mistake), we dashed out and hit the road. About half an hour later we arrived at the National Trust property, Ightham Mote, near Sevenoaks. Unfortunately by this point the blue skies had vanished, but the day still looked to be dry and mild, so at about 11.45am (and after an emergency jam tart), off we went!
We weren’t long on the route before we found ourselves beginning to ascend up along a clear footpath, where the lack of breakfast immediately began to tell. There were a few sheep to brighten the climb, however Beth was too out-of-puff to appreciate them. After five or so minutes we reached a road, where the path opposite – which was marked with an ‘extreme care’ sign – continued upward, only at a much sharper trajectory, quickly disappearing up into the woods and out of sight.
We soon found ourselves at the top of this very steep but thankfully relatively short flight of leaf-covered steps, and we paused to catch our breaths. Thankfully we were now at the top of the climb, and for a little while we could enjoy some nice, level walking (if somewhat seasonally muddy in places). Once we had successfully identified our path down the other side by a stone marker, we began to descend through the trees, which eventually brought us out amongst some open fields containing a handful of ponies (we also heard some strange singing reverberating nearby – no idea!).
This was then followed by possibly the most challenging obstacle of the day – crossing the A25. This is a fairly wide, quite fast and very busy section of road, and we had to be patient for our moment to cross. But cross we did – and immediately went the wrong way! Maybe we were just relieved to have crossed the road, but if you ever do this route yourself, there is a very obvious path going left which you don’t want to take, and a not-so-obvious one to the right, which you do! Thankfully we only got a minute or two down the wrong track before retracing our steps and heading in the right direction.
I say the right direction, but we for sure didn’t complete the next stretch between the road and a nearby car park correctly, because the instructions described an incline and a crossroad of footpaths, neither of which we encountered. No matter, we made it to where we were meant to be, and once exiting the north end of the car park, a remarkably striking, steep and very challenging-looking woodland path awaited (you may have noticed by now that this was a bit of a theme for the day!). Fortunately, at this point we were well into our stride, and this proved a surprisingly pleasant climb, followed by another enjoyable flat stretch along the top of the slope (which my history nerd informed me was an old Iron Age fort – very cool!), before arriving at a rare, six-way crossroads. Thankfully selecting the right path was easy this time, and we followed a mildly muddy track all the way around the edge of the old fort, before once again descending back toward the A25 for our return crossing. Happily this section of the road was for some reason much quieter and had a nice island in the middle to aim for, so crossing was much quicker, safer and easier.
After a short march down the roadside, we found the promised footpath which led us once more back into the comforting shelter of the woodland. The trees here seemed to glow a pleasant green, as long, old boughs dragged their fingers along the mossy carpet, and we enjoyed an easy portion of walking before reaching our final ascent of the day. ‘Twas short and sharp, and after either eighteen or nineteen steps (either myself or Beth can’t count) we were once again back at the top of the first hill. This was fortunate really, as at this point the air began to feel a little more like it might rain, so the fact that the end was almost in sight was much appreciated (I was also getting hungry by now). As we began to descend for the final time, we slammed back down the steep, leafy slope, remarking that we actually preferred going up it to down!
Finally, we returned to the path leading us back down past the sheep (which Beth enjoyed more this time) and back into Ightham Mote at just gone two o’clock. Following a late lunch of a festive sausage roll for me and a vegetable coconut curry for Beth, we visited the house of Ightham Mote itself to experience a ‘Tudor Christmas’, before heading home as the short winter day began to draw in.
Overall, this was a short, simple and easy route, and was a good choice for an overcast winter’s day. Whilst there were several sharp up-hills, none were particularly long, so easy enough to tackle, and we look forward to coming back and tackling some of the longer routes in the area when the better weather returns!
Full instructions and map available at https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/visit/kent/ightham-mote/ightham-mote-circular-walk-to-oldbury-hill
Matthew G. Huggins 