Lamberhurst to Goudhurst Circular – 9 miles

  WE GOT MARRIED!

  After all the planning and practicing and gathering of wool and moss, the day has finally been and gone. Together, we completed our shortest but most important of walks; the one up the aisle. We were married just outside of Ticehurst, overlooking the High Weald on a bright and sunny afternoon; Beth looked beautiful, and I cried like a baby.

  That was just two days ago, but even our wedding cannot disrupt our dedication to the footpaths. Between a day’s recovery and jetting off on our honeymoon, we had a day to spare, and what better or more appropriate way to spend it than going for our first walk as husband and wife out of Scotney Castle, the site of our first date, five years ago.

  The day was forecast to be sunny, but interspersed with heavy downpours. It was therefore perhaps not a day we would have jumped at under other circumstances. However, we both felt we needed it for both our bodies and brains, and so we went for it anyway!

  We set off from the National Trust car park at about eleven o’clock, and as we entered the familiar countryside, almost immediately diverted from the path. We did this for a good reason, and that was because when we had first visited Scotney, we had sat beneath a particular tree, with a swing suspended from one of its branches. Sadly, the swing is no longer there, but the tree still is, so we visited it to tell it the good news. We then turned back down the hill and re-joined the route.

  The first section of this walk is a familiar stretch, up and around the back of the site, which we have done many times. When we emerged into the small village of Kilndown however, we turned toward paths that we had yet to tread. After a stint of road walking, we struck out across a long sheep field, before picking up a long driveway. Just before we turned off onto another path, the heavens opened for the first time that day, and so Beth rushed to protect her camera and put her coat on, whilst I just had to accept my fate. Fortunately the rain did not last long, and by the time we had crossed the field and were out on the road opposite, it had eased up.

  After a little road walking, we turned right and walked around the edge of some kind of equine yard and one particular horse came over to say hello, as Beth told me about how she acquired her dress and other bits of her wedding outfit – she really did look gorgeous. Around this time, our feet began to feel a little damp, and a few minutes later, it began to rain again, only harder. We took shelter beneath a tree and stood waiting for it to pass (during which time we came up with an excellent idea for a story I am writing). When it eventually did stop, we carried on, and climbed slowly but steadily upward to Goudhurst, perched on top of the hill. Unfortunately, distracted by sheep and ‘Tiddymotts Lane’, we missed our path here, but it only added a couple of minutes and we just came into Goudhurst from a slightly different direction. We re-met the path at the church, where we also stopped to have lunch, as both of us were getting hungry and there was at least a bench, even if it was a little damp.

  We rose back to our feet, stopped in for some chocolate at a corner shop, and began to descend back downward. The sky had momentarily shown signs of brightening up, however the rain once again began to pour as we left the village. We also spotted definite signs of recent cow activity in the first field, which was narrow, sloped and full of bushes for them to hide in and behind. We therefore moved cautiously, fearful of bumping into any unaware cattle. We made it out without incident, the herd doubtless choosing to shelter somewhere, unlike us, who were enduring our muddiest walk in months.

  Yet, whilst the rain continued for a while longer as we made our way down stretches of what felt like fairly unused footpaths, the skies did begin to clear and the sun shone through. Eventually, the rain stopped completely, and we were finally left with a sunny summer’s afternoon. Damp, sweating and with scratched legs, we made it to a road that we had driven along a hundred times, which runs between Goudhurst and Lamberhurst. It is fast and busy, and walking down the side of it was the least enjoyable section of the walk, but soon enough we turned onto a long path through crop fields (one of which had a random aeroplane chilling at the top). We then found ourselves arriving back in the outskirts of Lamberhurst, and footpaths which  we know so well. We made our way up and back into the grounds of Scotney Castle, and were soon back at the car, about four hours after leaving.

  Whilst this was certainly one of our soggier walks, it was also a welcome return to normality for us both, and helped us reset ourselves for tomorrow’s adventure. It was also interspersed with Beth giggling, as she recalled the fact that we are now married!

  We rounded off the day with a quick pint at the Chequers, just like we had done on our first date, all those years ago, and toasted to our years ahead.

Full route available here.