We were actually on our way somewhere else for a walk on this day, but as we drove through Dover it was obvious that some of the hills had had a lovely dusting of snow on them. Not much, but it was still a chance to get snow on our walking boots. Our original plan was put on hold and I quickly looked on the map and worked out a walk we could do and how to direct Nigel, who was driving, to the parking space on Cheriton Hill above Folkestone.
 

The viewpoint is dominated by the Channel Tunnel terminal below you, and both Nigel and I were both busy taking pictures. I guess the difference between Nigel and I was that I was busy taking views while he was busy taking pictures of the trains. I’ve included some of Nigel’s pictures in the gallery too as maybe there will be some people who have never seen just what the Eurotunnel shuttles are like.

Our walk followed the North Downs Way and on the whole it was a well signposted footpath. Being winter, however, like many footpaths it was very muddy at times. I would never usually take our walking poles with us when walking in Kent as we don’t need them but I was really glad I’d attached them to our rucksacks just in case. Walking on chalk downland can be very slippery when it’s wet and there were several occasions the poles really helped us not to end up making an inelegant landing on the ground.
 

I have to admit my camera really struggled at times with the very bright low winter sun reflecting both off both the snow and the sea. I tried using a polarising filter too but it didn’t help that much. The trouble was that most of the views I wanted to get pictures of were looking straight into the sun which definitely is not good for your camera, in fact instructions for lenses if you ever read them warn of the dangers of doing this. So lots of negative and positive exposure compensation was tried in an attempt to get properly exposed pictures, with mixed results.

We certainly found lots of interest on the walk including a World War 2 pillbox, which I went inside. I must admit I had never been inside one before and wasn’t sure what I would find. The gun placements were all still intact and it was really interesting. Thankfully none of these structures ever had to be used and I do wonder how effective they would have been.

We also passed through Peene quarry, which we discovered was still in operation until the 1950s. Chalk was heated in lime kilns for use as a fertiliser on nearby farms and for mortar, paint and plaster.
 

One view that really struck us was the one over the small village of Peene which we would be passing through later in our walk. It’s amazing just how close the Channel Tunnel terminal comes to the village and it must have made a huge impact on those who live there since it was opened in 1994.

We found one place to sit down for our lunch on the whole walk: an old gatepost lying in the corner of a field.  While we were sitting there it was very obvious that the remaining snow was melting very fast in the lovely warm sunshine. After lunch our walk continued by descending from the escarpment to the valley below, and then following a small section of the Elham Valley Way, which on the section we followed was part of a disused railway line. Along this section there were plenty of spring flowers emerging including lots of primroses which I always like to see. I also found lots of different fungi which was a lovely surprise.
 

When you follow the footpath in the valley you really don’t get any sense there is so much going on as the Channel Tunnel is well screened with trees and hedging but there is always that faint electrical sound reminding you it is there.

We had parked our car in a spot that is directly above the white horse of Folkestone which I have since discovered (isn’t Google wonderful) was entirely funded privately and was the idea of a local artist, Charles Newington. It is actually made from white paving slabs anchored with steel pins and the manpower to do this job was provided by Gurkhas stationed at Shorncliffe Barracks in Folkestone. The horse is 306ft long and 160ft high.

We were almost back at the car and we realised the sun would soon be setting so we sat a while enjoying a warm drink as the sun sank below the horizon; it was an impressive orange colour for a short while. A walk of approximately 6 miles, a new one for us, and it’s one that I think will be well worth repeating during the summer months to see the flowers on the chalk downland.

 

 

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