Monthly Archives: August 2013

Bough Beech, Kent

The nature trail here is worth a walk. The start is from the oast house / café / Wildhouse Trust visitor centre. There is a variety of bird and other wildlife. The reservoir can be seen better from the road just round the bend.

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  • OK after wet weather – yes
  • Parking fee – no
  • Toilets – yes
  • Café – yes
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    Pretty girl

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    Knole Park, Kent

    The landscape here is different from other areas of Kent in that the ground is sandy not stoney-Couscous preferred it. The park is full of grass fields with thick growth of ferns either side. Dogs aren’t allowed in the house but the park is vast so it’s no bother. This is Kent’s last medieval deer park. The deer are very pretty but can be a little too friendly. We saw one that was hassling a woman and toddler for their picnic food. We took Couscous up to them to see if it would move away from a dog but instead it was very curious and stomped its hoofs enough to make us back off. The oddest thing was a lack of rubbish bins outside the café area. I intend to return to visit the house and its collections.

    knole-map

  • OK after wet weather – yes
  • Parking fee – no (for National Trust members)
  • Toilets – yes
  • Café – yes
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    Isle of Sheppey, Kent

    On the Isle of Sheppey we stopped first at the sea front at Sheerness, parking near the Neptune Snooker Hall. There is a good path around the coast and at low tide there is a sandy bit. Dogs are allowed all year round. Further around is the sea front at Minster which is more popular and you can swim – which means no dogs on the beach in the summer months (but it’s a pebble beach anyway). There are no public loos but there are pieces of gym equipment all along the path for everyone to use and further up there are beach huts (we’ll check those out next time).

    There is a pub and cafe along this stretch and local shops not too far away. Here we saw identical twins in their 60s walking arm in arm and wearing exactly the same outfit from head to toe (hair colour and style, sunglasses, handbags, clothes and shoes).

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  • OK after wet weather – yes
  • Parking fee – no
  • Toilets – no (not public as such)
  • Café/Pub – yes
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    I am Here

    Homeless Dogs Given Hope-Filled Balloons

    In a unique urban intervention, two college students took and attached a series of balloons marked with written phrases to stray canines Santiago, Chile…

    Folkestone, The Warren, Kent

    A sandy beach that allows dogs all year round. We parked for free on Wear Bay Rd then followed a path behind the restaurant (friendly staff, take away coffee and bathrooms), past the martello tower and through the bushes, along a well trodden path, to get to a concrete path along the beach.

    It was a little weird as there were people camped right by the path/on the beach, screaming and swearing at their kids who were too close to the edge of the path (at this point there is a bit of a fall to the beach – the girl was also in pink pyjamas). Further down it is easy to get to the beach and although others were camping the beach widens out so you don’t have to go near the tents. Luckily there was a pipe with clean water flowing as I forgot Couscous’s water bottle but otherwise there are bins and nothing else. There appeared to be a camping ground behind the bushes but it wasn’t signposted so who knows. Nice view of chalk cliffs and generally a good half-day trip.

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  • OK after wet weather – yes
  • Parking fee – no
  • Toilets – yes
  • Café – yes
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