Walks in South East England

Walking in the counties of Kent, East Sussex, West Sussex, Hampshire, Surrey, Isle of Wight, Berkshire and Buckinghamshire

Living most of my life in Yorkshire, the South East of England had always been something of an enigma to me. Despite my late father being a Sussex man I had rarely travelled to the region, bar a six-month spell working in the Tunbridge Wells area in the late 1970s — all work then, no walking for me in those days.

In 2012 I first ventured south to walk the Ridgeway National Trail and in 2018 I decided to walk for a week around the coastline of the Isle of Wight. Then in 2019 I spread my wings further by spending a couple of weeks walking the South Downs National Trail. Later in the same year I dedicated a week of my time for a short exploration of Kent. I have also resolved to do more walks in the region which will appear on these pages in good time. Oh, and I have an ally: Steven Spall, also a fellow Northerner who spent two enjoyable years living within and exploring the South East corner of England, in particular the county of Kent. He has kindly added some of his favourite South East walks to these pages, so keep looking in to see what new walks Steven and I have to offer.

Interactive Map of the Walks

Available Walking Routes in South East England

Walk	Miles	Grade	Description
Isle of Grain Beachcombing Walk	2.4	Easy	A walk from Kent's most remote village which includes the River Medway Estuary and top quality beachcombing.
Steps Hill, Incombe Hole, Ivinghoe Beacon and Gallows Hill	2.8	Moderate	A short Chilterns walk across shapely hills in a pretty area of rural Buckinghamshire.
Arundel, Arundel Park, Swanbourne Lake and the River Arun	3.4	Easy	A short walk to see the best of Arundel including magnificent buildings, beautiful parkland and a majestic river.
Gillingham Beach and Horrid Hill	3.6	Easy	Some of the nicest of the Medway Estuary to explore and a good jumping off walk for further exploration with children or ornithology.
Herne Bay, Reculver Towers and Roman Fort	4.5	Easy	This seaside route takes in pebble beaches, promenades, stunning cliffs, short climbs, Napoleonic defences and a Roman fort.
Whitstable to Herne Bay Seashore Walk	4.7	Easy	A seaside lovers walk following the Saxon Shore Way from Whitstable to Herne Bay.
Chartham, Great Stour Way and Canterbury	5.0	Easy	One of the loveliest short walks in Kent, a prelude of gorgeous chalk riverside strolling to a finale of exploring the city of Canterbury.
Wye Downs, Wye Crown, Devils Kneading Trough and Brook	5.1	Moderate	A lovely North Downs walk taking in Wye Crown and the fabulous Devils Kneading Trough viewpoint.
Emmetts, French Street, Chartwell and Toy's Hill	5.3	Moderate	Walk among the landscape which inspired Octavia Hill, creator of the National Trust and to Chartwell, private home of Winston Churchill.
Cliffe Pools Nature Reserve	5.4	Easy	This walk is one amidst a remote and beautiful landscape with open horizons and is ideal for watching spectacular numbers of birds.
Rochester and Hoo St Werburgh Saxon Shore Walk	10.8	Hard	A very interesting River Medway walk following the Saxon Shore Way from Rochester to Hoo Flats.
Rochester, Downs, Wouldham Common, Burham Marshes and River Medway	13.9	Hard	A Medway walk from Rochester to common lands and marshlands, some Sites of Special Scientific Interest.
Wye, North Downs Way, Chilham, Bagham, Stour Valley Walk and Crundale	14.1	Hard	A wonderful Kent villages walk utilising the North Downs Way and Stour Valley Walk.
Rochester, Cobham Park, Luddesdown, Halling and Cuxton	16.4	Strenuous	A beautiful walk with some really rural scenery despite the proximity to some of Kent's major conurbations.
Long Distance Paths: The Ridgeway Stages	—	—	Long distance walking stages along the Ridgeway Path.
The Ridgeway Stage One: Ivinghoe Beacon to Hastoe Cross	6.3	Moderate	Viewing points, military site, woodlands, Albury, Tring, Hastoe Cross.
The Ridgeway Stage Two: Hastoe Cross to Chinnor	16.6	Strenuous	Pavis Wood, Wendover, Bacombe Hill, Coombe Hill, Goodmerhill Wood, Chequers, Pulpit Hill, Cadsden.
The Ridgeway Stage Three: Chinnor to Wallingford	15.1	Strenuous	Swan's Way, Kingston Blount, Shirburn Hill, Watlington, Britwell Salome, Swyncombe Downs, Nuffield, Grim's Ditch.
The Ridgeway Stage Four: Wallingford to East Ilsley	13.0	Hard	Mongewell, North Stoke, River Thames, Moulsford, South Stoke, Goring on Thames, Streatley, Berkshire Downs.
The Ridgeway Stage Five: East Ilsley to Ashbury	17.1	Strenuous	Scutchamer Knob, Middlehill Down, Segsbury Camp, Devil's Punchbowl, Dragon Hill, White Horse of Uffington, Wayland's Smithy.
The Ridgeway Stage Six: Ashbury to Ogbourne St George	11.0	Hard	Charlbury Hill, Liddington Castle, Whitefield Hill, Chase Wood, Round Hill Downs, Southend.
The Ridgeway Stage Seven: Ogbourne St George to Avebury	12.3	Hard	Smeathe's Ridge, Barbury Castle, Overton Barrows, East Kennett, West Kennett Long Barrow, Silbury Hill, Avebury Stone Circle.
Long Distance Paths: Isle of Wight Coastal Path Stages	—	—	Coastal path stages around the Isle of Wight.
Isle of Wight Coastal Path Stage One: Cowes to Hamstead	13.5	Hard	West Cowes, Solent Coastline, Rivers, Creeks, Wetlands, Shacks, White Egrets, Kingfishers.
Isle of Wight Coastal Path Stage Two: Hamstead to Freshwater Bay	13.4	Hard	Solent Coastline, Yarmouth, The Needles, Tennyson Down, Freshwater Bay.
Isle of Wight Coastal Path Stage Three: Freshwater Bay to Chale	11.6	Hard	Freshwater Bay, South Coast, English Channel, Chalk Cliffs, Mudstone Cliffs, Erosion, Chines.
Isle of Wight Coastal Path Stage Four: Chale to Sandown	12.2	Hard	Peregrine Falcons, St Catherine's Point, Gore Cliff, Ventnor, Devil's Chimney, The Landslip, Shanklin.
Isle of Wight Coastal Path Stage Five: Sandown to Ryde	12.7	Hard	Sandown, Culver Down, Monuments, Bembridge Windmill, Bembridge Harbour, Ryde.
Isle of Wight Coastal Path Stage Six: Ryde to Cowes	7.7	Moderate	Ryde, Red Squirrels, Binstead, Quarr Abbey, Whippingham Church, Osborne House, East Cowes.
Long Distance Paths: South Downs Way Stages	—	—	National Trail stages across the South Downs.
South Downs Way Stage One: Eastbourne to Alciston	17.1	Hard	Eastbourne, Beachy Head, Seven Sisters, River Cuckmere, Litlington White Horse, Alfriston.
South Downs Way Stage Two: Alciston to Ditchling	20.2	Strenuous	Firle Beacon, River Ouse, Rodmell, Monk's House, Ditchling Beacon.
South Downs Way Stage Three: Ditchling to Bramber	13.4	Hard	Ditchling Beacon, Clayton Windmills, Devil's Dyke, Edburton Hill, River Adur, Bramber Castle.
South Downs Way Stage Four: Bramber to Arundel	13.6	Hard	Bramber Castle, Chanctonbury Ring Hill Fort, World War II Tank, Burpham, Arundel.
South Downs Way Stage Five: Arundel to Graffham	14.1	Hard	Arundel, Houghton, Westburton Hill, Graffham Down.
South Downs Way Stage Six: Graffham to Buriton	15.4	Hard	Graffham Down, Devil's Jumps, Beacon Hill, South Harting, Buriton.
South Downs Way Stage Seven: Buriton to Winchester	25.3	Strenuous	Queen Elizabeth Country Park, Butser Hill, Old Winchester Hill, Exton, Cheesefoot Head, Winchester.

Feedback and Suggestions

I am always pleased to receive feedback on the structure and content of the website. I also welcome suggestions on how I can improve the website which may include new areas to cover, new walks or route alterations to existing walks. To get in touch with feedback and/or suggestions please contact me on one of my social media links. Thank you.

(Note: Walking without proper preparation can be dangerous. Information and downloads on this website are provided free of charge; it is each walker's responsibility to check the material and use accordingly. Postscript: My walk reports are not route guides and should not be treated as such. They are written with personal reflections of my walks.)

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