12 stepped out of the train expecting another sunny day. They were in for a shock. It was cloudy with a chilly breeze The chilly breeze got more chillier the nearer we got to Deal. Oh for a pair of gloves, oh for a thicker coat.

The walk didn’t disappoint, though. The whole route was festooned with alexanders ( a plant whose name I struggle to remember every year). St Margaret’s was reached and some dined or drank in the Coastguard there. (Soup mainly) Some were put off by the pub’s regimented manner and back-tracked to the Pines. Another 2 who missed the appointed train caught us up there. This made us 14

The group had fragmented by the afternoon but many regrouped in the Zetland Arms for a pleasant - and warming - stay. Then on, alongside more Alexanders, the predominant flower on the beach. There were a lot of diggers out on the beach moving the pebbles around.

I think most must have got the 17:07. 2 who missed it had time for a further pint in the Sir Norman Wisdom - a Wetherspoons. Connections on the 18:07 were a bit slow arriving at St Pancras at 20:00. Just to rub it in the skies viewed from the train were blue and cloudless. Ooooh! (Frowny face)

All trains out of St P had about 15 mins delay this morning due to an earlier faulty train, so the 2 of us only got going at 11.30. It was cold with grey skies and rare blue windows

The air was a bit hazy so we failed to see beyond the shipping lane (i.e. the French coast). We arrived at The Coastguard at 1 and they had a table for us, for a long good meal in a friendly pub. Outside, we then encountered 3 people in the water, swimming, only one of which wore a neoprene suit! On up the cliffs and to Deal, passing the pier at 10 past 4. As we were keen on catching the 6 o'clock replacement bus, we took no chances on the route into Sandwich, and followed the lane from the Sandwich Bay Estate, rather than going along the slightly longer SSW.

A fine day out.

The link is to the wrong walk! This one is Battle Circular. I gather it should be Book 2 Walk 30. Can anyone put the right link up? Thanks very much. Kate

Yes - it should work now

My apologies and thank you Sandy.

7 on a day that started misty and stayed cloudy but dry (OK, the occasional drop fell from the sky but nothing you could call rain). And I think I saw the sun once or twice. And mud? What’s mud? The mist, however, could have been called fog. Not much sight of the sea, never mind France. Sadly this didn’t fool my phone, which switched time and welcomed me there.

There was flowers, as predicted. An exotic selection along the beaches and native ones up top. ( I could impress you by mentioning the rosy garlic, mignonette and sainfoin but I won’t).

An early snifter at the Zetlamd for 5. Then on, along the clifftop to St Margaret’s Bay and the Coastguard, a pub that may have lost some of its magic for Mr Tiger. 2 had a sumptuous repast , one had snacks, and one an oversweet cider.

The group disintegrated after St Margaret’s but reassembled miraculously on the station platform.

I was going to say that I prefer this walk the other way round, because Dover is such a miserable place to finish. But I was seething with jealousy when I heard that some had found a real ale pub called the Hoptimist. And then what happened? On the train back, the sun came out. Big time. Ooh!

Don't rely on the Coastguard - most of the seating is outside (not ideal in cold weather) and the pub can get busy

Two SWC walkers alighted at Dover Priory, stunned that no one else would get up in the dark for an early high speed train to a far flung port on a day of sub zero temperatures and rail strikes. So off we set to find the coastal path, pondering the UK's town planning along the way. A pale sun shone through cloud and mist onto the sea (pretty cool).

It didn't take long to walk up to the cliff tops (to find a new NT path) where the mist remained all day (despite full sun forecast for late morning). But it was atmospheric, providing glimpses of the White Cliffs and waves below, ghostly outlines of hills, a few other walkers and the lighthouse.

We reached St Margaret's Bay at midday and opted for the Coastguard pub, instead of risking hyperthermia from picnicking. Luckily, it was empty, served good food and had a real fire. It started to get busy as we left around 1300 (so Rich is correct in anticipating that). We enjoyed the next section of coastal path and beach before reaching Deal, passing two castles and some unusual Holm Oaks (?) which seem to be colonising the shingle. Time allowed for tea and cake (rather than ext to Sandwich) at the end of the pier in its café, before a short walk to catch the 16.28 train home.

*Two also swam.

No, not the walkers this time, but a couple of locals at Deal beach. In fact, other swimmers were seen at St Margaret's Bay. So we weren't as crazy as some.

quiet

2 Mist

Yes, they are holm oaks.

17 on this walk, on a much sunnier than expected day, given the weather forecast. There was no real sign of chilly northerly winds, and the cloud kept politely inland until later in the afternoon. We will draw a veil over the brief sprinkling of rain as we approached Dover. A letter has been written to its parents.

Most came on the slow train, the high speed train admittedly not offering a big advantage on the outbound journey. A canny few spotted that it gave big advantages on the return leg. But in the end they turned out to be not so canny, as I will shortly relate.

The shingle flowers between Walmer and Kingsdown did not disappoint - great swathes of red (valerian) and other blooms. Three, I understand, stopped for lunch at the Zetland Arms. The rest of us breezed on through and up onto the cliffs.

Quite a few common blues here - and a wall (these are butterflies). Also two corn buntings (a red-listed farmland bird). Then on to St Margaret’s Bay, where the blue sea beckoned in its Mediterranean cove.

Four of us swam - for a few minutes. Three pronounced the temperature fine: one (me) thought it decidedly chilly, but not unexpectedly so. Exciting to think of the four months of sea swimming to come.

Ten or eleven of us ate lunch on the terrace of the Coastguards pub - very tasty and efficient as always.

Coming out of St Margaret’s we came across the surreal sight of maybe 40 chunky blokes with even chunkier lenses standing on a hillside facing an area of shrubs. It seems a Sardinian warbler (a bird) had been sighted. But if it had, it was now cowering in the bushes, doubtless scared out of its wits. Interestingly our group also included a Sardinian, though how his warbling is we are not sure.

Several us had tea overlooking the sea at South Foreland lighthouse. Two went up the tower. Approaching Dover there were lots of ferries gliding in and out, both DFDS ones and the ones we don’t use anymore. The coast of France was visible to Calais and beyond. The port was scarily empty of trucks, though. Look upon your works, ye Brexit, and despair.

I hear that four people managed to get a train at around 5pm from Dover. If so, they were lucky because everything went into meltdown thereafter due to what Network Rail always accurately term “a signal failure”. Some of us managed a beer in a microbrewery while we came to terms with the situation. There was talk of among non-high speeders of taking the 18.49 to St Pancras and damming the consequences.

But the 18.49 proved to be an illusion and instead we piled into what we were promised would be the 19.30 slow train to Charing Cross. We took over four tables in the first carriage and made enough noise to ensure no one else occupied the others (at least not initially).

Wine materialised. Cheese too. People went to get fish and chips. The train left on time and we had a grand party all the way back to London Bridge, what you might call a proper Downing Street session. There have been worse days.

Now I might do the Walk on Saturday. But I can't Guarantee i will. And as I read on the Website. That your Mobile phone could be connected to France as its not far from France. You shouldn't be ripped off now since they scrapped their Roaming Charges all across the EU 4 years ago.

This walk never disappoints, and today was no exception: a glorious day by the sea in warm sunshine , with none of the usual seaside coolness or breeze. But in these unusual times a train to the seaside on a sunny day is always a risk, especially with Southeastern helpfully warning that services to the coast might be busy after 10.30am, thus pointing travellers to the 10.12 from St Pancras, our specified train….

I was nervous about taking this train (ultimate destination Margate) and so hatched a cunning plan to get the 9.12 and beat the crowds. (One walker actually did this). But getting to St Pancras at 8.25 I decided on a whim to get the 8.37 to Dover. This would give me a whole two hours in Dover before the connecting train, but would be pretty empty, right?

Wrong. It was rammed. Almost every seat occupied, lots standing in every carriage. I did something I have not done in a year and a quarter: I invited a stranger to move his bag and sat down next to him. At Stratford a French couple got on and talked inches from my right ear all the way to Ashford. Oh well, either the vaccine works or it doesn’t, I suppose.

Once underway I discovered the reason for the overcrowding. There had been a power failure and this was the first train Southeastern High Speed had run that day. But though the train emptied quite a bit a Ashford and more at Folkestone, a fair crowd still got off at Dover. At Dover. From the 8.37 from London. This is how trains to the coast are going to be this summer.

I had a pleasant sojourn on Dover beach. Members of the cross-Channel swimming club swam wetsuit-less in the bay for an hour. I did two swims of 65 strokes and 150 strokes in the freezing water. Then I caught the 11.34 to Deal.

There were 25 on the station at the start of the walk. I later discovered that another had walked from Dover to Deal, so 26 in all. Walking to Walmer and Kingsdown we found the shingle flowers ablaze - absolutely at their best. Gratifyingly for this usually lonely botanist, quite a number of the group took an interest in identifying them.

It was two hours since I had had a swim, however, and the waters in front of the Zetland Arms looked enticing. Two others thought the same and so we three stopped for a dip. Some others talked of a drink, but the Zetland was busy and I don’t know if they stopped. Basically we three swimmers walked together for the rest of the day. So from now on this report is about what we did: others may like to post their own accounts

The sea was cold, but much less cold than I expected, and we managed five or six minutes in the water, which felt very refreshing. We then set off for St Margaret’s Bay, passing two walkers who had stopped to lunch in the golf club at the start of the cliffs: not busy and a good choice apparently. At St M’s we three swimmers came across three other walkers, one of whom had just swam, so we went in again. It was near high tide and the sea a lovely blue and I went a little way out. Very satisfying.

We had tea on the beach (from the kiosk), walked to South Foreland lighthouse, and found it was doing tea (from a kiosk) too. There were picnic tables with a lovely view of the Channel and the coast of the EU beyond. Another cuppa seemed called for and we stayed there chatting until chucked out when the place closed.

We then drifted along the White Cliffs in golden light, passed the spookily quiet port of Dover (how much due to Brexit and how much to Covid?), and got to Dover seafront at 7pm. To fill in time before the next train we had a seafront drink at the Dover Patrol, and then caught the 7.49. This one was not so busy, not terribly so anyway. And then back to St Pancras at 9pm at the end of a perfect day.

The train advertised as arriving at Dover Priory at 10.41 wasn’t given as an option from Stratford International. I’ve booked on the 9.19 and will check at the station. See you at Dover Priory, if not before. Valerie

Hi, Valerie. Thanks for this comment. You are absolutely right. I fell into National Rail's Covid-trap of not publishing the final weekend timetable until the Friday. On the weekends the service is still restricted and with fewer direct trains. I have now updated the post with the correct train times and journey lengths. We'll take a later start.

13 walkers at Dover's station, 1 more (a car driver) had already gone ahead and joined up on the cliffs, so 14. 1 other SWC walkers was encountered at Dover, but she walked the other way (to Folkestone and Sandling, in non-SWC company). The forming of groups took a wee while and for a brief moment it looked as it we were just the one big group. Not quite what the protocol requires... Let's do better next time.

The rain had stopped before we got there and for the rest of the day it was mostly sunny with a very fresh breeze .

We set off in three groups which after some unfortunate intermingling became still three groups, but in different composition, then we were four groups once the 14th walker joined. Again, not quite what the protocol requires... Let's do better next time,

Splendid walk, with lots of variations possible along the various terraces of levels of the cliffs near Dover, where there were plenty of people, off the various nearby car parks mainly (also the visitor centre and cafe have re-opened), but also very wide paths. Further along, at St. Margaret's Bay, the first of many vans selling food or drink stuff was encountered (this one selling ice cream, but later some were selling cocktails or even pizza from a wood-fired oven, from converted VW Transporters!).

I walked on to Sandwich, neatly arriving a few minutes before the 17.12 train, and at least one other did the same (but missed that train). Most/all others presumably finished in Deal, at least 1 after a couple of swimming breaks.

Three groups of cyclists were encountered on the narrow clifftop Public Footpath, all being young parents with their children.

The slow group managed to lose one early on, who was asthmatic and struggling with the climb but then passed us at lunchtime and will hopefully let us know he made it all the way. The remaining 5 stayed together more or less all the way and took a very relaxed pace to reach Deal in plenty of time for the 17.19 train. In a moment of madness I decided to walk on to Sandwich, as uneventful as Deal is lively, for the 19.12 train - only two hours behind Thomas! Great walk, thanks for posting

So, 3 walkers went to Sandwich, catching 3 different trains...

As for that bit of the route: I liked it. Initially the beach is quite narrow just to your right, with the waves crashing a mere 20m away, then - once out of Deal - follows a longer stretch on the shingle seawall, with a links golf course on the left. You continue on tarmac from the Sandwich Bay Estate onwards, always with fine views of the Isle of Thanet and the (white) cliffs of Ramsgate ahead. Turn left along the Saxon Shore Way across the very scenic Royal St. George's Golf Course (well waymarked) and then cross or walk along several waterways, streams and ditches. Pretty and quiet, certainly very quiet compared to the hubbub that is Deal. Would do it again...

You can also visit the interesting 16c. Walmer Castle (English Heritage) just before you reach Deal and have tea on the terrace or have a stroll in their gardens. All very pleasant.

Walmer Castle is indeed most interesting, but just checking its opening hours on its website I discover that the Lord Warden of the Cinque Ports (whose official residence it is) will be in residence this weekend, and hence it is closed to the public,

I've been looking at tickets & without a railcard you need to look for the £25 promotional fare. With a railcard it looks like off-peak £22.40 is the cheapest on the high-speed. This train was very busy 2 weeks ago.

Trains to the coast can be busy on fine summer weekends, yes. But two weeks ago was exceptional - a one day heatwave that had been widely trailed in advance by the weather forecast. They spent most of the previous week saying how that one day would be uniquely hot and sunny. This kind of behaviour tends to boost passenger numbers.

For those well South of the River the 09:13 from Sevenoaks arrives Dover Priory at 10:33

PeteG was right and I woz wrong. The train was almost as crowded as two weeks ago, for reasons mysterious to me. I suppose Southeastern offering cheap tickets to the seaside in summer may be a factor, but a big party of youf also got off at Dover. Was there a music event? A vlogger holding court in the castle? Anyway, we never saw them again and the White Cliffs were no more than ordinarily busy - ie quite busy, but not insanely.

If the train crowds were tempted out by the bright morning sunshine, the weather gods had a disappointment in store for them as there was grey cloud by the time we got to Ebbsfleet and so it remained. It was fairly sticky in the morning and fresher later. Right at the end of the day the clouds parted in Deal, bringing a golden end to the day.

15 disembarked from the high speed train at Dover. We later met three more who had got the slow train from Sevenoaks. So 18 in all. The grey skies apart, the White Cliffs were glorious, carpeted in every downland flower known to man and with a zillion white butterflies (mainly Small Whites, some Marbled Whites) flitting about. This was true all the way to Kingsdown, and after that the shingle beach flowers were good too - not as intense as in early June, but really quite impressive all the same.

Four of us swam at St Margaret’s Bay, the sea rather colder than expected (due to offshore winds) but the setting grand. We then joined the others at the Coastguard Inn for lunch, the order taking being reasonably rapid but the production of food from the kitchen taking a long time, as it always seems to at this pub. But there are worse views to look at as you wait.

We regrouped later for drinks at the Zetland Arms, after another swim in which eight participated. The current here was strong enough to stop a bullet: the only time I have actually gone backwards while trying to swim forwards. It was just after this swim that the skies cleared, but sadly no one was up for a third dip.

Five of us had very nice fish and chips from the Mermaid fish and chip on the beach as the sun dipped and caught the 7.31 train (much less busy than in the morning, happily). Many interesting topics were discussed on the way home while we tasted different types of chocolate and drank red wine. All in all, despite the cloud, a grand day out.

Will there be a second Sunday walk this weekend?

18 on this fine crisp winter 's-day. Amazingly, lady luck was with us today and for a second year running this made for a delightful sunny winter outing. First, climbing the dramatic cliffs of Dover with its ever fascinating view down into the bustling port harbor, then continuing along the cliffs with fine channel views before dipping down to St. Margaret's Bay for lunch...where the group splintered a bit....The pub was very busy and could only accommodate the original booking for 4...5 others bravely dined alfresco on the terrace at the pub with the others picnicking nearby...Most carried on before the pub diners finished but some did regroup at the café on the pier in Deal -- a great place to watch both a setting sun and rising moon. Apparently, most took various afternoon trains back and at least one carried on to Sandwich in daylight. About 5:00pm, 4 left the café for a tour of Deal at the 5:31 train and 3 others headed off in the bright moonlight for the walk to Sandwich catching the 19:25.A full day out!

Is it too late to join this walk for tomorrow?

No you don't need to book. We don't have a booking system.

Check out our info for new "member"s on the FAQ page

https://www.walkingclub.org.uk/swc/index.shtml

Walk info, map and GPS link isn't working

its is now :)

8 on a hot sunny day.

The bank holiday weekend is probably not the best time to schedule this walk. Packed trains both ways (though I think we all got seats) and heaving pubs. But none of that seemed to matter, it being such a glorious day. Vegetation between Deal and Walmer was mainly dull green stuff, not in full swing yet. There were bluebells though. (Spanish).

The Zetland Arms was 3 deep at the bar so we continued on to the Coastguard at St Margaret’s Bay. There was another long queue for the bar there and a 90 minute wait for food. But there are worse places to wait than in its garden, watching the sea. And the food, judging by the purrs of satisfaction, was good when it came.

At walk’s end, most found a pub “by the water”. I, who was lagging, found the Wetherspoons and a satisfactory half pint of cider (Hunt’s Wobbler). Most (we lost two along the way) reunited on the platform for the 17:49.

It's the same fare for Sandwich or Deal

7 alighted from the train in Dover under initially partly cloudy skies clearing to sunshine by the sea with better weather than France for a change . The walk along the cliffs was dramatic with great views of the harbor and the channel -- though even at these heights there were patches of the gloopy stuff to navigate....Lunch at the Coastguards was a bit slow for the 4 diners -- but fortunately the terrace proved a pleasant spot for the picnickers so that we all continued on together. In Deal, some went for tea and others harder stuff (sadly the café on the pier is temporarily closed). Eventually 4 re-assembled just before 5 and set off for Sandwich under a beautiful bright almost full moon .

For those living in the East End, the deal seems to work from Stratford International too. The departure time there is 10:44

Bit of a late start - is this to allow a warm up swim?

It is always nice when people read the walk post!!!! The 10.37 start is because the £10 offer only applies to trains after 10am

If anyone wants to pay the full £20 fare and get the 9.37 and have a swim on Dover Beach while the others catch up, I would be up for that....

20 on this walk. A lovely sunny morning on the white cliffs. France visible from Calais to Bologne and the ferries going back and forth. I never tire of this view. Some old SWC hands were apparently seeing it for the first time, having never done the walk before.

Lacking my usual support team, I thought I might be the only swimmer at St Margaret's Bay, but I arrived to find four already in the water and quickly joined them. Lovely clean water, sparkling sun, but the water was colder than it should have been, possibly due to an offshore wind (it blows warmer coastal water out to sea and lets colder water well up to replace it). But still, a lovely dip.

Lunchers spilt between the pub and the beach kiosk (whose burgers and toasted thingies were surprisingly tasty). The two kiosk staff were a bit overstretched but their business was about to take a dive. All through the swim there had been frightful clouds to the north: as we finished lunch it began to rain.

There were a couple of rumbles of thunder at this point but nothing more, and the shower did not last too long. There were two more in the next couple of hours under autumnal grey skies but then the sun started to appear again. The light patterns over the sea in the meantime were wonderful: see the SWC Facebook page for photos.

By this time I had lost the group, so when the sun broke through as I was walking along Walmer Beach I quickly diverted for an idyllic swim, warmer than the last had been, with gorgeous hues out to sea as the clouds fled east. (So overall official weather report for this walk is sun then showers then sun .)I had a third swim at Deal Pier as the sun declined. I missed those who went to tea in the cafe at the end of the pier but found three of them soon after, replete from chips at a new place on the seafront called the Seaview.

The four of us got the 7.30 train. Everyone else presumably got earlier trains. I hoped they stayed long enough to see the sun come out.

Photos of this walk: https://www.facebook.com/Saturday.Walkers.Club/posts/1551155371571494

7 in very hot and sunny conditions, though a curious murk descended on the mid-Channel in the distance for part of the afternoon; not sure whether it was low cloud, mist, heat haze or pollution.

2 reached The Coastguard at 1345 and had lunches just either side of good. The plan was to take tea at Dunkerley's Hotel but very loud music playing in front of the Old King's Head a couple of doors away frightened everyone away.

The walk description is accurate when it says that "The last quarter of the walk ... is ... less dramatic than the White Cliffs".

2 left two hours later and sauntered over the cliffs to St Margarets' Bay where we had much needed ice-creams and then waited ages for the bus back to Dover. Thought it would be cooler nearer the coast, it wasn't! so could only manage half this walk. very nice views, enjoyable nonetheless.

9 therefore, very hot and sunny

actually it was 8 people and 1 dog !!

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6. rain windy sunshine Luckily we were in Dover when the clouds opened up and sheltered in shop doorways, watching the Tudor Festival parade get soaking wet. A morning of frequent showers and slippery paths (not good on a cliff walk!). The Coastguard was busy and booked up, but the 4 pub lunch people squeezed onto a small bar table. The afternoon was dry and we had blue skies for an enjoyable tea on the pier. We all returned from Deal.

One of us had previously done the Sandwich extension, and said it wasn't that good, but best done in June for the flowers on the beach.

Intend catching the 10:08, but joining at Stratford

Saturday 13 June: Book 2 walk 30 Dover to Deal: 19 on this walk, cloud clearing to sun . Interestingly, 17 of the party came on the high speed train, with only 2 coming from Charing Cross. One took the direct high speed train arriving 10 minutes later and reported it was, as advertised, crowded with the Meet Up group, but we did not have any other sighting of them during the day.

The morning was disappointingly cold, grey and windy, but by the time we got to St Margaret's Bay the sun was breaking through and it turned into a lovely afternoon, a bit breezy but also warm. The poor morning weather meant the Coastguard pub at St M's was gratifyingly empty and we had a lovely lunch by the sea: but someone tell them it is clunky to order drinks at the bar, wait for a waitress to take a table order and then have to go back to the bar to pay.

There were nice cliff top flowers in the afternoon and those on Walmer Beach were still good, though fading a bit. I don't know where the faster walkers went but eight of us had tea at the very scenic pier-end cafe in Deal. I also had two swims in the sea, the second one at sunset, and found the water much warmer than eight days ago…..but no one else was tempted.