the north downs way - oxted to otford

This was to be our attempt to complete the North Downs Way before Darren headed off up north. Midweek he suddenly realised that all those stoves that he's been buying along with a mountain of other kit, games consoles, DVD's and the alike needed safely packing in tea chests for his impending move. So he cried off opting shoot videos instead.

Getting to Oxted was an easy matter of catching a train into Clapham Junction and out again. From Oxted we picked up the unsigned Greensand Way to Oxted Downs about a mile or so before where we finished a few weeks previous. (The idea of catching a cab to Botley Hill was poo-pooed - a decision which would later turn around and bite us on the heals.)

I think we go this way...

The first thing that we noticed as we progressed along this section was that the change in the countryside, as we moved into Kent it became much more rural. From Titsey Place the path runs along the top of the chalk escarpment like the earlier sections such as between St Martha's Hill and Box Hill.

Snow drops

The motorway becomes less and less intrusive until you have to drop down to cross it at Morants Court Farm, when the path becomes sandwiched between a busy A road and the M25. Although this was at the tail end of our day it didn't spoil the preceding time on the trail. And unlike the previous section you manage to escape it as you head east.

Peacock butterfly

At Otford we stopped for refreshments and quick review of our plan. We hadn't gotten far enough along the way as we wanted to, mostly because I'd had a series of blood sugar crashes that kept slowing us down. Our chosen camping spot was still a couple hours off and I was struggling to keep going. A quick visit to the station settled it and we were on a train back to London.