Cuckoo Wood to Keston - 9.1 miles Wednesday, 25th February Sun at last! No mud (well, not much), and a dog as a bonus. As we emerged from Cuckoo Wood into the heady 17 degree heat of Farnborough Down, some of the 17 Sevenoaks Ramblers stripped down to T-shirts and soaked up the sun at the snack break. Yellow brimstone butterflies, a nuthatch, woodpeckers, waterfowl, snowdrops, crocuses and daffodils were welcome harbingers of spring.
Cultural delights were many. We paused at the spot where William Wilberforce, staying at Holwood House, then home of William Pitt (the Elder? the Younger?), resolved to set in motion the abolition of slavery, perhaps inspired by the free sweep of Keston Vale. Then on to the Iron Age banks at Keston Common, the misnomer Caesar's Well, in fact the source of the River Ravensbourne, and a recently added War Memorial.
After helpfully redirecting traffic snarled up by a road closure that affected part of our London Loop route, we returned via the High Elms golf course. Still not a cloud to be seen, a rare delight after weeks of rain.
Thanks to Kate, Ian and Alice for photos, Kevin for backmarking and everyone for coming.
Originally published as a PDF on the Sevenoaks Ramblers website.