Walking from the Marquis

Walking through the Alkham valley, an area of outstanding natural beauty, is a sight to behold, and a wonderful precursor to lunch or afternoon tea or a great way to work up an appetite for dinner (Download map). We have plenty of maps which we will be happy to lend out, so please ask at reception.

The Alkham valley is part of the ‘Kent downs’, which for 40 years has been graded as an AONB, and has a particularly great website.

If you would like to see the provenance of your meal at the Marquis, then why not walk our 'Sladden farm & Chalksole vineyard' (Download map) route. A circular of the village will take in the small farm which provides all of our meat for us, some wonderful views of the valley plus our own vineyard which we hope to have bottled wine from in 2013 ! The vineyard comprises of 7 acres of Pinot Noir, Pinot Meunier & Chardonnay grapes. You are welcome to take a stroll amongst the vines before or after your meal � have a look at this map which takes the vineyard in.

There are numerous walks which start from the village hall (50yds from the Marquis) which are circular and go throughout the valley. All have great views and inclines and declines of varying degrees.

Click here to see the Alkham walks.

One of our favourite walks is to head off from the Marquis, across the fields until you meet up with the coast at the top of the white cliffs between Dover & Folkestone. At the top of the cliffs you have the choice of continuing along the top of the cliffs or walking down to sea level and along the coast into Folkestone. It takes in lots of different views � rural, coastal & a great view of Folkestone - & terrains in just under 7 miles, should take not much more than a couple of hours and is mainly along footpaths. .(Download map)

Other good walks include meeting up with the ‘North Downs way’, which is around 4 miles from the Marquis and runs along the coast either towards Dove, where the end of the way is.

Kent wildlife trusts also manages a few areas locally, including the ‘Sladden wood’ which is also the backdrop to ‘Sladden farm’ upon which live the herd of Dexter beef which is supplied to us.

If you wish to explore the area further then here are a few good links we have found & great places to walk around:

Visit Crabble Corn Mill in River from where you can follow a Walkers Friend route to explore the area, taking in sites of interest such as Kearsney Abbey Gardens, St. Radigunds and the Abbey, The Minnis and Scotland Common. Rescued from demolition and opened to the public in 1990, the Mill can now boast to be one of the most complete and working examples of a Georgian watermill in Europe.

If you visit Capel le Ferne on a Tuesday, be sure to visit the Farmers Market in the Village Hall, which runs from 10am – 12pm. Visit the Battle of Britain Memorial and then down to the East Cliff & Warren Country Park.  The Warren is a great place to discover the wildlife of the white cliffs of the Heritage Coast and is well known for fossil hunting. The area is of national importance for wildlife and for the importance of its geology, and is protected as a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI).  Part of the site has been declared a Country Park and Local Nature Reserve.