Grehar two

Slow Way not verified yet. Verify Grehar here.

This is a re-worked version of GreHar 1, a good route with some flaws. The first third is pavements, sometimes residential but mostly the fast and multi-lane B255. From Bean to Longfield Station (the actual destination not Hartley) is mostly off road with very lovely sections across rolling hills. The land use is mostly sheep and arable with a few scattered woodlands. There is road walking within the villages but never for long and they are fairly quiet.

There's a small detour through Beacon Woods Country Park in Bean, to decompress after the B255, using their Red Walk as internal paths aren't shown well on maps. There is a long flight of earth and plank steps as you leave, you could avoid them by staying on Bean's main road instead.

Mostly field public footpaths through fields to Southfleet where a friendly local showed me an easier alternative to GreHar 1 which includes a short permissive path not on maps. It's on a bank beside a short part of Hook Green Road with no pavement and is clearly well used. It's mown "a few times a year", presumably by the parish council, but if the "weeds" are too tall the friendly local walks happily along the road instead with her son and seven month puppy. At the southern edge of Southfleet another bit of Hook Green Road, about 200m, has no pavement but it felt safe with better sightlines and a verge you could climb up at a push.

There are midroute stopping places at Bean (pub, shop, bus stop and many benches inside Beacon Woods Country Park), Betsham (bus stop with a bench), Southfleet (bus stop, the Ship Inn, both just off the route). The friendly local recommended The Ship Inn. Buses are infrequent with none on Sundays.
Greenhithe has a MacDonalds and Asda. The trains are very frequent as are buses to Bluewater Shopping Centre the local bus hub. Longfield has a decent high street with cafes, pub, Costa, bakery, chip shops, Co-op and Waitrose. Some buses run from Longfield, which has two trains an hour but on Sundays only one and no buses.

There are stairs, kissing and non-kissing gates, steep slopes but no stiles. Limited mud especially on the rutted farm tracks between Southfleet and Longfield. A path near Bean was uneven with animal holes and ruts hidden in grass

This is a re-worked version of GreHar 1, a good route with some flaws. The first third is pavements, sometimes residential but mostly the fast and multi-lane B255. From Bean to Longfield Station (the actual destination not Hartley) is mostly off road with very lovely sections across rolling hills. The land use is mostly sheep and arable with a few scattered woodlands. There is road walking within the villages but never for long and they are fairly quiet.

There's a small detour through Beacon Woods Country Park in Bean, to decompress after the B255, using their Red Walk as internal paths aren't shown well on maps. There is a long flight of earth and plank steps as you leave, you could avoid them by staying on Bean's main road instead.

Mostly field public footpaths through fields to Southfleet where a friendly local showed me an easier alternative to GreHar 1 which includes a short permissive path not on maps. It's on a bank beside a short part of Hook Green Road with no pavement and is clearly well used. It's mown "a few times a year", presumably by the parish council, but if the "weeds" are too tall the friendly local walks happily along the road instead with her son and seven month puppy. At the southern edge of Southfleet another bit of Hook Green Road, about 200m, has no pavement but it felt safe with better sightlines and a verge you could climb up at a push.

There are midroute stopping places at Bean (pub, shop, bus stop and many benches inside Beacon Woods Country Park), Betsham (bus stop with a bench), Southfleet (bus stop, the Ship Inn, both just off the route). The friendly local recommended The Ship Inn. Buses are infrequent with none on Sundays.
Greenhithe has a MacDonalds and Asda. The trains are very frequent as are buses to Bluewater Shopping Centre the local bus hub. Longfield has a decent high street with cafes, pub, Costa, bakery, chip shops, Co-op and Waitrose. Some buses run from Longfield, which has two trains an hour but on Sundays only one and no buses.

There are stairs, kissing and non-kissing gates, steep slopes but no stiles. Limited mud especially on the rutted farm tracks between Southfleet and Longfield. A path near Bean was uneven with animal holes and ruts hidden in grass