Minster In Thanet - a short walk

On the way to Minster I stopped off to look at the windmill at Herne. I like villages and was put off in the past by the large sprawl of Herne Bay but today curiosity overcame my prejudice and I drove up the hill to look at it. Unfortunately the mill wasn't open for visitors until 2pm, so not wanting to wait for another two hours or so I took some photos and pushed on. I travelled via Herne on the Canterbury road and turned off toward Hoath to try the back roads to Minster.

The mill at Herne

I got mildly lost but passed by some deeply cool green woodlands and probably crossed a river or two that was significant - may be the Wantsum as it seems to be everywhere around there
and gave me some typical Thanet views. The land is undulating to flat with crop fields stretching seemingly to the horizon interspersed with runs on willows along the banks of waterways and the inevitable pub tucked away on some crossroads of small village. Lovely.

A view into the grounds of the Abbey

Although I have been to or through Minster before it has been a fleeting visit stopping in the Bell Inn for a meal and a quick look around. Today I was armed with camera and stopping at the Bell for a snack and a jar of Shepherd Neame I took time to walk. Before I tell of the walk I have to say that the Bell is a good choice for a convivial drink and lunch although on the opposite corner there is a cafe and a wine bar that is worth a look in.

I started off from the pub and walked first around the churchyard and emerged onto Church Lane intending to see if there was a chance of visiting the Augustine Abbey but being a Sunday there were devotions going on and visitors are requested to arrive on Saturday afternoons.

I went past the Abbey and on up the slight rise to a yellow bar gate to a public footpath sign and entered. A pleasant Polish worker told me that the path followed the concrete farm road but he was not too sure of the exact route from there. As it turned out I walked instead following the wall alongside the pathway and turned into a small road on the right that led back to Church Lane. On the left I discovered a footpath sign and followed that past a rest home complex. As I plodded on a fox rose from where it was resting and trotted off quickly into the bush which was odd because to disappear completely from view he had to cross a stream. I crossed a bridge and from there the track floowed the railway line crossing it just beyond the signal box past Minster station.

A view across well tilled and cropped fields close to Minster

Crossing the track was easy and I had the treat of seeing a choo-choo in the station and watched it move off. (Choo-choo?) The path followed the railway line and again we crossed on a curve - one has to be careful here - into a field turning left and then following the path to eventually reach a graded farm road. Turning left as it seemed the village must be that way because ahead of me there was a view of the power station cooling towers, a dominant sight in this flat land, following this until again we crossed the tracks.

I followed the concrete road past fields with a view of the Minster church across the way and arrived back at my starting point on the path where again I met the friendly Polish worker.

There are a few more pathways around Minster but today was a short walk (about 3km) with the intention of getting the feel for a Thanet exploration.

Anyway, the afternoon was not wasted as I enjoyed the walk in what is some delightful Kent countryside and at walking pace yields some interesting views and of course exercises the ageing body.

The Bell Inn