Cuxton to Otford Walk: The North Downs

Let’s go back to the North Downs with its endless golden fields and evergreen woodlands for a walk from Cuxton to Otford. This walk was part of a training programme with one of my friends for our trip to the Lake District and Scafell Pike ascension – which did not go as planned, but that is a story for another time.

Cuxton to Otford walk featured image showing the view over green and golden fields from the top of a hill

Logistic for Cuxton to Otford walk

Distance: 14.88 miles (23.9km)
Ascent: 215 m
Walking estimate: 7 hours
Difficulty: intermediate
How to get there: Trains from London St Pancras and back to London Victoria. There is no possibility to buy a day return ticket for this walk as Cuxton and Otford are not on the same line
What to pack: Comfortable clothing and footwear, water (2 litres recommended)

Highlights of the Cuxton to Otford walk

North Downs
Trosley Country Park
Otford

Cuxton to Otford walk

Getting to Cuxton

We are going back to the North Downs, the ridge of chalk spreading from Farnham to Dover and compromising two Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. Our walk starts in the village of Cuxton, accessible by train from London St Pancras with one change at Strood, Kent. If you are doing the walk the other way around, which I know a lot of people do, I would recommend that you stop at Strood for some food as Cuxton does not offer great options. This is also the reason why I would advise you to end in Otford which has nice coffee places and restaurants on the High Street.

Fields, fields, fields … and woods

If it is not the first time you have read one of my walk guides in Kent, you should already be familiar with some of the places which I will be mentioning. As we come out of Cuxton village we enter the North Downs plantation fields of Lower Bush and Upper Bush. We came through it last time on our way to the Darnley Mausoleum.

View of the plantation in Upper Bush in Cuxton, North Downs, Kent — Plantation field

As we pass through Upper Bush, we walk across straw fields.

Straw fields in Upper Bush, Cuxton, North Downs, Kent — Straw fields

We then enter Wingate Wood and follow the trail in the direction of Greatpark Wood. As we come out of the woods, we set foot in the endless fields of the North Downs.

view of the fields in North Downs, Kent — View of the fields

Let’s take a break

We come back into the North Downs evergreen woodlands, all the way to Vigo village. Just after Vigo village, very conveniently located halfway through the walk, we find a picnic area with tables in Trosley Country Park. The park offers a specular view of the North Downs, a cafe serving homemade food and a playground for the kids.

Wooden sculptures in the woodlands — Wooden sculptures

Walking down the North Downs

After lunch, we leave Trosley Country Park and make our way to Wrotham village, where we find hens and chicks on the side of the road. From there we follow the trail in the direction of Otford. Once on the narrow trail on the edge of the hill, we found ourselves surrounded by sheep.

Sheep on the fields, North Downs — Sheep in the fields

We then step out of the woodlands onto beautiful golden cornfields.

Close look at corn in the cornfields of North Downs, Kent — Corn

We continue our walk up and down the North Downs hills and their endless scenic fields.

View of the endless golden and green fields of North Downs — View of the endless green and golden fields

Arriving at Otford and end of the walk

As we approach the end of our walk, we can discern Otford village in between the trees.

View from the top of the hill where we can discern Otford village in between the trees — Approaching Otford village

We go up and down Otford Hill as we come out from Rowdown Wood and finally arrive at our final destination. Otford village is located in the Darent valley. Its archaeology shows sign of human activity all the way back to the Iron Age. Fun fact: Otford is famous for its roundabout pond where we can find Britain’s smallest listed building: a floating duck house! Otford is the perfect place to end our walk and its High Street has plenty of places to eat and have a rest.