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Event Details

Date: Sunday 18th July 2010
Start Time: 2:15 p.m.
Location: The Wheelwrights Arms, Matfield, Tonbridge, Kent TN12 7JX
Organisers: Jamie Whale and Darren Goodsell
Present:A Kent Canter
Walk Distance: 4 miles, 6.4 km

Print Directions Directions

The Wheelwrights Arms, Matfield, Tonbridge, Kent TN12 7JX
Leave M25 J5 and join A21 south (Note: if coming from west on M25, you must use the outside lanes to exit to the M26; immediately after joining M26, exit left onto A21). Continue for 15 miles, past turn-offs for Tonbridge and Tunbridge Wells. After second stretch of dual carriageway turn left onto B2160 signposted Paddock Wood. After 1 mile you will reach village of Matfield. Pub is on left shortly after entering village and before village green.

Nat Grid Ref:  TQ 657 416

Public Transport

Nearest train station: Paddock Wood, 2.5 miles away.
From Surrey: hourly trains run from Redhill to Tonbridge; Paddock Wood is seven minutes from Tonbridge on the main line. Total journey time: approximately 50 minutes.
From London: half-hourly direct trains from London Charing Cross / Waterloo East / London Bridge, with destinations Ashford, Dover, Canterbury, Ramsgate or Margate. Journey time: 55 minutes from Charing Cross.

Taxis normally available at Paddock Wood station. Streamline: 01892 838383; Granary Cars: 01892 832285.

Buses: Service only runs twice in each direction on Sundays. No reasonable service available to Matfield before walk starts; 18:23 bus 298 from Matfield to Paddock Wood may be suitable for return journey.

Map

Walk Location Map

Walk & Location Information

The Walk: A 4-mile walk along a mixture of rural footpaths and roads in the beautiful Kent countryside. The route includes two stiles. Owing to some narrow footpaths and occasional heavy undergrowth, the walk is not suitable for pushchairs; shorts and skirts also not recommended!

The Venue: The Wheelwrights Arms is an early 17th-century pub run by Shepherd Neame and serving a selection of their fine ales. Meals are available all day Sunday; main courses £8-£12. To book a table, call 01892 722129. There is very limited parking in front of the pub; Quiz Walkers are requested to go up the road to the right of the pub and park behind the village green.

Print Route Sheet & Questions Route & Question Sheet

Starter Clues

All the clues are clearly visible on the front of the pub.

Q 1A revolver-maker's revolvers...
Q 2...A quartet of carriers by your shoulders.
Q 3If you don't want to rattle the bitter set,
Base your decision on what you can get.

Stage 1

Exit pub and turn right. Keep to right hand side of road. After village hall on right, cross over road and continue along pavement. After 200yds turn left at Friars Mill onto public bridleway. Follow this lane with houses on both sides. When lane divides into three, ignore side turnings and continue straight ahead. Stage ends at "Horse Riding Prohibited" sign and "Public Footpath" stone.

Q 4Agent blows his cover.
Q 5Keen on privacy it's plain to see,
But a thief could enter easily.
Q 6Fuss over ash around the nation: £22 - compensation?

Stage 2

Turn right at public footpath stone, ignoring entrance to orchard ahead. Go around gate and follow path which bends left. Eventually cross stream, with fishing lake on right. After fishing lake turn left opposite metal gate. Follow this path to junction with track and turn right up track, eventually emerging at road. Turn left onto road, entering Petteridge (keep to left hand side of road). Stage ends by red telephone box and post box.

Q 7A king, a nobody and their domain
Stop you getting in again.
Q 8This bolt shut me off - crazy!
Q 9Carrier's timber.

Stage 3

Continue along main road through village. At The Hop Bine pub, bear right and follow road ahead eventually bending right and downhill. Stage ends at 2 Southfield Cottages.

Q 10Simon King uncovers rare rodent! Amazes you sceptics - it's primitive.
Q 11The darkness before
An endless chore.
Q 12Must have caused a massive dent!
The craziest driver in all of Kent?

Stage 4

Turn left at Southfield Cottages onto Public Footpath. Through kissing gate and ahead through orchards, ignoring all turn-offs. Cross small river with fishing lake on left. Bear right past derelict shed and continue uphill. Bear right again following the now tarmac lane, continuing past farm buildings. Stage ends at gate.

Q 13When they made the ABC
Surely they didn't mean these three?
Q 14Officers bring their tackle and gear
But new recruits cannot catch here.

Stage 5

Continue along lane to emerge in farmyard. Continue ahead to emerge onto road. Turn left, keeping to left hand side. Before road junction, join footpath on left rising away from road at Neighbourhood Watch sign. Follow path uphill above adjacent road, into churchyard. Walk through churchyard (no answers on gravestones), keeping to path, to main church gate. Bear right outside churchyard. Stage ends at kerb.

Q 15Are Lloyds TSB into drying hops?
Perhaps when economic turmoil stops!
Q 16Rather elaborate for a toll booth!
Q 1770 years since they fought up there:
A super radar data affair?

Stage 6

Cross road and proceed and straight ahead away from church, up Windmill Hill, on right hand side of road. Cross road when pavement ends. Continue up and over brow of hill to junction with Brenchley Road (at this point it is well worth taking a small detour right, along Crook Road: after 30yds the trees clear to allow a marvellous view over the Vale of Kent to the North Downs). Turn left along Brenchley Road, crossing to right-hand side to face the traffic. Cross back over at Primrose Hill to join pavement on left hand side. Pavement ends at junction with Holly Bank; stage ends shortly afterwards, opposite steps to public footpath on right.

Q 18Chocolate Orange? Much more these days;
Meat and veg is what really pays.
Q 19Decision point - which way to go?
No details given so best drive slow.
Q 20Up here on the path
It's raining? Not 'arf!

Stage 7

Continue down Brenchley Road as it bends to right. Turn right at junction with High Street. Continue along right hand side of main road (now called Brenchley Road again). After Brenchley Garage, cross over to left hand side of road but continue ahead. Stage ends at junction with Petteridge Lane.

Q 21Not like the one from where you set off;
They've told you twice, two thirds is enough.
Q 22The pricing here's in need of redress
This old-fashioned vendor may charge you less.

After stage end, there are no clues for approximately 150yds. Continue ahead on Brenchley Road, taking extreme care on this section of road with narrow verges. Walk restarts at "Studmore" on right.

Stage 8

Continue on Brenchley Road. After passing house named "Byways" on left, turn left up lane. Walk between houses, over stile then alongside orchards, first on left then on both sides. After 100yds turn left into narrower footpath away from right hand orchard. Follow path another 100yds to stile. Cross stile to enter field. Follow right hand edge of field until houses come into view ahead. Proceed straight ahead towards houses following yellow footpath arrows. Go between houses on fenced footpath, under archway (mind your head!) to emerge on main road opposite Mark & Sons Butchers. Turn left to return to Wheelwrights Arms where walk ends.

Q 23In style, one manicure is done;
The other's just a hand, plus thumb.
Q 24The incidental cost of a cult TV show.
Q 25For this homeowner, Augusta's at heart -
Or perhaps he painted old fine art.

Spare clues. Both on stage 3.

Spare AYour big day's a drain, but he'll cover the bake:
Mr Kipling's Wedding Cake.
Spare BMatt Damon's recent trilogy
Converted to something more homely

Print Young Walkers Questions Young Walkers Questions

Starter Clues

Q 1The aeroplane crashed and this survived
Now it's enjoying the sun outside.

Stage 1

Q 2There's a lot of laundry in this U.S. state.

Stage 2

Q 375 years old! This company will never go back.

Stage 3

Q 4Do little helicopters land here?

Stage 4

Q 5This entrance has its own radio station!

Stage 5

Q 6How did Stephen Tyndale McClellan die?

Stage 6

Q 7No changing your mind on this green!
Q 8A prickly place to put your money.

Stage 7

Q 9Fancy a round? This one's short:
13 & 1/2 holes was all they bought.

Stage 8

Q 10A subterranean place to live in.
Perhaps the walls are long and thin.

Top of Page Answers

Print Answers League Walk Answers

Q 1The Wheelwrights Arms (revolver = wheel, maker = wright, revolvers (guns) = arms).
Q 2Four hanging baskets.
Q 3"Beer at its best" on window sticker. Anagram of "bitter set base".
Q 4Spy Alarms.
Q 5Gate with keypad - yet pedestrian visitors could just walk round the side!
Q 64161KR. 4161 Icelandic Krónur ˜ £22 at current exchange rates.
Q 7Three padlocks: one "Master" (King), one nameless (nobody), one "Zone" (domain).
Q 8Shufflebottom (on side of building). Anagram of "bolt shut me off".
Q 9Porters Wood.
Q 10Skurrays (from initial letters in clue).
Q 11Black anchor in front of house on left. Darkness = black, 'an' together with 'chore' without 'e' = anchor.
Q 12Bent road sign for Petteridge Lane (opposite The Hopbine Inn)
Q 13Jacksons Ashford Bath Chester on gate. Reference to The Jackson 5 and their song ABC.
Q 14Private No Fishing.
Q 15Black horses on oast house cowls akin to that in Lloyds TSB logo.
Q 16Paygate cottage.
Q 17Per ardua ad astra - anagram of "a super radar data" - Motto of the Royal Air Force on Battle of Britain memorial plaque at church entrance [translation: "Through adversity to the stars"].
Q 18Terry's Butcher/Greengrocer. The more famous Terry's makes Chocolate Orange.
Q 19Crossroads sign with blank rectangle where distance to crossroads would normally be shown.
Q 20"Ridgeway" house with gateposts adorned with a cat on one side and dog on the other.
Q 21Entrance to Brenchley Memorial Hall (an inn) flanked by two signs saying IN, i.e. inn with one third missing.
Q 22Petrol pump with price conversion table, topping out at 64p per litre (vs. typical current price circa. £1.20.) [Research shows that this conversion table might actually have been useful to 1998 or so!]
Q 23Clusters of nails in stile. Lower rung has 5 and 5, upper has 5 and 1. Manicure --> nails.
Q 24Overhead wire. Incidental cost = overhead; The Wire is a recent cult TV show.
Q 25Masters. Reference is to the Masters golf tournament at Augusta and the Old Masters of European art.
Spare AMKWC on water meter cover (stands for Mid Kent Water Company).
Spare B3 Bourne Cottages (reference to the Bourne Trilogy of films)

Print Answers Young Walkers Answers

Q 1Black box.
Q 2Washington.
Q 3C. A. Forward & Sons, Est. 1935.
Q 4Yellow H in road, reminiscent of (slightly larger) yellow H that helicopters land on.
Q 5Gatehouse FM on electricity transformer label.
Q 6In an avalanche in Switzerland on December 31, 1937.
Q 7The Lawns - No Turning.
Q 8Holly Bank.
Q 9Golf course 3/4 on signpost.
Q 10Worms Lodge Cottage.

Print Results Walk Results

Place Team Members Correct Answers Bonus Points League Points
1 Robert Whale, Sue Whale, Chloe Whale 19 169 20
2 Dafydd Williams, David Williams, Ben Poxon 18 164 19
3 Roger Heath, Joyce Heywood, Roger Abbott, Pat Mulholland, Peter Knight 17 145 18
4 Brad Morris 14 112 17
5 Alan Reeves, Geoff Hunt, John Davis 15 110 16
6 Sally Hendrick, Paul Hendrick 13 102 15
7 Elizabeth Gurteen, Brenda Watson, John Watson, Adrian Bourne, Pauline Bourne 12 84 14
8 Peter Evans, Kiran Evans, Zara Evans 7 50 13