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The
Crab & Winkle Way
7 miles
Foldout
leaflet with mapped directions, the railway line's history, and places of interest along the
route. Well signed and mostly traffic-free.
Extract:
'The Crab
and Winkle Way
takes its name from the railway line which ran between the towns of Canterbury and Whitstable. The Crab and Winkle line as it
affectionately became known, was the first regular steam passenger railway in the world
(Guinness Book of Records).
'The line was a pioneer in
railway engineering using embankments, cuttings, level crossings,
bridges and an 836 yard tunnel through the high ground at
Tyler Hill.
The
railway was worked with old engines and ancient carriages always
blackened by soot from the journey through the tunnel. It was said goods
trains tended to slow down for their crews to check pheasant traps in
the woods and to pick mushrooms in the fields. Passengers were carried
until 1931 after which the line was used for goods only. The line closed
entirely in 1952.'
Along
the way:
- Whitstable Harbour - once host to
large masted wooden boats in the 19th century, the visitor exhibition
helps retain its character
- Whitstable - the town holds a
fascinating history, from boat building to seascapes painted by Turner
to the days when over 100 oyster boats could be seen off shore at the
height of the Oyster industry in the 1860's and 1870's
- Clowes
Wood
- Sculpture Trail
- Winding Pond and Winding Wheel Seat - water
from the winding pond was used by the steam engine that wound the
locomotive up the gradient in Clowes Wood
- Salt Way - an
ancient track and busy trading route once used to transport salt from
the Salt Pans at Seasalter to Canterbury
- Earthwork
- remains of a medieval Roman villa
- Canterbury - connecting
with the 'Garden of England' long distance cycle route and a chance to
visit the cathedral, museums, the back-ways and historical buildings of this
World Heritage Site
Information
courtesy of several organisations including Spokes, Kentish Stour
Countryside Project, Canterbury City Council, and Kent County
Council
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