July 20, 2014 -- Day 35, Deal to Dover, 10 miles

A heavy overnight rain gave way to a mixture of light drizzle and morning fog as I took a bus to Deal, the next major coastal town north of Dover. At Deal, I joined the Saxon Shore Way to walk back to Dover. The Saxon Shore Way is a paved promenade until it leaves Deal, and despite the weather there were many people out for a Sunday morning walk.

Deal Castle

Beyond Deal, the Way passes some old but nice beachfront cottages in the village of Kingstown, and finally becomes a footpath as it ascends the White Cliffs that are so prominent in this area. I saw a few dog walkers along the trail, but no real hikers. By then, the drizzle had reduced to a few drops, and I walked the rest of the day in my T-shirt.

 

White Cliffs viewed from beach

 

On a clear day, France would be visible, but today the fog obscured the sea. At times the fog got so bad that I could see only a few hundred yards ahead.

 

Find the cliff

Find the ferry

 

 

 

At one point, I thought I may have overshot my destination as the Washington Monument emerged from the fog. It turned out to be a copy-cat obelisk in memory of the Dover soldiers lost in World War I.

 

Last night’s rain and the continuing mist made the trail very slippery as it undulated across the White Cliffs. At this point I met Mike Maier, from Ellington, Connecticut, who had been jogging the trail, but had to slow down due to the poor footing. Mike is trying to stay in shape for an attempt to swim the English Channel on Tuesday (weather dependent). There apparently is a website that tracks Channel swimmers like Flightradar24 tracks airplanes. Mike didn’t know the URL, and I couldn’t find it with my brief search. In any event, if the weather is right, he plans to enter the water about 4:00 am on Tuesday, and should be finishing about the time that western Americans are having their second cup of morning coffee. Good Luck, Mike!!

 

MIke Maier

© 2014 Ken Klug