Hamstreet, Kent - Saxon Shore Cycling Routes

[NEW EASY-TO-FOLLOW RIDES. Last updated June 2025]

The village of Hamstreet is situated on the ancient Saxon Shoreline in Kent, now separated from the sea by Romney Marsh. The wooded hills around the village contrast with the Royal Military Canal, a 28-mile defensive structure built in response to a feared attack by Napoleon. 

Hamstreet is a great base for cyclists because of its railway station, coffee shops in both the High Street and garden centre, fish and chip shop, Indian restaurant, shops and the Duke's Head pub (lunchtime dining Tues-Fri and all afternoon on Sunday). The routes here include circular routes for all abilities and quiet routes to local Kent towns. Note: locations in capitals are reference points that appear in different routes; wordings in italics are optional extras.

Quick 'four seasons' route to Ashford (6½ miles) - former main road and suburban cycle paths

This is a quick route to Ashford for cyclists who are reasonably comforatble with traffic. It uses the old road to Ashford which heads north from the crossroads in Hamstreet under the railway bridge. Follow this road for around four miles, up the long hill, along the straight, ahead at Bromley Green Crossroads and past the entrance to Ashford Town's 'Homelands' football ground. Turn right at the next crossroads (signed 'Mersham') onto Steeds Lane. Take the next turning left onto Bond Lane. At the end of this road, turn left onto the road and then turn right onto the gravel path near where the road enters a 30 limit.

Follow this path across grassland down to Reed Crescent. Cross via the traffic island as the route joins the road and continue. At the end of this short section of path cross Bluebell Road, so that you are now riding the cycle route beside Sheepfold Lane (there is a park to the left). 

After crossing Roman Road, use the crossing over Sheepfold Lane and follow the path out to the A2070 between fences. Cross the main road and follow the cycle route northward past the roundabout, beneath the road bridge and on across meadows beside the railway line, until reaching the end by an Asda store.

Turn left here and follow the natural course of this cycle path past the bus stops, over the zebra crossing at Kimberley Way and bearing left to run along the outside of the tented designer shopping outlet (with the A2042 dual carriageway on your left-hand side). At the end of this section, cross Newtown Road and continue ahead towards the international railway station. For the town centre, turn right to pass beneath the brick subway - mind your heads - and turn left immediately afterwards, following the signs beyond.

(For a longer but quieter route to Ashford, follow the 'Shadoxhurst circular route' (below) as far as SHADOXHURST ROAD. Turn right upon reaching this road at the end of the byway, and follow the blue cycle route signs to Ashford. This involves turning left by the King's Head in Shadoxhurst onto Bethersden Road, right onto Criol Lane, left at the end and then right onto Bartletts Lane which climbs steeply. At the end, turn left onto Chart Road and then right to descend Singleton Hill. Continue across the roundabout, and at the bottom of the hill turn right and then immediately left onto Bucksford Lane. Upon reaching Singleton Lake, turn right onto the cycle path which runs all the way to the town centre, crossing Brookfield Road (B2229) and running into Victoria Park. Bear left upon reaching the central area of the park. To reach the town centre, turn left onto the narrower northward path after passing the ornamental fountain.)

Ruckinge circular route (6 miles) - surfaced trails (possible mud in winter)

Head towards Hythe along the one-way street from Hamstreet crossroads and take the second left turn onto Bourne Lane (by the World War II pillbox). At the end of the lane, bear right, through the gate into Hamstreet Woods. The bridleway (Saxon Shore Way) bears immediately left, and around a hundred yards later it forks right. Stay on the surfaced path for a mile to the top of the woods. Go through the gate at the end, and shortly afterwards turn left at the T-junction with Gill Lane byway. 

Continue ahead where the Saxon Shore Way exits right along a farm track. 300 yards later you will reach a road junction; turn right. At the next junction continue straight ahead onto the byway and follow it all the way into the woods, around a sharp right-hand bend and then down to the B2067. Turn right to Ruckinge (you will pass the former Blue Anchor pub just before the T-junction). 

Turn left at the T-junction, and then right onto the canal path immediately after crossing the bridge. The first 3/4 mile is designated 'footpath.' The landowner is tolerant towards cyclists if they show respect, although it may be best to walk with your bike until a byway joins from the left after you pass the brick pumping station. You may have to lift your bike over a gate although the path is usually unobstructed. Continue ahead to the end of the trail at Hamstreet Bridge (by the garden centre) and turn right to return to the village centre.

Shadoxhurst circular route (11 miles) - lanes and surfaced trails (possible mud in winter)

From Hamstreet crossroads, take the B2067 towards Tenterden. You will pass beneath two bridges and climb gently for a mile past vineyards. Take the right turn onto Malthouse Lane which climbs some more and enters Orlestone Forest. The Weald of Kent was once completely covered with thick woodland of this kind. A mile later, we reach the T-junction with Birchett Lane. Turn left, and after a few hundred yards turn right onto the hard-surfaced trail heading northwest. Be warned, this route can be quite muddy in winter.

After a mile, there are two ninety-degree bends (left then right). Continue straight ahead at all subsequent junctions. You will eventually emerge to open farmland and meet SHADOXHURST ROAD. Turn right here and ride for around a mile to Shadoxhurst. Turn right onto Church Lane as you enter the village (the King's Head pub is 100 yards straight ahead here). Follow this lane past Shadoxhurst church, and after a sharp right-hand bend look for the byway on your left. 

Follow this byway through woodlands, eventually emerging onto Hornash Lane, where our route turns right. Take great care crossing the old Ashford to Hamstreet Road at the end of the lane and continue ahead onto Bromley Green Road. Continue ahead at the next crossroads onto Poundhurst Road, which bridges the railway and the A2070.

1/3 mile after the bridge the lane bears sharply left; continue straight ahead (southward) at this point, onto Gill Lane. This will eventually become a track descending gently into woodland. Bear right to follow the bridleway (Saxon Shore Way) down to a gate and onward through Hamstreet Woods nature reserve. Stay on the surfaced trail right through the woods, and at the other end exit the woods to follow Bourne Lane into the village. Turn left at the end onto the one-way street (by the World War II pill-box), then right at the end onto Cock Lane, and right again into The Street.

Snargate circular route (9 miles) or Fairfield (13 miles) - flat lanes 

For a pleasant route using lanes that is almost entirely flat, head south from Hamstreet village along Marsh Road (signed 'New Romney'), crossing the canal bridge, until reaching the A2070 at Johnson's Corner. Johnson was a heroic pilot who lost his life crash-landing his plane here after allowing his crew to parachute to safety. Take great care turning left onto the A2070 and then turn right immediately onto Ham Mill Lane, which bears right, away from the A2070 as it heads southwards. After a couple of miles continue ahead at the crossroads (where Snargate is signed in two directions). The lane passes through a farm and winds its way to the B2080 near Snargate Church, opposite the RED LION pub - a unique alehouse serving beer straight from the barrel, with a decor that has been virtually untouched in the last century (closed Mondays).

Turn right to ride westward along the B2080 towards Tenterden and take the second turning right onto ARROWHEAD LANE (signed 'Warehorne'). Follow the lane northward, ahead at all junctions for two miles, eventually crossing the canal and the railway line and then climbing to the scattered community of Warehorne. You will pass St Matthew's Church and the sixteenth century Woolpack Inn. 1/3 mile beyond this you will reach Leacon crossroads. Turn right here for a one-mile gentle cruise downhill on the B2067 back to Hamstreet.

(If you wish to make a 4-mile round trip to see St Thomas a Becket church at Fairfield, which is located in the middle of a field, turn right onto the B2080 at the RED LION pub but take the first turning left off of this road onto Snargate Lane instead. You will cross a level crossing, and at the end of the lane, turn right for the final mile to the church along Brack Lane. It is 'footpath only' across the fields to the church so you will need to secure your bike and walk. Return by retracing your route to the B2080. Turn left when you reach this road, and then right 1/4 mile later onto ARROWHEAD LANE).

Canal route to Hythe (13m) and Seabrook (15m) - flat ride on towpath and lanes

Head south from Hamstreet village along Marsh Road (signed 'New Romney'), crossing the canal bridge. Turn left immediately onto the canal towpath, a gravel byway. The second half of the towpath to Ruckinge is designated as ‘footpath,’ so our route turns right onto a grassy byway just before a PUMPING STATION. 

(If you wish to continue beside the canal to Ruckinge you may have to lift your bike over a fence/gate. The land-owner is tolerant if you show respect, and the author advises walking with your bike. Upon reaching the Ruckinge Bridge, turn right onto the lane and then left onto TAR POT LANE at the junction a mile later).

From near the PUMPING STATION take the byway route heading south. Bear sharp left after crossing a small bridge and then follow the route around the right angle bends to the right and then left. The final section to Lords Farm camping site is along the edge of a grassy field. Continue past Lords Farm, where the route becomes a driveway. When you reach a lane, continue across it onto TAR POT LANE, heading east and then northward to Bilsington. The lane eventually rejoins the canal albeit breifly. Note, the monumental obelisk on the hill is dedicated to a local landowner, Sir William Richard Cosway, who died in a coaching accident. At the T-junction by the Bilsington Bridge, turn right onto Newchurch Road.

This lane heads back out onto Romney Marsh for around a mile. Take the first left turn onto Honey Wood Lane. At the end of this lane you will reach a T-junction with Frogmore Lane - turn right.

A few hundred yards later you will reach a T-junction with the road from Newchurch - turn left. Shortly after this is a staggered junction - the building on the corner was once Bonnington’s pub. 

Turn left and then right onto Lower Wall Road, which runs along the bottom of the greensand ridge of hills. After a few miles turn left towards the hills along Aldergate Lane. After bridging the canal, turn right onto the gravel trail which runs beside it all the way to Hythe. As you ride, you may see the wild animals of Port Lympne Zoo Park to your left. A little further along, the hills are occupied by Lympne Castle and the remains of the Roman ‘Stutfall’ Castle further down the slope.

The trail continues across the lane when you reach West Hythe village, and further on there is a ‘listening ear’ dish upon the hillside, designed to detect incoming enemy aircraft from across the English Channel in the days before RADAR. 

Upon reaching Scanlons Bridge Road (the A259) at Hythe (nearest railway station = Sandling), cross the bridge and then cross the road using the crossing. The canal path continues ahead along the south bank. The path crosses Dymchurch Road (the A259) and Stade Street  a couple of hundred yards later. Continue ahead until reaching Twiss Road, where the cycle path returns to the north bank. 

This final section of the path runs for a further two miles until reaching  the A259 at Seabrook - the end of the canal. 

(Turning right and picking up the sea wall is the best traffic-free option if you wish to continue to Folkestone where there are two railway stations.)