Miner’s Way Trail & Juliet’s

The frost continues. When I first emerged to warm up the car, it was minus three outside. Despite the cold, it was a gorgeous morning with clear, pale blue skies and bright golden sunlight. In fact, the light was perfect all day—photographic heaven. I left pretty early to meet my friends for a country walk at nine.

We have a little walking group at work, affectionately (and inaccurately) known as The Steely-Eyed Ninja Speed Walkers. Today marks our first outing of the new year—a gentle six-kilometre stroll to stretch everyone’s legs and ease us back into the habit. We usually start by choosing where we want to eat and then planning the hike from there—this time, we met at Juliet’s Farm Shop & Cafe in Ash. We followed a short section of the Miner’s Way trail in a circular route to the south of the town, along icy country lanes and across frosty fields before returning, happy and hungry, a good ninety minutes later. Brunch was excellent: coffee and french toast and Full English breakfasts lifted the spirits of our human and canine members alike… despite dodging drips of meltwater from the icy roof above us.

The complete Miner's Way Trail is a circular 27-mile (43 km) footpath beginning in Sholden, Kent. This historically significant route was established as part of the 'Coalfields Heritage Initiative Kent' (CHIK) project, launched in 2001 by Dover District Council. The trail connects several coalfield parishes across East Kent, including Deal, Ash, Aylesham, Chillenden, Eastry, Eythorne, Elvington, Goodnestone, Nonington, Northbourne, Coldred, Staple, Tilmanstone, and Wingham.

Coal was first discovered in Kent in 1890 during exploratory borings for an early Channel Tunnel project. This discovery led to the rapid development of the Kent Coalfield, which saw its peak output during the late 1920s and early 1930s, reaching its zenith in 1936. Although many collieries emerged during this time, only four proved sustainable in the long term: Snowdown, Tilmanstone, Betteshanger, and Chislet.

The influx of miners from traditional coal mining regions such as South Wales, the Midlands, and the North East brought significant social and economic changes to the area. To accommodate the growing workforce, new villages were constructed, including Aylesham, Elvington, Hersden, and Mill Hill in Deal. The closure of Betteshanger Colliery in 1989 marked the end of coal mining in Kent.

The Miner's Way Trail features a distinctive waymark with a white circle containing a miner’s lamp, a train, and a leaf, symbolising the area's industrial and natural heritage. Additionally, a 30-mile (48 km) cycle trail follows much of the route, starting and ending in Deal. The landscape along the trail, essentially unchanged since Saxon times, offers a glimpse into a region steeped in both industrial and ancient history.