England - North Downs

Southeast England

Counties: Surrey and Kent

The North Downs are a ridge of high ground running parallel to the coast, which extends southwards from the Thames Basin across the counties of Surrey and Kent, from Guildford in the west to the fantastic white chalk cliffs of Dover in the east. The word "downs" in this sense has nothing to do with height, but is linked to the word "dunes". The North Downs are composed of chalk and slope steeply to the north. With the South Downs, they belong to the Weald system, a geological morphological anticline made of chalk and sandstone. They were formed during the Tertiary Age, at the same time that the Alps were thrust upwards further to the south. Running to the west, near Guildford, is the narrow ridge known as the Hog's Back. To the east the North Downs increase steadily in height and breadth, and reach some 900ft/275m on the Kent border. The downs are popular with walkers, especially at weekends, offering great variety of scenery - pastureland, fertile arable land, occasional areas of heath and scrub and patches of mixed forest - so that they never become monotonous. Five rivers have forced their way through the barrier of chalk and in the valleys lie trim little villages, often surrounded by fruit orchards. One of the main attractions of the area is the large number of castles, stately homes and parks. The footpaths in the region often follow the same course as old trading routes, either across the downs or along the foot of the hills, while the Pilgrims' Way follows the old pilgrims' route from Winchester to Canterbury.