The Kent Coast basks in the Sunshine

Day three and we awoke again to delightful blue skies and the seagulls squawking outside.  The sea sparkled under the rays of the sun and it looked so inviting.  After a sumptuous breakfast the beautiful weather easily encouraged us back onto our bicycles. We continued to cycle east along the concrete path beside the coast. We pedalled past tutti-frutti coloured beach huts and London seemed a long way away.

Leaving Whitstable

The cycle path wound itself through Herne bay towards the small hamlet of Reculver
where we found ourselves joining the Viking Coastal Trail.  Bumpy cliff paths had us huffing and puffing at times, but we were rewarded with the striking 12th-century towers of a ruined Roman church, which stood out on the skyline for miles around.  The cliff top grasslands of Reculver Country Park also gave us an endless open space and a chance to spot wildlife on both land and water.

The Roman Church - Reculver

The soft breeze greeted us as we joined the twists and turns of the sea wall with its access slopes, steps to the cliff tops and paths down to the sandy beaches.  We happily pedalled through the seaside town of Westgate-on-Sea and approached the hustle and bustle of Margate.

It was if every man and his dog was down at the beach and the coast line was alive with activity.  We saw children foraging in rock pools, mothers lazing on beach towels reading their trashy novels, Fathers braving the chilly waters by jumping the waves and Grandparents reminiscing about the past as they strolled the Victorian promenades arm in arm.

Enjoying the British sunshine!

The ice cream parlours and cafe’s were humming bee-hives.  Queues for delicious treats were stretched out across our path and we soon found it easier to join the masses rather than avoid them.  I would have to say that sitting by the sea watching the world go by with a pot of tea brewing and a baked potato stuffed full of prawns was rather satisfying.

Food time!

Back on the bike and the never-ending sea wall we were cycling on went for miles and it fascinated me to imagine its real purpose.  It was wide enough to fit two cars on either side of it.  We had so much space and we found ourselves weaving all over it in delight.  With the white cliffs on one side and the vast blue ocean on the other is was unlike any cycle path we had ever been on and we had it all to ourselves. We loved it!

cycling along the sea wall

As we got closer to the seaside town of Broadstairs, life around us became more action packed with people enjoying the Easter sunshine.  The hint of the English tradition surrounded us as we cycled past colourful beach huts, wooden deck chairs,  freshly painted piers standing proud above the sea, the bright lights of amusement arcades trying to entice you inside their doors, cockles and whelks being sold in small paper cones to taste and sticks of rainbow coloured Rock standing upright row upon row alongside big bundles of Candy floss.  Today was the day that the British seaside certainly came alive and we were there to experience it.

Sandy beaches - Kent

We finally reached the seaside town of Ramsgate.  It allowed us a pit stop to enjoy the cafe culture and a chance to rest our tired legs. We realised that over the past three days we had cycled over 130 miles.  It had been a real adventure and a chance to experience England at its best.

Catching the train back to London that evening I wondered what our next big cycle ride would be and where it would take us?

More photos of this journey can be found on my Facebook page.