A leisurely walk with Dover and Thanet Rights of Way Society on May 9th covered three miles in the valley of the Little Stour. Connecting the villages of Littlebourne, Wickhambreaux and Ickham. The last two i would call hamlets.
We started at the Rose Inn, Wickhambreaux, dividing into two groups of six, led by Jan and Steve Tebbett, walking in opposite directions. I joined Steve’s anticlockwise group. Across the village green through the churchyard of St Andrews. Parallel with the Little Stour past former watermill, a large white building now offices i think. Past the church of St Vincent of Saragossa, patron saint of vinedressers. This is Littlebourne. Turn left after the church, crossing Nargate Street and then the river.
This is mostly a flat walk, today on firm dry paths. We cross a soft meadow, which was recently underwater, and gently climb to a bridleway where we turn left towards Ickham with the Duke William pub and church of St John the Evangelist.
Where the two groups meet Steve produces a bag of oranges. On to Seaton, where a left turn takes us across the river and back to Wickhambreaux. Several posters opposing lockdown bring comments of “they should look at India”
Placenames. Littlebourne means little stream, the Little Stour. Ickham: settlement with a yoke of land, about 50 acres. Wickhambreaux is more complicated. Wickham means dwelling place. The extra syllable comes from the variously spelled Breuhuse family.
Topics mentioned during the walk: minimum wage, why not introduced till the 1990s. Water supply, lack of investment by privatised companies.
A pleasant walk. A short extension to the Anchor in Littlebourne could make three pubs walk, but three pints in three miles might be excessive.
Rambling Brummie 