Dungeness - Kent
This short stroll takes you across the desolate shingle beach of Dungeness - Often referred to as Britains only desert.
Details
Distance: 0.25 miles (0.4km)
Terrain: Wooden boardwalk
Difficulty: Easy, but surprisingly bumpy
About
Situated within Dungeness National Nature Reserve, the atmosphere is calm yet eerie, with some buildings looking like they’ve been left abandoned for decades and others still occupied by residents. The beach is one of the largest expanses of shingle in Europe, and is home to a huge variety of plants and insect species- even some rare species that aren’t found anywhere else in the UK.
Starting at the small car park, you cross the road and you're straight onto the boardwalk. From here there is a small and gentle incline, then it evens out about half way along. The boardwalk is made up of rustic planks of wood, so although it is perfectly accessible be prepared to bump around a bit if you’re a wheelchair user.
There are 2 passing places, which enables people to cross paths easily without having to step down off the path. Then once you reach the viewpoint at the end there is a bench to rest at and enjoy the views. From here you can see far out to sea, but this is only part of the appeal- Looking back inland you will see the new lighthouse on your right, then to your left you will see the old lighthouse, and behind that the nuclear power station stands tall and proud.
Points Of Interest
The Old Lighthouse - A grade II listed building, opened in 1904.
The New Lighthouse (pictured) - Built in 1961.
Dungeness Nuclear Power Station looming over the beach. Tours of this are available.
Rusting old bits of machinery, beached boats and abandoned huts add to the eerie atmosphere.
How To get There
Lydd Beach, Romney Marsh, TN29 9ND
Coordinates: 50.913497, 0.974355
The car park is situated 4.5 miles outside of Lydd, following Dungeness Road for most of that. Along this road you will get to a junction with signposts to Dungeness Train Station and the Britannia Inn- Turn right here and continue into the private estate of Dungeness and cross over the train tracks. As you do this the landscape will get more desolate, but I promise you’re in the right place!
After passing the “Dungeness Estate” sign, continue along Dungeness Road for 1.1 miles and you will see the new lighthouse on your left- 70 metres after this you will see two small parking areas for the boardwalk to your right. One of these holds about 3 cars and the other holds roughly 10.
Parking is free at the time of writing this (September 2020).
Facilities
Parking
Nearest place to eat is the Britannia Inn pub, right next to the parking opposite the boardwalk.
There are toilets (including accessible) at Dungeness train station 350 metres away.
Note: The steam trains that leave from Dungeness station are also wheelchair accessible, so click here if you’d like to find out more!