Elham Valley
Encyclopedia
Valley
In geology, a valley or dale is a depression with predominant extent in one direction. A very deep river valley may be called a canyon or gorge.The terms U-shaped and V-shaped are descriptive terms of geography to characterize the form of valleys...
carved by the River Nailbourne
Little Stour
The Little Stour is one of the tributaries of the River Stour in the English county of Kent. The upper reaches of the river are better known as the Nailbourne, whilst the lower reaches were once known as the Seaton Navigation....
situated in the North Downs
North Downs
The North Downs are a ridge of chalk hills in south east England that stretch from Farnham in Surrey to the White Cliffs of Dover in Kent. The North Downs lie within two Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty , the Surrey Hills and the Kent Downs...
in East Kent
Kent
Kent is a county in southeast England, and is one of the home counties. It borders East Sussex, Surrey and Greater London and has a defined boundary with Essex in the middle of the Thames Estuary. The ceremonial county boundaries of Kent include the shire county of Kent and the unitary borough of...
. The valley is named after the settlement of Elham
Elham
Elham is a village in East Kent situated approximately south of Canterbury and north east of Folkestone in the Elham Valley.-Toponomy:The origin of the village's name has always been a matter of argument. The village is listed in the Domesday Book of 1086 as Alham. This may have derived from...
. Other settlements in the valley include Etchinghill
Etchinghill, Kent
Etchinghill is a village in Kent, England, about 5 km north of Hythe, and 1 km north of the Channel Tunnel terminal at Cheriton, near Folkestone. The village has a standard golf course noted for its hills, as well as a pub restaurant called The New Inn which claims to be the closest pub...
, Lyminge
Lyminge
Lyminge is a village in southeast Kent, England. It lies about five miles from Folkestone and the Channel Tunnel, on the road passing through the Elham Valley. The Nailbourne stream begins in the village and flows north through the Valley, to become one of the tributary streams of the Great Stour...
, Barham
Barham, Kent
Barham is a village and civil parish in the City of Canterbury district of Kent, England. It is situated close to the A2 road between Canterbury and Dover, 7 miles south-east of Canterbury and 7 miles north of Folkestone....
, Kingston
Kingston, Kent
Kingston is a village and civil parish near Canterbury in Kent, South East England.The village is located 5 miles to the south east of the city centre of Canterbury on the edge of the North Downs in countryside designated as an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.The local church, dedicated to Saint...
, Bishopsbourne
Bishopsbourne
Bishopsbourne is a small village in Kent, England. It lies in the Nailbourne valley some from Canterbury and about from Dover. It has a public house, The Mermaid, built in 1861, and a church, St Mary's, with 14th-century wall paintings. Author Joseph Conrad lived here and his house, "Oswalds",...
and Bridge
Bridge, Kent
Bridge is a village and civil parish near Canterbury in Kent, South East England.Bridge village is situated in the Nailbourne valley in a rural setting on the old Roman road, Watling Street, formerly the main road between London and Dover...
.
Located in the upper slopes of the valley are a number of examples of unimproved chalk downland such as Baldock Downs and Park Gate Down
Park Gate Down
Park Gate Down is a stretch of chalk downland near Elham in East Kent. The site is owned and managed as a nature reserve by the Kent Wildlife Trust and is also listed as a Site of Special Scientific Interest and a Special Area of Conservation...
. At Bishopsbourne and North Lyminge there are examples of traditional sheep-grazed pasture and water meadow.
Elham Valley Way
The Elham Valley Way, a 22.5 mile recreational walking route passes through the valley. The route starts at HytheHythe, Kent
Hythe , is a small coastal market town on the edge of Romney Marsh, in the District of Shepway on the south coast of Kent. The word Hythe or Hithe is an Old English word meaning Haven or Landing Place....
and finishes at Canterbury Cathedral
Canterbury Cathedral
Canterbury Cathedral in Canterbury, Kent, is one of the oldest and most famous Christian structures in England and forms part of a World Heritage Site....
. It utilises much of the erstwhile route of the Elham Valley Railway
Elham Valley Railway
The Elham Valley Railway is a disused railway line that runs through the Elham Valley connecting Folkestone and Canterbury in East Kent. It was operational from 1887 to 1947.- History :...
, constructed in the 19th century and connecting Folkestone
Folkestone
Folkestone is the principal town in the Shepway District of Kent, England. Its original site was in a valley in the sea cliffs and it developed through fishing and its closeness to the Continent as a landing place and trading port. The coming of the railways, the building of a ferry port, and its...
and Canterbury
Canterbury
Canterbury is a historic English cathedral city, which lies at the heart of the City of Canterbury, a district of Kent in South East England. It lies on the River Stour....
. This was closed in 1947, although a railway museum is located at Peene, immediately north of the Channel Tunnel
Channel Tunnel
The Channel Tunnel is a undersea rail tunnel linking Folkestone, Kent in the United Kingdom with Coquelles, Pas-de-Calais near Calais in northern France beneath the English Channel at the Strait of Dover. At its lowest point, it is deep...
station.