Bagder's Oak Tunnel is on the old railway line that connected Hawkhurst, Cranbrook, Goudhurst and Horsmonden with Paddock Wood and the South Eastern and Medway Valley lines. The Hawkhurst section opened in 1893 and the whole line was closed in June 1961.
Hawkhurst Station was on the A229, about a mile north of Hawkhurst. The old signal box is still on site and well maintained. Badger's Oak Tunnel is another mile north, going underneath a minor road.
We made a spontaneous visit here, and after a false start in some nearby woods, we found the old line and followed it straight to the tunnel. The line itself has been removed, but it's still clear where it ran and there's a few sleepers and broken brick columns along the way. The tunnel itself is kind of creepy, we approached from the south side and could see the other end in the distance. It's really muddy and I nearly lost my shoes a few times (should have done the laces up). We didn't walk right through as the mud is quite deep, reaching the top of my husband's boots!
Just before the tunnel someone's tied a rope swing onto an overhanging tree, and seeing this deserted was a bit creepy. The walls of the tunnel are wet, with mud running down them, and I was surprised not to see any graffiti. We had a few jumpy moments when a duck who seemed to be leading us into the tunnel lost it's nerve and flew out at me, before hiding in the bushes on the way back and flying out randomly!
All in all, worth the walk and got a couple of good pics although only had an iphone with us so quality isn't great
Hawkhurst Station was on the A229, about a mile north of Hawkhurst. The old signal box is still on site and well maintained. Badger's Oak Tunnel is another mile north, going underneath a minor road.
We made a spontaneous visit here, and after a false start in some nearby woods, we found the old line and followed it straight to the tunnel. The line itself has been removed, but it's still clear where it ran and there's a few sleepers and broken brick columns along the way. The tunnel itself is kind of creepy, we approached from the south side and could see the other end in the distance. It's really muddy and I nearly lost my shoes a few times (should have done the laces up). We didn't walk right through as the mud is quite deep, reaching the top of my husband's boots!
Just before the tunnel someone's tied a rope swing onto an overhanging tree, and seeing this deserted was a bit creepy. The walls of the tunnel are wet, with mud running down them, and I was surprised not to see any graffiti. We had a few jumpy moments when a duck who seemed to be leading us into the tunnel lost it's nerve and flew out at me, before hiding in the bushes on the way back and flying out randomly!
All in all, worth the walk and got a couple of good pics although only had an iphone with us so quality isn't great
