Brockhill Park, Kent

Last Sunday the weather was sunny, if a little breezy. Once we had finished taking outfit pictures for my previous blog post (my choice of activity) my husband and I went for a walk in the countryside (his). We had a big family barbeque coming up on the bank holiday Monday, and knew we would be doing a lot of eating and not too much moving, so it seemed like a good idea to get out in the fresh air and stretch our legs while we had the chance. We're lucky enough to have some beautiful country walks right on our doorstep, but this time we fancied something a little different, so we took a drive out to Brockhill Park, near Hythe in Kent.

We hadn't visited this place before, but I am sure we will go back, because it's lovely. You pay for parking (£2 at weekends/holidays and £1.50 in the week), but entry to the park itself is free. There is a little café where you can buy drinks and snacks, but there are also benches provided for picnics, which is probably a much nicer idea if you plan your trip in advance. We saw some families who had really gone to town and brought feasts with them - some had even brought disposable barbeques - and we were quite jealous!

Once you get past this initial picnic area, you follow a path that leads you to a lovely, peaceful lake. Here, the resident ducks paddle away to their hearts' content, sheltered on all sides by tall, leafy trees.

We stood admiring them for some time, just enjoying the tranquillity of this little spot. Then we continued along the path, eager to see where it would take us.

  

It leads you all the way around the edge of the lake and beyond, where the landscape begins to open up a little. As you stroll along, you can't help but keep stopping to admire the trees and wild flowers. This is definitely a place for only the very gentlest of exercise. No cardio marching here!

 

I wore a light parka jacket from Topshop. It's a fairly recent purchase and I've worn it pretty much every day since I bought it. I like the way it looks with jeans and Converse and it's brilliant when you want to keep out the wind and/or rain but don't want to wear a bulky jacket. 

 Parka - Topshop (currently out of stock in the colour I have, but available in tan and blue), Jumper and jeans - both Topshop, Sunglasses - Chanel, Bag - Zara, Trainers - Converse

As the path leads further away from the lake area it eventually takes you out into open fields. You can just see them beginning to appear to the right in the photo below.

This is where the path comes to an end. In the fields we found more picnickers, couples stretched out lazily on blankets and kids playing football. I'm afraid I forgot to get a picture of all this, as I was too busy making new friends.

We thoroughly enjoyed our few hours in Brockhill Park and it set us up beautifully for Monday's festivities. Unfortunately, it rained on Monday. Torrentially. All day. But we enjoyed ourselves anyway!

There has been another weekend since then, so I hope that everyone had a good one.

Where's your favourite place to go when you want to escape the madding crowds?

Kate x