Almost there: Cuckmere Haven, one of the many breathtaking views along the Vanguard Way, the 66-mile rambling route which starts at East Croydon
For the avoidance of any doubt (if ever there was any), East Croydon Station now has a new sign, designating it as the official starting point of the Vanguard Way, the 66-mile walkers’ route “from the suburbs to the sea”. Or it marks the end of the route, for those having trekked all the way from Newhaven in sunny Sussex.
John Jefkins, a senior official from the Vanguard Way Association, was on hand earlier this month for the installation of the Vanguard Way’s very own version of a blue plaque. “Our Start and End of Trail plaques are now up at the East Croydon Station,” Jefkins declared.
A formal ribbon-cutting ceremony will be held on Friday, May 3.
Another, similar plaque, has also now been added on to the outside wall of Newhaven Town Station.
The Vanguard Way was the idea of a group of friends and ramblers in the late 1960s, which took formal shape in 1980.
“At 66 miles, the Vanguard Way is not too short and not too long, so is easily covered in a week or less, or over a few weekends,” the ramblers say.
Firmly in place: John Jefkins with one of the two Vanguard plaques now marking the start of the route at East Croydon
The route, heading south from East Croydon and out through Lloyd Park, takes in a designated National Park (South Downs), two Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty (Surrey Hills and the High Weald), a heritage coast (Sussex Coast) and two scheduled sites of national or regional interest (Nore Hill Chalk Pinnacle and Dry Hill Camp).
“There are great views throughout the route, including two of the best in Britain: the Cuckmere Meanders and the Seven Sisters,” the Vanguard Way Association says.
“It was our intention to show what could be done by a relatively small club with limited resources to devise a route through our own efforts… Before long, the concept of a route from London to the sea had caught on, and the original idea for a simple written route description had become a formal permanent trail, recognised and waymarked by the local authorities through whose areas it passes.
“And the Ordnance Survey agreed to show the route on their excellent LandRanger and Explorer maps.”
And watch this space… Inside Croydon and the Vanguard Way Association have been working on a cunning plan for later this spring.
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