National coastal path across iconic White Cliffs of Dover opens to walkers
Xinhua, July 20, 2016 Adjust font size:
The first stretch in southeast England of a national coastal path was opened Tuesday.
The 106-km path takes in the stunning White Cliffs of Dover, one of the best known scenic spots in the country. For visitors arriving by sea from mainland Europe the iconic white cliffs are their first sight of England.
The new and improved National Trail between Ramsgate and Camber is the first stretch of the England Coast Path in the coastal counties of Kent and East Sussex.
"The continuous route gives unbridled views of coastline, including the iconic White Cliffs and the unique areas of Dungeness and Pegwell Bay, popular for bird watching, their landscape and their summer flowers," a spokesman for the Natural England said Tuesday.
Natural England is currently establishing a 4,345 km-long path around the entire English coastline, due to be completed by 2020. Work is already under way on 60 percent of the route.
When completed it will be one of the longest continuous coastal walking routes in the world. It will also become a National Trail -- the nation's finest and most popular long-distance paths.
Speaking Tuesday at the National Trust's White Cliffs centre, the chairman of Natural England, Andrew Sells, said the England Coast Path is the most significant rights of way project for a generation.
"This beautiful and iconic stretch will allow walkers to enjoy amazing views, fabulous wildlife and places with significant cultural and historical value, all from a high-quality footpath. It will also connect coastal communities and encourage walkers to visit more of the coast, bringing an added economic boost to the region."
Dame Helen Ghosh, director general of the National Trust, stressed that the path represents one of the biggest steps forward for countryside and coastal access in a generation, making space for nature and people around our shores.
"The coast path offers the chance to create a corridor for wildlife habitats to recover and thrive, while allowing people to experience natural heritage at first hand."
"The White Cliffs of Dover are one of our country's most iconic and instantly recognisable landmarks, and with none of us living further than 75 miles (120 km) from the sea opening this path will allow more people than ever before to experience this national treasure first-hand," said Environment Minister Therese Coffey.
The new route includes areas of great heritage: from the supposed landing site of the Roman conqueror Caesar to embarkation points used by soldiers and horses in the First World War; and from towers from the Napoleonic War to extensive Second World War defences at Dover, such as war-time prime minister Winston Churchill's tunnels inside the cliffs.
Latest Natural England research due to be published this summer, will show 313 million visits were made to the English coast between March 2014 and February 2015. Endit