The 

Tunnel King

Tour

The plan for the afternoon was to establish which was the "F King Tunnel" of Kent with marks out of ten for Acoustic qualities, Aesthetics and construction.

The tour got under way a little later than anticipated but once we dragged Stu, Neil and bob away from their filled baguettes at the Kings Arms we were soon headed for the first tunnel....except we had a little detour because someone had forgotten to bring any petrol with them ! Suitably refilled with BP's finest we  teetered on the edge of our first tunnel.

Admiring the crests at the entrance  of the Medway tunnel we soon plunged under the river. It was difficult for those bringing up the rear to fully appreciate the delicate nuances of the acoustic qualities of this tunnel thanks to Dave's deafening SP exhaust and absent  Catalytic converter .   

From here we negotiated the urban sprawl of Rochester heading towards our next tunnel , the Chestfield tunnel, just outside Whitstable. By this time we were on a fast dual carriageway and you had to be  sure not to blink as you would probably miss this  one. Pretty non descript  it was described as "a long bridge, not a tunnel" TimJ unimpressed at the cut and cover construction technique that allowed a golf course to pass over the top. They must have an influential membership to get a tunnel built just so they wouldn't have to miss a hole !

Another lengthy stretch of dual carriageway led us past Manston airfield .
We managed to keep bob from detouring at the sight of a tyre striped runway and drove into Ramsgate. Following the signs for the ferry we entered  our newest tunnel, the single bore curving tunnel at Pegwell, only opened in 2000. This was more like it as we descended through an 800metre  double curve with the noise of  sports exhausts reverberating  around the curved roof before emerging into the bracing on shore wind of the harbourside. The wind didn't allow for too much admiring of the sun glinting off the rocky sea silhouetting the distant derelict cooling towers (at least they made Neil feel at home !) Leaving Ramsgate via the Pegwell tunnel again, this time with an upwards incline putting more pressure on those raspy exhausts, we set off along the coast for Dover.

We took the scenic route around Dover via the Dour valley which, despite it's name, was actually quite scenic and pleasant before heading for the A20 and the Roundhill tunnel. I'm sure most people will have driven through this tunnel at one time situated as it is between the channel tunnel at Folkestone and the ferry port at Dover. A Double  tube construction it seemed a little short after the European flavour of the Pegwell tunnel. This is a busy road and there was a lot of traffic noise masking the F's progress but Daves mssing cat could still be heard above it all !. Sadly Stu missed his chance to visit the final tunnel as he took the wrong exit after leaving the A20 and ended up back on it again heading for London !

Now down to five F's we headed back through the Roundhill tunnel and into Dover before turning right around and heading back to Folkestone again !. There was method in this madness as the entrance to Samphire Hoe is  tucked away on the left . The final tunnel, all that's left of the 1974 excavations for an unfinished Channel Tunnel,  is accessed by traffic light controls and is a very narrow and dark hole in the cliff that leads to the dumping ground for the channel tunnel excavations. Nearly five million cubic feet of chalk maul has been fashioned into a nature reserve and the five F's plunged down the steep slope to emerge blinking once more beside the white flecked sea. Time for a quick cuppa huddled up in the chill wind and the final scores to be tallied  to find just which was the F King Tunnel of Kent. 

We made it to Samphire Hoe	Dave contemplating the English Channel	Some Tunnellers nursing hot mugs of coffee whilst Dave deliberates over his score sheet.
Bob and TimJ roar off into the Samphire Hoe Tunnel...	OK I know you're all just dying to know which was voted the F King Tunnel so click  HERE for the final scores.	....whilst Neil and TimM wait for their turn.