BEACON WOOD COUNTRY PARK
 Beacon Wood Country Park
Bean, Nr. Dartford, Kent
Introduction
Beacon Wood Country Park is an area of ancient woodland that was once used as one of the locations for the chain of beacons that were lit to warn of the approach of the Spanish Armarda. Later in life around 1885 a section of the site was then used for the manufacture of smokeless gunpowder and a little later on around 1930 the site was then used to excavate clay for cement manufacture and the Blue Circle brand was born.
The site today has a variety of surfaced and unsurfaced pathways that wind their way around the woodland. There is also a pond with a viewing platform which our dogs took much joy in jumping into and going for a swim.  A picnic area is behind the carpark but there are no toilets or refreshments available.
OWTD Verdict: Lovely quiet country park with surfaced pathways making it suitable for all year round dog walks. If your dog likes a splash then there is the pond although it was a bit smelly when we visited. Well worth a visit the only downside for a country park is no toilets or refreshments.
Parking Location
Address: Southfleet Road, Bean, Nr Dartford, Kent DA2 8AR
 what3words: ///sport.washed.uses
General Information
- Paid Parking
- Accessible (Partially)
Distance: Two way-marked routes available. Red route is around 2km and Blue route around 1km.
Time: Dependant on pace Red route is around 1hr and Blue route around 30mins.
Terrain: Rough surfaced carpark and pathways around most of the country park. The pathway to the far side of the park that follows Shellbank Lane is unsurfaced and uneven. The pathway around the pond also has steps and a boarded walkway. Lots of other unsurfaced pathways are also available to explore.
Accessible: Most of the Red route is on surfaced pathways with the yellow section in map below being unsurfaced, uneven and narrow in places. The Blue route is all on surfaced pathways but may be bumpy in places.
Stiles: None within the country park. Only kissing gates if you exit from anywhere else other than the car park.
Dogs on leads?: Dogs allowed off lead. The country park was quiet when we visited and we felt safe letting the boys have a good run around. If you dont want your dog to go in the pond then this is probably a good place to go onlead as the pond is not fenced and easy to access.
Dog Bins: Yes.
Parking: Paid parking in the two good sized car parks.
The Route
Click the walk title in the top right of the above window to open the route on the AllTrails website or the mobile app. You can then create a free account which will then allow you to follow the route as you walk on your mobile. If you would rather not sign up to All trails free account and use another mapping app (such as OS Maps, Outdooractive or Komoot etc) on your phone then you can download the GPX file below and import this into your desired app inorder to follow the trail.
The Walk Details ...
We followed the Red route in the above map with was mainly the official red route with a bit of a detour and we also went the wrong way round as we couldnt find the start. The park isn’t huge though and its easy enough to follow a way marked trail and divert off as you wish and still make it back to the car park. I would just be cautious in wet weather as I would think it could become quite muddy and wet in some places.
The Gallery ...
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