The quaint woodlands with a wartime past

Nestled in one of the highest points in Kent is Ide Hill, a village with a wartime past that locals are determined to get to the bottom of.

The village, which is around three miles from Sevenoaks, sits near some woodlands that, uncharacteristically, have paved paths peeking through the earth.

Phil Richards, a researcher from nearby Dunton Green, learned more about why when speaking to a lady he met while out walking his dog.

"She used to, as a five-year-old, go in and climb over piles of bombs and that sparked my interest," he told Secret Kent.

It turns out that these woodlands were significant "in the preparation for D-Day", namely the start of the Allied and airborne invasion of Normandy, France, during World War Two.

"It was actually a really large ammunition dump," said Richards, adding that the tracks were built to transport ammunition from the London bomb sites.

Chris Worthy, the joint secretary of the Ide Hill Society, said it was quite difficult to ascertain which units were stationed at this site but it was clear that the Canadians arrived in about 1940.

At this point, he said, the big worry was a German invasion but when that threat receded, the use of the site changed.

"It started to be a build up of everything that was going to be needed for Operation Overlord in 1944, which was the Normandy landings," Worthy explained.

This operation was the codename for the overarching Allied campaign and battle for the Normandy region.

As for why Ide Hill was the destination for preparations, Worthy said the village had quite a strategic position due to being one of the highest points in Kent but also a direct line between London and Paris.

Today, a walker can still see some remnants of this military history, including Nissen huts designed as a portable shelter for troops.

While Richards said there is "very little brickwork" from these huts left, they are unmistakably still there.

The paved tracks and water tanks, which would have been used for the emergency water supply for the fire brigade, also remain, he added.

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