Tonbridge parkrun

Tonbridge is a historic market town in Kent. It was recorded in the Domesday Book as Tonebridge and was known for centuries after as Tunbridge. The origin of the name is not certain, but it is thought to have come from either; an estate, manor or farm (Tun) with a bridge, a bridge belonging to Tunna (an Anglo Saxon name), or simply a contraction of 'town of bridges' owing to the high number of streams the high street would have crossed.

Following much confusion with the newer spa town of Tunbridge Wells, in 1870 the post office had the name of the town changed from Tunbridge to Tonbridge. Even with the change, the pronunciation stayed the same [Tun-brij] which continues to this day. The wider borough of Tonbridge and Malling has a population of around 40,000 people.

tonbridge

One of the main features of the town is the motte-and-bailey castle, Tonbridge Castle. The original wooden structure was built by Richard Fitz Gilbert who had been awarded 176 Lordships following the Norman Conquest of England in 1066. The current Gatehouse was commissioned by Richard's descendant Richard de Clare. It took 30 years to build and was completed in 1260. Tonbridge is also famous for its public boys' school Tonbridge School, which dates back to 1553.

The town also features a public park, Tonbridge Racecourse Sportsground, which is just off the High Street. It sits on land which was used for horse racing for a period of 23 years from 1851 until 1874. The park covers 69 acres and has facilities such as sports pitches, a playground, and mini-golf. Next door is Tonbridge Swimming Pool which has indoor and outdoor pools (they are linked, so you can easily transfer between the two without getting out of the water).

briefing / start

The park became home to Tonbridge parkrun on 9 November 2013, and I attended that very first event. Since that date, the original course has been modified, so almost 6 years after writing my original blog, I popped back over to see how things are going and to write this update. The first thing to note is that the event has grown. A lot. On any given week, you would have to expect the number of attendees to top 500, but this seems to be increasing to 600 with a handful of occasions being over 700.

The meeting point for the event is just inside the park, next to the River Medway, opposite the swimming pool. For those arriving by car, there is a car park at the swimming pool called 'Lower Castle Field Car Park', but given the numbers of people attending, it will probably fill up long before 9am. The closest alternative is just a few hundred metres away outside Tonbridge Castle and this is 'Upper Castle Field Car Park'. Both car parks can be paid for using RingGo, but please note that they have different location codes, so make sure you check the sign and pick the correct one. The parking fee via RingGo for my August 2025 visit was £3.30 for two hours. 

opening stretch

If taking the train, Tonbridge Station is only a short walk away from the park. For any cyclists, there are fences around the park which will come in handy for securing a bicycle. There are also some bike racks outside the swimming pool. Anyone that requires an overnight stay will find the Rose and Crown Hotel on the High Street is the closest option with a walk of less than 10 minutes to the park. There are two Premier Inns, both slightly outside the centre of town. Premier Inn Tonbridge North is roughly 1.4 miles away and Premier Inn Tonbridge is about 2 miles away. 

There are a few options for toilets - the swimming pool has some, also there are some more within the park less than 50 metres from the start area, and there are also some just next to the old Tonbridge Fire Station which is next to the Castle.

The course is run on an out-and-back lollipop-style route. The start section is of course in the park, but this event has a lot more to offer than just the park! It's a flat course and underfoot you will find mostly tarmac paths, but some are a little muddy/splashy when the weather turns. It's absolutely fine for buggy running too. The initial footpath is way too narrow to accommodate the entire field of participants so there is quite a wide spread of people across the grass as the course meanders along next to the river.

cycle route / bridges

It's not long before the route crosses the first of seven different river crossings which takes you into the other side of the park. There is a mini out-and-back here, which feeds the participants onto Cycle Route 12 - this links Tonbridge via a mostly-traffic-free route to the village of Penshurst, which, incidentally, is where you'll find Kingdom parkrun (my venue blog). The majority of Tonbridge parkrun is on this cycle route, so keep an eye out for cyclists.

The course then leaves the park by passing under the railway line (watch your head if you're tall) and heads onto the tree-lined path that leads towards Haysden Country Park. The path eventually opens out to a decent width, however the next few bridge crossings are essentially single file, so things may get a little congested at points depending on your position in the field. Keep an eye out for the World War Two pill box nestled inside the bushes.

haysden country park / barden lake

After crossing Lucifer Bridge (concentrate on your footing, it can be a tiny bit slippery) and Little Lucifer Bridge, there's another section through woodland as you enter Haysden Country Park, and as you cross the seventh bridge, the glorious sight of Barden Lake comes into view. The lake itself is not a natural feature - it is the result of a sand and gravel extraction pit which was in operation during the 1970s and 1980s. If the regular route is being used, you complete a full lap of the lake before heading back. However there is a 'B' route which has a turnaround point halfway around the lake.

The remainder of the 5k is just a simple case of re-tracing your footsteps all the way back over all the bridges (making it 14 crossings in total), under the train line, along the mini-out-and-back and back around to the original meeting point, which has now become the finish. It's worth noting that depending on where you are in the field you may have two-way runners/walkers on some of those single-file bridges. This will mostly affect those towards the front and back of the field.

bridges / a view / cycle route

Personal barcodes and finishing tokens are scanned right next to the finish, and with over 500 participants you may have to be patient in a queue, but that's just a perfect opportunity to chat to fellow parkrunners, isn't it? The post-event coffee takes place in the Swimming Pool Cafe, but there's no way that it'll accommodate everybody. Fear not, Tonbridge High Street has a nice selection of cafes (both big brands and independent) and also a Wetherspoons in case you need an alternative.

I recorded the route on my Garmin and you can view the GPS data via my Strava account. You can also see a Relive course fly-by video on my YouTube channel. Also, a few years ago, we made a video of the course - it was filmed using just our mobile phones, and I think it worked out pretty well considering. The results for event 300 were published shortly after and 462 people took part - slightly down on a regular week probably due to the forecast for strong, gusty winds. Finally, a big thanks to all of the volunteers without whom the event couldn't happen.

approaching the finish [left and bottom right photos: scott wishart]

Related Links:

• My original Tonbridge parkrun blog from event 1
• My Tonbridge parkrun Freedom Run Video
• The Kent parkrun Venues
• Kingdom parkrun blog
• Clare Castle parkrun blog (the other castle the de Clare family built)

• My GPS data on Strava (August 2019)
• The Relive course fly-by video (August 2019)

Tonbridge parkrun (freedom run) video

for more information please visit the Tonbridge parkrun website

Tonbridge parkrun (inaugural)

Please note: As of August 2019 there is an updated venue guide: Tonbridge parkrun new blog

My history with Tonbridge began in 2009 when me and the-soon-to-be-mrs7t rented a flat just off the High Street. In early 2010 we were married in Tonbridge Castle and later that year our daughter was born - in Tonbridge of course. Around this time, I took up running and spent many a happy hour plodding around the local streets.

Tonbridge Castle

My first (and to date, only) half-marathon was the inaugural Tonbridge half-marathon back in 2011. The only other race I took part in in Tonbridge was the Tonbridge Wells Mental Health Resource 5k, and is held in the private grounds of Tonbridge boys school (the Australian Olympics team stayed here during the London 2012 Olympics) , which you can see across the river during the early and late stages of the parkrun.

The River Medway

I first discovered parkrun while I was living in Tonbridge and for 18 months I commuted - mostly to Riddlesdown - to get my weekly fix. While it did cross my mind to look into setting one up in Tonbridge, the time wasn't (and still isn't) right for me to take on the responsibility of being an event director. When we finally moved away, we had our check-out and handed the keys back to our former landlord on Friday 9 November 2012 - Exactly one year before the inaugural Tonbridge parkrun!

A view from the course

So, on Saturday 9 November 2013, I and the ladies drove down to Tonbridge. There is ample car parking near the start line but you do have to pay. The first car parks you'll see as you approach the park are the Castle Grounds and Upper Castle Field car park. However, if you continue past these and take the next left hand turn, you'll arrive at the Lower Castle Field car park - this is much closer to the start line. Another option for parking would be to park in Haysden Country Park, which is at the far end of the course, but it is much cheaper to park there (70p for up to four hours as of Nov 2013) and you can enjoy a lovely 2km walk to and from the start line.

Tonbridge Juddians

Those travelling by train will simply alight at Tonbridge train station and take a short walk down to the park. On the other hand, if you fancy cycling, the closest bicycle racks (approx 8) are just outside the swimming pool, which is also right next to the main car park. The main toilets are in the rugby club house, but there are also some public toilets within the park and are located just on the other side of the car park (across the footbridge). If you were to park in Haysden Country park you'll also find toilets there.

Start/finish area (feet already feeling a little wet)

If you wander around the immediate vicinity of the start/finish area, you'll find Tonbridge Castle, the swimming pool, the miniature railway track, and a few separate meandering branches of the River Medway. Walking a bit further across the park, you'll find a children's playground, crazy golf, outdoor gym, tennis courts and just outside the park, the Tonbridge war memorial gardens. Tonbridge is also famous for being the birthplace (Pembury) and home (Hildenborough) to double Olympic gold medallist, Dame Kelly Holmes.

Runners assemble!

The start of the run is in Tonbridge Racecourse Sportsground and starts on the grass next to Tonbridge Juddians Rugby Club club house but before the inaugural run could get underway, there was quite a long list of people to thank for helping to make this event a reality. The course is flat and is on a mixture of grass, tarmac, trail, gravelly paths and a couple of wooden bridges thrown in for good measure. In fact, there are seven river crossings during the course of the run and as it is an 'out and back' (or even a lollipop) route, you do them all twice. Some of the crossings are very narrow.

My biggest and littlest fan

Although road shoes could be worn on this course, my preference is for trail shoes - especially during wetter weather conditions. The wettest/muddiest part of the course is the start/finish area which tends to hold onto quite a bit of water. The trail section can be a tad muddy or slippery when covered with leaves. Buggy runners will be fine on the course but there are a few pinch points to watch out for.

262 runners heading towards a tiny hole...

Once under way, the runners (262 at the inaugural event) make a 90 degree right hand turn on grass and head towards a hole in the hedge that leads onto the tarmac river path. As the hole is only suitable for one runner to pass through at a time it does create a bit of congestion and it took over two minutes for everyone to pass through, which is a shame but unavoidable as the alternative route would see runners negotiating a bridge which has trip and slip hazards and was recently damaged by the fire brigade rescuing a dog from the river. However, I have heard that the event director is looking at options to resolve this issue.

262 runners filtering through

The first part of this section along the river is pretty much single file (unless you venture onto the grass verge) so lining up sensibly is crucial (ie line up approximately where you think you'll finish). However, the path does open up a few hundred metres later where it joins Regional Cycle Route 12 (quite a nice ride from Tonbridge Castle to Penshurst Place and almost takes you all the way to Penshurst Off-road Cycling Centre - read about my visit here).

The first part of the path through the park

The course then takes a quick detour around the edge of one of the rugby fields before returning to the cycle path and immediately leaves the park by passing underneath the main railway line. Runners may need to slow slightly while passing through as there are some bicycle calming barriers in place at each end of the short underpass. An additional point to note is that while the underpass has sufficient headroom for the vertically challenged (that's me), taller runners may feel the need to duck whilst passing through.

The trail section

The run now enters its trail section where runners cross a small bridge and again run alongside the river (take caution, as there are some short wooden posts in the ground along this path), a few hundred metres later the course swings left, passes over two more bridges and continues along the river - eagle-eyed runners may notice the small world war 2 pillbox hidden within the line of trees. The next significant point you'll reach is Lucifer Bridge...

Lucifer...

... which is very narrow and may require runners to stop to let other people cross (not great for your 5k time, but crucial for the reputation and future of the event). On my way back across the bridge, I and another runner who was on his 'out' section as I was on my 'back' section managed to squeeze past each other. This is followed immediately by Little Lucifer Bridge. A slight right hand turn through a forest path takes runners into Haysden Country Park.

Barden Lake

The country park is a beautiful, peaceful area with the centrepiece being the glorious Barden Lake, which runners will see as they cross the wooden bridge upon exiting the trail section. Runners will now need to complete one clockwise loop of the lake. They turn left and where the path splits in two follow the outer path where there is the ever-so-slight suggestion of an incline, before passing the duck feeding area at the far end (roughly at the half-way point) and then on the north bank, fishermen (or fisherpeople). Interestingly, the lake is not a natural feature but the remains of a sand and gravel excavation pit which was in operation between 1974 and 1980.

Almost finished

Once the loop of the lake is complete, it is just a simple case of following the previously trodden trail, grass and paths all the way back to the rugby club house. As runners near the end of the course they will have to negotiate the hole in the hedge in the opposite direction, which is slightly tricky because it involves taking a sharp blind right hand turn through the hedge - thankfully there are marshals here. After this it is a frantic dash on the (waterlogged, muddy) grass towards the finish line.

The final bit

The post-run social gathering takes place in the rugby club house, but as the rugby takes priority, the swimming pool cafe may sometimes be used as an alternative. Sadly I couldn't stay for the post-run fun because I had to be in central London by 11am. Tonbridge parkrun brings the total of Kent parkruns to eight and rounds of 2013 nicely for the county. It's definitely worth getting yourself down to Tonbridge to give this one a go but definitely bring a spare pair of shoes and socks!

Please note: The course has been modified and the start-finish is now in a slightly different location. Please see the official Tonbridge parkrun course page for the latest information.

Edit: I made a video of the new course and it can be found on this page.

Tonbridge parkrun freedom run

After running at the inaugural Ashford parkrun, I thought it would be fun to stop off just down the road at Tonbridge to have a little run around the planned Tonbridge parkrun course. I will save the detailed course description and venue information for my blog post after the inaugural event. However, as a teaser....

.... on the course you'll run under the main railway line into London, cross a number of narrow bridges (I think you cross seven different water channels on the way out, and come back across them on the way back - so fourteen crossings in total), and you'll run a lap around the stunning Barden Lake in Haysden Country Park.

The course covers a mixture of surfaces - grass, tarmac, trail, wood, and stony paths are all represented. You could quite easily run this course in your normal road shoes, but I decided to go with trail shoes purely because I like my road shoes to stay looking nice and shiny.

I had a very leisurely run and did my best to dance around the puddles and avoid the mud, but as you can see in the photo, it still managed to get me! Change of shoes and socks are recommended - especially if the wet weather continues. The inaugural event is on the 9th of November and starts on the grass next to the Tonbridge Juddians Rugby Club House - not far from the swimming pool and miniature railway.

There are a few car parks close by (Tonbridge Castle / Swimming Pool) but you will have to pay - I know that the Castle car park charges £1 for an hour, £1.70 for two hours and £2.30 for three hours so I imagine the others are similarly priced.

I did of course log the run as a freedom run so it appears on my official parkrun log.