White Cliffs of Dover, Dover Castle, Secret WWII Tunnels and The White Horse Pub, Dover, Kent, England

We had a beautiful day to start which is odd for England in October and then Storm Cieran came in and slapped us upside the head. We even got up early knowing that it may rain (understatement).  We got to the Cliffs footpath and it was sunny with no wind and glorious. We walked to the lighthouse and started back and the rain started and the wind began and continued to batter us all the way back to our car.

It is a 5-pound charge for the car park and this gives you access to the visitor center and all of the footpaths and trails.  

We chose the footpath which is closer to the edge of the White Cliffs of Dover.  It's not like the Cliffs of Moher, Ireland where there's a rock wall and you can't fall to your death.  This does not have a guardrail.  

It was an exhilarating walk to the lighthouse and a challenge on the way back due to the rain and wind.  Honestly, I was a bit scared because it was that windy.  

To the right, you can see Dover Castle in the background.

These cliffs were formed 140 million years ago from the remains of marine animals and plants.  The cliffs erode at an average of 10 centimeters per year and occasionally large sections of the cliff fail and dump thousands of tons of chalk into the ocean.  We returned to the car and drove the four minutes to the castle parking.  

There is plenty to see on the grounds of Dover Castle.  The funny thing is that I thought the regiment barracks were the Castle but then Daxtin said 'No Mom look up higher up on the hill' was the Castle.  King Henry II had the castle built for him between 1179 and 1189, but he never actually lived in the castle.  He visited it and it was more of a showcase of his riches and a stop for wayward travellers or people on pilgrimage to visit.  We toured the inside of the castle and all around the outside of it.  Dover Castle has the deepest moat that I have ever seen, these guys meant business.  There were some sieges against this Castle but the French never succeeded.

I love me some doors!!!!

If you look close enough there is century-old graffiti on the old stone walls.  Kids apparently have not changed much.

The old castle floors were so full of character.

Dover Castle was not fancy like others we have seen but it still had its own style, grace and ornateness.

In one of the towers on our way up.

We wanted to attend the Secret WWII Tunnel Tours as Dax and I love WWII history.  I had no previous knowledge of these tunnels.  They only became public knowledge in the 1980s.  There were even more tunnels built in the 1960s that were even deeper than the tunnels that we were in.  These were built in preparation for nuclear war.  There is a 20-minute guided tour of the underground hospitals in the tunnel tour.  There is also a 60-minute long tunnel tour based on World War II strategy and why the tunnels were necessary.  We did both tours and they were both highly interesting.  The tunnels were originally built in the 1700s for the Napoleonic wars.  During World War II they capitalized on the tunnels that were already there and built upon those.  The original tunnels were built to house up to 4,600 troops.

Dover saw a lot of action during World War II and was basically the front line in the Battle of Britain and the war against Nazi Germany.  Interesting information was given on Vice Admiral Ramsay who was the man in charge of Operation Dynamo the organizing of the rescue of over 338,000 British and French soldiers from the beaches of Dunkirk.  This is often referred to as the Miracle of Dunkirk.

There is a small Museum at the end of the 60-minute tour and also attached to the gift shop that is well worth viewing.

We wanted to get out of the torrential rain so we went to The White Horse Pub built as a house in 1365 AD. In 1574 it became an ale house.  This kind of history is really hard to imagine.  We had a drink and took in the ambiance of this ancient pub.  We enjoyed watching the dog too.

To the right inside the Pub, swimmers who swim the English Channel can sign the wall with their swim time.  It is hard to believe that there are that many crazy people around.  

We had a great day in Dover and all of the above is highly recommended.