North Downs Way national trail guidebook. The 130-mile walk tracks the high downland between Farnham and the historic city of Dover on the Kent coast. The route is described in 11 stages, or 12 to arrive at Dover from the north, via Canterbury, and is fully illustrated with colour photographs and OS map extracts. The North Downs Way is one of the easier national trails with a modest number of steep (but short) ascents and descents and long sections with no noticeable height gain or loss. Several historic sites including Neolithic burial chambers, Roman roads and Norman churches are passed and much of the route follows The Pilgrims Way. The area also boasts many literary connections with some of the most celebrated voices in English literature.