St Margaret's Church - Lower Halstow

St Margrate Church 

Date - September | Location Kent | Demolished - No 

As part of the Heritage Open Days, I decided to explore some local churches that I hadn't visited before. I headed over to Lower Halstow to check out a small church there. The church was charming, and we had a pleasant chat with the volunteers. However, we didn't stay long, as there were other places I wanted to explore.

This church dates back to the 11th century and has been in use for around 800 years.

Saint Mary the Virgin Upchurch

 St Marys The Virgin 

Date September | location Upchurch | Delmoished - No 

I had been interested in visiting this church for a while, as I have driven past it many times and always wanted to take a look. However, every time I tried to visit, it was closed. One day, while driving to a different location, I noticed it was open, so I decided to stop and explore the church. It was somewhat busy due to the Ride and Strive event and Heritage Week, but it was still wonderful to see.

The church is one of six in the rural parishes and is an ancient structure dating back to medieval times. It is also Grade I listed.

Ww1 trenches Replica Detling Hill

 WW1 Trenches Replica 

Date - September | Location Kent  | Delmoished - NO 

I was looking on Heritage Open Days for something to visit and explore when I came across a WW1 trench replica that was about 30 minutes from my home. I thought I would make a day of exploring Heritage Open Days with my daughter, so we headed to the trenches first thing while it was still quiet. 

I have to say it was such a cool experience to walk through these trenches; it really takes you back in time to what life was like on the front line. 

These trenches are a full-scale replica created by a military historian named Andy Robertshaw.

Frindsbury Barn - Medway - Heritage open day

  Frindsbury Barn

Date September | location medway | Delmoished - No 

When I was looking at Heritage Open Days, I noticed that this barn had an open day. Out of curiosity, I decided to go and have a look. To my surprise, it was just a long barn, but it was really interesting to see. You could also observe the fire damage and where restoration work had been done. The barn dates back to around 1403 and is Grade I listed. In 2013, it suffered a fire, and in 2019, they began to rebuild it. There are high hopes for the barn’s future

Arethusa Venture Centre ( Swimming pool ) - Upnor - Kent

  

 Arethusa Venture Centre

Date September | Location Kent | Delmoshied - No 

I have known about Arethusa for many years now, ever since it became abandoned. I also have a vivid memory of visiting here when I was younger. Exploring the pool was easy to get into, but it took a few attempts to look around properly, as I was slightly scared. Unfortunately, the pool was covered in overgrown plants.  

To keep the history brief, the place closed down in 2019 and was raided in August 2025 for a cannabis farm. They want to demolish the site and build a bunch of new flats. The site was built in 1935 and was used by schools to offer a number of different activities.