Weald Park

On a bright winter's day, when the sun had raised the temperature a few degrees above freezing after a good lunch, we decided to go for a walk. 

We would have liked to visit a site famous for its snowdrops, but that doesn't open until next week.

Instead, we drove to Weald Park and paid the extortionate £4 for 2 hours.  The cricket pitch car park closes at 16:30, so there were only 2 hours left.  

We followed one of the bridle paths up to the Iron Age Settlement at Langton's Wood. 

On the way, we checked the bird song, the app told us:

Blackbird, Jackdaw, Mistle Thrush, Robin, Great Spotted Woodpecker

Just before we got there, we were passed by a maintenance mini truck, churning up the mud and just about making it out of the hollow we were about to enter. Then on and up the hill.  I spotted movement ahead; so I took a picture, I think it's a row deer.  You can just see it behind the brambles.  It was nonchalantly strolling along and hardly ever looked back, each time it stopped, so did we.  We walked until we were approaching a bridge; as it was nearly at the one-hour mark, instead of going through the mud to the bridge, we turned and re-traced our steps.

On the way back I suffered a slow slide, I ended up on my knees, with my hands in the brambles: such are the dangers of mud.  No serious harm!  

It was good to get out and now seems like the long winter might be coming to an end.

The mystery of the missing museum

Our walk today started from Harlow Museum.  The car park was closed, so we parked in a nearby road.  A notice on the door said it was open at 9:30, we were well past that.  Never mind, we set off, but because we are not good with understanding where we are, we headed the wrong way.  

We soon came to Harlowbury Chapel, which it appears is not open to the public, but is thought to be the oldest intact building in Harlow, it dates from the Normans. 

Harlowbury Chapel from Marigolds recreation ground

Arriving at the Green Man, we have now joined the prescribed route and know (roughly) where we are.  So, having achieved that major milestone, it is time for tea.  

The Green Man

Having enjoyed our tea, and the unordered home-made chocolate cookie that was provided with it - it was time to continue.  On the green opposite there is a British Oak, it is surrounded by a sturdy little fence with a plaque that reads:

BRITISH OAK

Planted in Commemoration of the

CORONATION

of

His Majesty

KING EDWARD VII

by voluntary subscriptions

June 26TH 1902

 

We left the area down a footpath between the ambulance station (now disused), and the fire station (still in use, with a rescue fire engine inside!)

Ambulance Station and Fire Station

Then across some fields and around others, the path is shown as a straight line on the map, but is anything but on the ground, finally we arrive at the church.  I'm pretty sure that the route we were supposed to have taken was different to the one we took, but again we got to where we were supposed to be.

St. Mary's and St. Hugh's

The picture does not do the building justice, other angles would be required to show its true extent.  As we are now where we should be, it is time for lunch, in the almost adjacent pub - The Queen's Head.  It's Thai food, but not spicy and very tasty.  There appears to be only one other customer, and he seems to have a 'work from pub' day as he desperately tries to find a stronger Wi-Fi signal and power for his laptop.

The Queen's Head

From there it is a straight forward walk across fields and building sites until we get back to where we started, and via the cycle path route that we should have followed on the outward journey.

We have passed many old buildings, houses that were established and provided for the 'poor widows' of the parish.  They all appeared to be in good condition and occupied.  Old Harlow speaks to us of a different time, unfortunately it appears it is about to be overwhelmed by the 'little boxes' that make up modern housing. The ones we saw looked cheap.

So what of the missing museum?  On our return, we tried again to get into the museum. The indicated large wooden door is firmly locked, and so are the gates next to it.  Round the back, the car park is now unlocked.  Ever hopeful, we try the first wrought iron gate - it opens  - we are in the walled garden.  Through another wrought iron gate and we are in a courtyard.  There is a glass door with 'Welcome' etched into it.  That too is locked, it also has a paper sign that says 'Exit'.  On the other side of the courtyard is a paper sign saying 'Entrance'.  We were fooled again.  The door opens into a very small foyer with a reception desk, but no receptionist.  The doors on the other side of the foyer are both firmly locked, we can hear voices, but whether they come from people physically present is unprovable.  The museum appears to be there, but in reality it is missing.

We left, disappointed, and headed home.

A walk around Thaxted - 7 September 2022

The forecast was uncertain with the possibility of showers, so the new camera was left at home.  Thaxted is right on the edge of our range in the Leaf, so we set out, taking it carefully – no hard acceleration, no hard braking (unless it's REALLY needed) and lower than usual top speeds. I stayed at 60MPH rather than 70MPH on the A12.  The directions were perfect, so we ended up in the free car park where the walk started. We had just enough range for the return journey. We were soon off out of the town, through Walnut Tree Meadow and into the countryside. 

An Oak in Walnut Tree Meadow

Thaxted, along with the rest of rural north Essex, is a lovely area, but I wouldn't want to live there because of the proximity of Stansted Airport. Throughout the walk, as the noise of one plane faded and silence returned, the noise of the next one began.  There was no let up, it was too distracting.  Along the edges of the fields, the blackberries were ripe and large and juicy, not at all like the ones in Billericay.  Maybe they benefitted from watering, and fertilisers put on the crops that were grown and are now harvested.

The walk was well described and for the most part straight forward.  There were only a couple of times that we had to check where we were.  The main confusion was caused by a closed road.  A separate bridge had been built over the river Chelmer for pedestrians.  It was well off the road and at that point I lost my position for a while.  

We returned to town through residential streets, still being distracted by the noise of planes, arriving in the town centre opposite the Swan Hotel.  Perhaps we had walked faster than the guide book expected, or perhaps we had missed a bit of the walk, it was not quite lunchtime yet.  So we had a cup of tea in the hotel and waited patiently (well, sort of!).  On the dot of noon, the barmaid/waitress came to our table and took our order.  I have praised her efficiency elsewhere – it is very unusual for hotel or restaurant staff to be that 'on-the-ball'.

The food we ordered (pub lunch, but slightly better presented) arrived in a reasonable amount of time, it was a nice lunch and very welcome.

After lunch, we took a walk around the church.  

The organ has recently been restored.

While we were wandering round, a heavy shower passed over.  Poor old Sarah Westly is getting wet.  The sound of dripping water led us to her stone.  I hope the church can get its roof repaired.

We then took a walk around John Webb's windmill, which is also requiring some restoration, so an internal visit is not possible.

Back in the car park, I set the Leaf's sat-nav to economy, and we began to follow the route provided down the B184, the B1008 and to the junction with the A120.  Here the sat-nav shows a different junction, so I ended up on the A120 heading east, instead of the B1008 heading south.  Now the available range is a problem.  The new mileage estimate says we will arrive home with maybe 10 miles (ca. 16 km) to spare.  That's less than 10% battery, we know from experience that the instrumentation might shut down before we get home, so a public charger is required.  We find a new EV charging court on the A131, it's only a short diversion.

All types of charging are available

Pulling onto the court and guessing where I need to be, I am approached by a guy drinking coffee, who works there and is directing people and explaining how to use the chargers – brilliant, just what I need.  Thankfully, there is no app required, I plug in, scan my credit card and the car begins to charge.  We go into the Costa for a cup of tea and sit outside drinking it for a few minutes.  When we get back, the car has 50% extra charge, so we're off home and suitably relaxed.  If all charging was like this, I'd go further with my EV.

Hadleigh Park and Castle

We walked from Hadleigh Park, down towards the railway line, along towards Leigh-on-Sea, up to the castle, up into Hadleigh, along the High Street and back to the Park.  A total distance of 3.4 miles (5.5 Kilometres).

We had been doubtful about this walk as the forecast was for thunderstorms, but this morning, not even rain was forecast for Hadleigh.  So we set out, substituting the new camera for the old, just in case.  

Parking is expensive and works like the hospital car park, you pay on exit and cameras record your entry.  As usual in these places, my credit cards would not scan and a card reader was not installed.  We found one that took cash, what a relief, as the parking app that it says to use has completely different paying instructions.

The walk itself is pleasant, the tracks are quite steep in places, but mostly the paths are clear.  Some of the tracks are dressed with stone chippings. It's not that great for walking on, but when there are hundreds of people it is better than leaving the path to erode.

There are some great views of the Thames from various places, below is the first clear view of the river as we made our way downhill.

An early view of the River Thames.

While the early part of the walk is through scrub, with warnings of cows and a bull (we didn't see any), at the bottom of the hill there are cultivated fields at least as far as the railway line.  Wheat, barley and rape seed.  We saw only two trains on the entire walk, this being another strike day.

A field of rape seed almost ready for harvest, looking toward the railway.

When the castle first appears, it is a stunning view.

View of Hadleigh Castle from the footpath.

 Turning towards the castle, we walked up the footpath as directed by the way marker.  It was very overgrown, and the secateurs came to good use, then we noticed two people walk down the hill with apparent ease.  Just 10 metres further on, there is another track running parallel with the now (mostly) disused footpath.

After visiting the castle, we headed for the Salvation Army tearooms.  It was closed, they are just now beginning to get it up and running.  The tearooms were always staffed by those with educational difficulties, now it is to be run by them too, with some assistance from the Salvation Army.  We will have to return for another visit in a month or two.  Meanwhile, we met two of the employees and were treated to some samples of the cakes they had made.  

Walking through the High Street brought back many memories, Hadleigh was where I grew up.  The butchers shop where I was stand-in delivery boy for a friend.  And the 'Arkwright' bike that I used to ride.  Granville would have been proud of me.  The scrapyard overflowing with rusty who knows what to about two storeys high and the shop next to it where we bought fireworks (both now gone), the old fire station, still not re-developed, the Wagon and Horses, now flats, and much more if I'd stayed longer.  We headed back down Chapel Street, passing a little park, beyond which there are allotments, which my dad waited more than twenty years for and was only offered one just after he moved away.

Finally, back in the park, we had lunch at the 'Hub Café'.  The food is very basic and partially green - all the packaging for the salads and sandwiches is recyclable, but there is only a normal general rubbish bin to put it in.  Rather odd, I thought.

View of Southend pier from Hadleigh Castle

Plotlands and Langdon Hills

"The Haven"

"The Havens" is the last Plotlands house, it is a museum now, and in need of refurbishment.  The Essex Wildlife Trust have plans developing.  I hope they can preserve this important piece of Essex History.  On a day like today, the house is an idyll.  A simple house, with enough land to grow a good portion of your own food, it takes me back to a simpler time (before I was born, but I can imagine it).  This is the first building you see after leaving, the very modern EWT visitor centre.  It makes for quite a contrast, I wonder which of them is really more sustainable?

I found this site, http://www.roselake.co.uk/main/dgowlett.htm, which give some history on another Plotlands house. Much of this history was destroyed when Basildon New Town was build.

We continued up the trail towards Langdon Hills, up and up, with just the occasional down.  You need a certain level of fitness for this walk, the paths are sometimes good, but at other time are rough hardcore that has been partly washed away. The walking here needs care.

Up some more until you can see the QEII bridge through the haze.  

QEII bridge from Langdon Hills

Until, at the top of the walk, where we met a man with an ageing Ridgeback, who pointed us to an alternative path back, avoiding the nettles and brambles.  Before returning, though, a picture or two of the Capital city.  This is the best one.

London, from Langdon Hills

Then, all the way back down.  We followed his advice, then got back on the official route, but the guide book was rather sketchy on where next, especially as the red waymarkers it mentions have long since disappeared.  So for the last part we found our own way, with a little help from 'Map my Walk'.

A stroll around the 'gardens' that have been set up near the visitor centre was followed by a cup of tea. 3.9 miles (6.3 km) covered today.

A walk around Manningtree

We have a book of Essex Walks, and since this is supposed to be holiday week, we are doing a genuine 'staycation'.  Today's walk was therefore within the return distance for the Nissan Leaf.  We can just get to Manningtree and back without worrying about chargers.  On arrival at Manningtree station, I asked a commuter (the only one I found, there's a rail strike today) how to pay and was disappointed that I had to install an app on my phone.  I was pleasantly surprised when it worked, although it took 2 goes to get the charge from my credit card.  So we set off, secateurs at the ready to clear the nettles and brambles from our path.  The first part, to St Mary the Virgin, Lawford, needed a lot of work, but was the worst part of the route. The stone reads "God made all things beautiful in his time also he hath set eternity within man's heart". A lovely thought to start the walk.  It is a lovely area.

The views are stunning on the outward part of the walk, away from the estuary.  We passed through "Owl's Flight Dell" a conservation area, on the Essex Way, which is used for part of the walk.  The sheep in the field immediately before we arrived at the dell were only slightly annoyed at having to move off our path.

We eventually made it to the remains of St. Mary's Church, but nothing but the wall around the site and some carefully managed grass was visible, so I assume the ruin is ruined.

Turning back in a westerly direction, we soon found a newsagent and stopped for ice cream, which we ate just a few paces further on under the biggest copper beech tree I have ever seen.  Then passing under the railway, we turned back east to find the Mistley Quay Café, but it appears to be a residential building now.  Going back along the route we are supposed to follow, we soon found "Tea on the Quay" where we stopped for lunch.  The two ladies working there looked after us well, and refreshed, we set about the remaining couple of mile to return to the station.

Having passed Mistley Towers, the remains of an old church that actually does exist, we then came to Mistley Walls, which is not a good description at all.  It is an area along the river that is common land, and will soon be a nature reserve.  It's a lovely place to picnic, or sit and watch the wildlife, particularly swans.  They are very used to the public, and not that shy of posing for the camera. There are instructions for feeding them on signs at regular intervals.  There were lots of people, all retired, I guess (they looked as old as me, or older), and two ice cream vans - proving that none of us ever grow up.

The remaining 2 miles (ish) back to the station are largely uninteresting, except for the lovely Manningtree High Street.

The total distance was about seven miles (eleven kilometres).

Booton, 9 July 2021 - Brody's unexpected stroll.

 A better night was followed by a more normal breakfast.  Today was about the weather, with rain predicted from 2pm to 8pm.

We decided to do a walk of 2 miles from the Marriott's Way Circular Route Guide.  It's one of only 2 walks that are short enough for Brody.  The instructions were limited and the 'map' poor.  There is no longer a car park at the post code given - if there ever was!  We wandered along the Marriott Way not even sure of the direction we should be travelling in.  We met a lady who suggested a walk, which turned out to be the first walk in the guide.  It went past the Bure Valley Railway.  It was a nice walk, we had seen the train in the station and later heard the train, but could not see it - was it under the houses?

Bure Valley Train in the station.

At about 2 miles it was long enough for Brody, so we drove to The Bell in Cawston for some lunch.  So far the day has been warm and sunny, but not too hot for walking. We sat in the garden, waiting for our food, enjoying the surroundings and watching the threatening clouds. Just before the food arrived the rain started, we moved to an undercover table with a view of the courtyard, but it was at least properly dry.

Lunch was good, but perhaps a little slow arriving at just over 30 minutes.  We hadn't ordered anything really complicated. We finished and returned to the cabin to watch the Wimbledon Gentlemen's semi-final. The rain fell down.

After the second semi-final was complete we took Brody down the path that leads to Cawston, for about 3/4 mile.  I think he would have gone further, but he struggled badly on the way back.

The Longest Summer Holiday Ever? 5:Holiday Time (Take 2) - Day 4 - Thursday 5 August - the long walk

Yesterday we had considered walking to the start, which would have added around 4 miles to the walk.  Today's walk started in the High Street.  The directions we are using are pretty old, and in a few places could do with being updated to more accurately describe the terrain or keep the walker off the roads.

We came across one footpath, (Footpath 11) which had been creatively 'blocked'.  There is a track next to it, but it could be shut at any time and is NOT pat of the footpath.

The walk was about 6 miles.

Until we started these walks I did not know there was a solar farm in Billericay.
Here's a closer look at the rear of the solar farm
It has been dry for quite a while, but the streams are still flowing - just.
Today we turned left at this sign, yesterday we turned right.
Essex is a beautiful place!
St Mary's church, appears to be a private residence now.
Jo, showing the scale, and that the streams are still flowing, but we could do with some rain.
Our surprise visitor. Before we could make friends he was through the hedge and gone.

The Longest Summer Holiday Ever? 5:Holiday Time (Take 2) - Day 3 - Wednesday 5 August

 We drove down to the edge of Billericay, Coxes Farm road, for one of the walks in the guide we are following. 

	We passed three not so little pigs, the third one was camera shy, but definitely there.
	Billericay's very own Solar farm
	This is the main turning point, today we came up footpath 164 and turned right on to the Bridleway.
	St. Mary's Church, Crays Hill - looks like it isn't a church anymore.
	Suddenly we had a companion on our journey.  I tried to make friends, but the dog was very nervous, and darted through the hedge and back down the hill.

The Longest Summer Holiday Ever? 5:Holiday Time (Take 2) - Day 2 - Tuesday 4 August - the Good, The Bad and the Ugly

The Good

In the morning we took Brody to Swan and Cygnet woods in Stock. Somewhere different for him and for us.  It is ancient woodland with many large old trees, which keeps the floor nice an clear of brambles and nettles (not enough light).

Clear paths and old fallen trees make this wood an easy place to walk around

Some of it is steep(ish) so benches are available. 

The Bad and the Ugly

In the afternoon we drove to Crays Hill after dropping some recycling items off at Barleylands.  We parked in the car park for the children's play area, and headed off down the footpath that runs along side it.  Almost immediately we saw much more than the usual amount of rubbish on the side of the path.  Our guide is quite old, so it wasn't a surprise that a 'farm track' was now a fully tarmaced road.  Down here there were several instances of fly tipping, some very old tyres, some of which were on very old car wheels, and the remains of old kitchen units.  The rubbish along the side of the road was unbelievable. 

Somewhere along that road there was supposed to be a footpath across the fields but we couldn't find it.  We ended up on the A127, walking east, and finaly turned off up a quieter road.  The next path we had to follow was waymarked with a 'Basildon Health Walks' marker.  Not having the secateurs with us meant we could not cut our way through the path that was completely overgrown, thus proving that there are no healthy people in Basildon!  We made our way back to the car park by the quickest route we could find.

Essex is a beautiful place

We decided to take a walk around Danbury, it was only supposed to be about two and a half miles, but because I didn't pay attention to the instructions in the guide book we ended up here:

Almost a mile from the start of the walk. Still, the tea (one pot = 3 cups) was very welcome, and the location wery pleasant. Brody seemed to enjoy it too, even though he doesn't really like walking on the side of a busy road (A414).

When we finally did get on the walk proper we realised that our guide book is dated 1994, and is a few years out of date.  Some of the things it describes are no longer there. So it took a little while for us to find the path, once on it we were soon in Thrift Wood where there used to be wild boar, and out the other side. Then past the golf course and into some fields.

This is where the beauty of Essex can really be seen.  We appeared to be miles from anywhere, on a lovely summer's day.  Brody can walk freely here, there are no horses or cows to distract him, and no streams for him to get muddy in.  Shortly after that we were back at the starting point:

Once seated in the garden we had a very nice lunch (Fisherman's Ploughmans), and drove home.  Our total walking distance today was about 4.7 miles.

Autumn in Little Burstead

Saturday morning, when nothing else is happening, is dog walk morning. This morning I walked along the Laindon Road, down the A176 and into Little Burstead.  Then across the training ground and down behind the houses on the A176. The trees on the far side of the filed are turning from green to yellow, the mixture of colours brightens up what is otherwise an unremarkable autumn morning, neither cold, not foggy, nor sunny, but light enough to get a picture or too on the phone.

 The greyness of the sky and the green of the grass obscures the contrasts that the trees give - the contrast the eye sees instantly, but zoom in 4x an the picture is suddenly clearer.  It looks like that all the way along.

 

The route through the edge of Little Burstead takes me back across Laindon Common, then up the fields to the ourskirts of Billericay.  It is a good walk somewhere between 3 and 4 kilometres, and just right for the ailing dog and his ailing master, but today's walk did not get recorded because my phone is complaining that in a previous version of Android I turned off access to location to all google apps.  I may have done, I don't remember, but why has it only decided to tell me this week?

Who knows.

IT was an enjoyable walk, and allowed me the impression that all is right with the world, just for an hour or so.

St John the Divine

Today I was leading and preaching at St Johns Outward Common.  The congregation is smaller than Christ Church, but they are very friendly and welcoming.  Sermons are not recorded there so the only way you will have any idea what was said is to read the script. The videoed rehearsal was better, but still not good. I enjoyed the service, except for missing out a hymn, and had some good conversations with people afterwards. I'm looking forward to going back there later in the year.  I found out just before I left home that I was supposed to be on serving duty at Christ Church.  Thankfully Liz stood in for me.  I haven't received the bill yet!

This afternoon, after watching Jensen Button just missing out on a win at Monza, I spent nearly an hour on a Skype video conversation with Karen.  The conversation was mostly about her forthcoming wedding.  The man she is marrying is an American and she was trying to work out the best time for his relatives to come over.  Hopefully the date will be confirmed soon.

After that we took a drive to Willingale.

View Larger Map

We parked under the cherry tree in the 'Street view' picture (its not in bloom now though).  We soon lost the track that was described and ended on the road at the wrong place. I wonder if that was due to the field I think we were supposed to cross just having been ploughed.  I will probably never know.  The outline map we had indicated that another path existed so we followed that as best we could.  We did get back to the original route, and returned to the village at about the right time.
Its a very nice walk, in a village that has two churches next to each other.

Flat Walk

It's August, and that probably says it all.  People are going away, gone away or just got back.  There seems to be no-one around.  It's like working late on Christmas Eve - just me and the man who switches off the lights - and he's threatening to lock me in!  Well, perhaps not that bad, but it was quiet.  Which is a shame because it was a good service.  Warner spoke on the parable of the lost coin, there was a piece of video of Tony Robinson looking younger than Baldrick, and quite a challenging talk on finding the lost (people).  "More tattoos in Church!" is the slightly unfair summary.  It raised a lot of questions for me about just how we would communicate effectively with people we have so little in common with.  Trust, grace and a few miracles required - just to get started.
That formed a background to the walk around the sea wall at South Woodham Ferrers (near Marsh Farm).  It's a very pleasant, very easy walk, but it was also quite hot.  Brody was worn out when we finally got back home.  On our return we were shouted at a couple of times for wandering on the farm (you're supposed to pay and dogs aren't allowed anyway) - a little bit uncalled-for and easily avoided by keeping the gates closed (as the country code say they should!)
In the evening I had a long chat with Karen about her time in and around Atlanta, Georgia. Sound like she had a really good holiday, how nice it must be to have friends all around the globe.

Welcome Brody

After a false start, our dog has finally arrived.  We were expecting to have him delivered this morning, but the lady who is selling him is about to give birth to their second child, and we were delayed by a false alarm.  So, Andrew and Michael went to pick him up as Jo and I left for Chipping Ongar to do next week's Christ Church monthly walk (as we cannot be there on the day).

Here's a picture of the area that we have set aside for Brody.  It's not our choice of name, but it's OK, and silly to change it, as the dog is used to it.  

 

The walk took about two and a quarter hours, and took in Greenstead Church, which is the oldest wooden church in the world, dating from Saxon times.  There is also a picture of the back of the church, which is built of halved tree trunks.  It is beautiful inside too.
When we returned home, the house was empty - Mike was walking Brody and Andrew was at work.  He is very well-behaved so far, and seems eager to please.  He is also tired tonight, having been walked and played with, and of course moved family.  I'm expecting it to take a few weeks for him to settle in properly.