Essex countryside & villages full of pretty listed buildings
20 people attending
5 places left
A circular walk being just under 9 miles of mainly flat terrain. It's a nice mix of some proper rural countryside paths, some alongside the river and across fields, together with walking through attractive villages packed with pretty listed building to fill your camera roll with!
We will start (and finish) at the village of Kelvedon and walk across countryside to the very pretty small market town of Coggeshall. Kelvedon is on the mainline railway with services from London Liverpool Street. Please note however British Rail website currently shows a bus replacement service from Ingatestone onwards on this day
Coggeshall is a bit of a hidden historical gem in North Essex. A local market has been in existence here since 1256 and there are an abundance of lovely period buildings (300 listed ones in fact according to wikipedia). These include the 2 small but lovely National Trust sites: Paycockes House and the medieval Grange Barn. We will visit both these (*there is a £7.50 entry fee for non members including entry to both sites) where there will be time for a packed lunch stop in the grounds of the barn followed by the chance of some well earned coffee and cake at the Paycockes House site cafe.
Once refueled we will head out of Coggeshall on our way back to Kelvedon. Our route will help burn off that cake, taking us across fields and along some quiet country lanes. We will take in the pretty village green of Feering before returning to some more built up area for the last mile or so back into Kelvedon. Here there are a couple of Pubs we can chose from for finishing an outdoor lads walk in the traditional way with a pint or two.
Is it dog friendly? Yes!! 4 legged friends are welcome but please abide by the Countryside Code (https://tinyurl.com/rlqvp3h) and note there are a couple of styles and a couple of fairly deeply ploughed fields (at time of writing) to cross. If you have any concerns about this I can provide you with the OS Mapping of the route beforehand. Please remember not everyone loves dogs as much as you do so please be mindful of other members.
New Members - I would like to warmly welcome any newbies looking perhaps to try this as their first Outdoor Lads event. You may find this link useful https://www.outdoorlads.com/my-first-event or if you have If you have any questions then feel free to message me.
Photo credits:
Andy Gent
Used under the Creative Commons 2.0 License
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/
What to bring
Water: bring at least two litres - more if you have a dog with you
Medicines: if you have hay fever, diabetes, minor ailments etc.
Day rucksack: typically 20-30 litres, they are comfortable to wear and allow you to use your arms freely
Boots: waterproof and breathable and designed for hiking, trainers are OK if the ground is dry and there’s little chance of rain but on my trial of this walk a lot of the paths and fields were very muddy so please use waterproof hiking boots if its been a wet week beforehand.
Gaiters: recommended for wet weather or boggy conditions
Socks: proper walking socks will keep your feet dry and help prevent blisters
Layered clothing: lets you quickly adapt to changes in the weather and body temperature. Go for a base layer (vest or t-shirt) and a mid layer (a micro fleece or shirt) and in cooler weather add an outer layer (a windproof jacket or thick fleece)
Trousers: ideally no jeans as they become heavy and cold in the rain, breathable fabrics are more comfortable.
Food & drink
Please bring snacks and plenty of hydration. Packed lunch will be needed but skip packing dessert as cake and coffee/tea are also planned at Paycockes House Cafe midway though the walk after the packed lunch stop!
At the end of the walk a traditional Oudoor Lads farewell pint is planned at one of the country pubs in Kelvedon too.