on our estuaries and coastline. Along Use this leaflet to guide you along the Follow the countryside code:
of the diverse and stunning wildlife that have highlighted along the way. Be safe, plan ahead and follow
carry a little food and water. transport information contact the Essex Consider other people Traffic Control Centre between 7am and The route is clearly signposted and 7pm on 0845 600 0110 or For more information on the waymarked in both directions. www.essex.gov.uk/travel Countryside Code visit Using this booklet should make your www.naturalengland.co.uk experience more enjoyable. The average walker will take more than 15 hours to walk this 45 mile route We recommend that you use this leaflet without stopping! Therefore we suggest in conjunction with the Ordnance you attempt it in stages that suit your Survey Explorer maps numbered method of travel and the speed that you 183, 175 and 176 which can be would wish to walk it. purchased from most good book shops or online at www.ordnancesurvey.co.uk If you have any problems whilst walking on the St Peter’s Way please let the Public Rights of Way team know by telephoning 08457 430430 or email prow.web@essex.gov.uk Key Scale 1 kilometer Footpath Open access B Bus stop 1 mile Bridleway Pylons P Parking Byway Track Church Road PH Public house 2 Chipping Ongar Blackmore Village History Church of St Lawrence, Blackmore Chipping Ongar used to have a motte and bailey castle; In 1349 the Black Death, also known as This fascinating church is well worth a in fact it used to be known as Castle Ongar. There is the Plague, hit Essex. Blackmore lost two good look. Parts of the church date to the little to see now but the remains of the earthworks that thirds of its population to the disease. It is 12th century when it was a priory. The roof the keep was built on and some of the moat. The town suggested that two roads which bypass of the nave has a number of carved faces developed as an important staging post, being a day’s the village were developed for travellers in and shields, some of which contain shot ride out of London for travellers heading north. order to avoid catching the disease that holes from the bullets of the Roundheads took just a couple of days to kill its victim. at the time of the civil war. The church also The two roads supposed to have been holds a Cresset stone, which is a primitive developed for this purpose are named form of oil lamp made from stone. It is one Service Lane and Red Rose Lane. of the finest examples in the country and the only one in Essex. A414 A414 Mulberry PH House
Clatterford End Nash Hall Recreation Clatterford B ground Bridge P P Thistlelands Paslow Hall Ongar Westlands Springs B Castle Springs The Mill A128 Cottage PH River Roding e n a L
Sparks Long Edwells Nine Ashes Wells Redrose Berry oad R Farm ry ke o o R Road Paslow Common B elmsford Ch Farm Sch PH Ganders River Roding Hall B PH Paslow Wood The source of this river is Molehill Green near Stansted Common Blackmore Ing Airport and it flows all the way down to the River Thames at a d et a Barking. All rivers have a diverse ecosystem that supports Ro ts Fryerning e o mor en Wood k many different species of animals and plants. It is not only ac R l o N B a d the open water but the plants in the river margins and along their banks that create these important habitats. You should keep an eye out for trout in the river and kingfishers that use 3 the vegetation along the banks to perch in whilst hunting. Mill Green Ponds In Mill Green, you can see Potter Row Farm; brick and pottery kilns have been found here. Village and farmland ponds can be a very This area was a good place to make both pottery and bricks due to the clay, gravel and important wildlife habitat as they are sand dug from the common. If you walk through the woodland you will see the pits and generally left undisturbed. You will pass mounds created by this clay extraction industry. The woodland is one fragment of what several on this walk. These ponds can be was once the extensive Writtle Deer Park. Keep an eye out for the deer that graze in home to the rare Great Crested Newt, to this area. dragonflies and water beetles as well as the commonly sighted Moorhen (right) and the old favourite – Mallard ducks. Parsons Spring Barrow Wood Ivy Barns Lane Birch Spring Howletts Monk’s and Handley Green Hall Barrow’s Deerslade Wood Farm PH Dawes College Wood P Farm Well Wood Maple Tree Stoneymore Wood Box Wood Farm ad Ro Potter Row en Farm Handley Barns B Brickhouse Glasshouse Ger BusheyWood PH Margaretting l Stoney Farm Cottage il B Lodge M Harding’s Eastfields Bell Grove Meadow Farm PH Margaretting Osborne’s PH 1002 B
A12 Little Hyde Canterburys Lane Brook Farm Swan Lane Pound Wood Golf Course Deer Fristling Hall England has six species of deer that live in the wild; Fallow, Red, Roe, Chinese Water, Muntjac and Sika. The most common in Essex is the Fallow deer, they are quite large and Little Wood Tye Green can be identified by their white spotted chestnut coat. You may spot these in woodland N Long Wood or out in the arable fields. Muntjac (right) are also very common, these are very small Swan Wood deer (about 40 to 50cm high) and can often be seen grazing in woodland.
Stock Windmill N The windmill is the last of three mills that once operated in this village. When windmilling in Essex was at its peak, there were Claydons about 285 mills in the county. One hundred years later, only a handful were still at work and by 1950 the last working mill had stopped. The decline of windmills followed the arrival of the steam-driven roller mill and improvements in sea, rail and road Glebe transport. Grain could be brought from abroad to the huge Cottages dockside mills and the new roller-milled white flour could Pattern’s S Hill be distributed easily, even to remote country areas. Farm ou Farm t Crondom Tinsley he n Park Farm d R o a A130 d Pan Lane Helmons Link House Hicks Farm Doylands Brickhouse Sch Farm Holliday Hill Farm B West Hanningfield d oad B oa kR Slough House PH hR oc c St Farm Chu r B1007 er ow Swan L Middlemead Wood Greenwood’s Farm B Blythhedges Spring Wood Stock B Holes Place Hanningfield Farm Reservoir PH Blythhedges Wood Common PH PH ne Steel’s Farm Road illLa M Leather Bottle e Recreation an Hill S an’sL Ground eam Windmill P Radar Mast B B On the horizon you will be able to see this mast that is sited in Great Baddow. The mast was part of Britain's early warning defence network during World War Two. As part of the 'Home Chain' network it was originally built to Seamans Lane and Hanningfield Reservoir detect German bombers approaching the River Thames and London from the northeast. After the war it was used The walk now takes you down an old road, Seamans Lane. This road was converted into a bridleway when the for developing radar, radio and telecommunications construction of the reservoir severed it. Work started in 1951 to build the reservoir in the Sandon Valley, covering technologies. The mast is a prominent landmark, the hamlet of Peasdown. There is a local myth that says the village is still intact under the water! Despite being visible for many miles. It serves as a strong reminder man-made, the reservoir has become home to some amazing wildlife. There are plenty of fish for anglers as the of the county’s World War Two defenses, reservoir is managed as a trout fishery, there are 250 acres of conservation woodland and it has been designated developments in radar and the legacy of the 5 as a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) notable for its colonies of breeding ducks. Marconi Company. Thrift Wood Nature Reserve What’s in those fields? Farmland management This woodland is a SSSI and managed as Farmers are encouraged to manage a nature reserve. The shrub layer includes wildlife as well as their crops. They leave Wild Service trees Sorbus torminalis, large strips around their crops that they do which are quite rare now in Essex. It also not spray with pesticides or fertilise. This has both types of native Oak; Pedunculate grassy strip provides food and shelter for Oak Quercus robur and Sessile Oak Wheat Oilseed Rape Barley many insects and birds. Quercus petraea. In the spring you will see a carpet of Bluebells Hyacinthoides non- scripta and Wood Anemone Anemone nemerosa. During the summer look out for the abundant Wood Ants Formica rufa that are often eaten by Green Woodpeckers Picus viridis. Alfalfa Potatoes Borage e Elm Road Whit PH Birchwo od Ro Cock Clarks ad Bicknacre Wickham’s B Folks Wood B Recreation Jacklett’s Ground Wood Bicknacre Road Thrift Wood Hackmans Lane New England oad Wood Round Great Wood R ms M Wood Leigham’s ha ain B ig R Farm Le o a d Squeaking-gate Back Butts Claydons Wood Back Lane B B Recreation Claydons Ground Manor Sch The Spinney Windmill PH Butterflies Farm East Hanningfield ad Ro h rc Butterflies are common to Hill hu C Main Road Farm ld hedgerows and woodland edges. N O In early spring you may see the bright yellow Brimstone (left), in summer keep an eye out for Pan Lane 6 Orange Tip butterflies (far left). Purleigh Vineyard The Bell at Purleigh N Established in 1969 by the Greenwood This cosy public house has been entertaining people since the 14th family, Purleigh Vineyard is one of the century. It is set in Purleigh’s small conservation area with the church and oldest wine producers in England. Grape original village buildings on top of the hill overlooking the Blackwater vines are generally grown on south facing estuary. The views along this section of the walk across the Blackwater sheltered slopes. These locations are valley are stunning. preferred to flatter ground for the drainage and for the plants to receive the most amount of sunshine. Whitegate Kent Wood PW Rudley Green Blind Lane Farm MundonHall Birchwood Chelmsford Cammas Farm Road Farm Scotts Moat irchwo B odRo Farm Lodge New Hall Mundon Cock Clarks ad Lane Vineyard Sparrow St Mary’s e Wycke B Church n B Orchard a L Baron’s Villa s d s Niemans Lane on Mundon Furze Pump m Farm Sch im Lane Purleigh S Mill House Corporation Farm B Church Hill Fambridge Purleigh Street Farm Clock House Road Poultry Houses B Farm Mill Hill Purleigh B ndbush R adPH o B Purleigh Rou B Hackmans Lane Hall B Elm Tree Great Wood Piggeries Farm Burnham Road Le Howe Farm View over to Bradwell Power Station Old Maldon Railway See if you can spot the nuclear power station in the distance. You will pass over an old railway track that The site was an early design, capable of 242MW (Mega Watts) ran from Maldon to Woodham Ferrers. of output with an infrastructure dating back to the 1950's. This It first closed to the public and then to nuclear power station generated electricity from 1962 until freight in 1953. Maldon had another 2002 and it is now in a programme of decommissioning. The train line that ran north to Witham. site was partly chosen for the unlimited source of cooling water Although the lines are both long gone in from the Blackwater Estuary. It is currently estimated that Maldon you can still see the East clearance of the site will be completed by 2104. The power Station building and the old goods shed station has been a large employer out here in this very rural near the River Chelmer. You can also location for more than forty years. In 2009 the government see remnants of the tracks and the identified the site for potential future nuclear power embankments dotted around the generation. The decommissioning will continue as a modern countryside, which is what you are 7 power station design would offer a much larger output. passing over here. Seasonal Visitors N Despite the species suffering a significant decline in numbers over the years you are likely to spot a Lapwing on your journey. Northern European Lapwings arrive on this coast in autumn flocking on the ploughed fields Stansgate Road Canney Road Mayland Creek Mundon Creek Poplars B Farm PH Batt’s Road Mundon B Hall Hill’s Steeple Moat Landing Stages Grange North Drive St Mary’s Church Nipsells Maldon Road Sailing Club B Imperial Avenue Sewage Newhouse Works Farm Loftman’s Bramble Wembley B Jeagor Farm Farm Maylandsea Sch Avenue B Farm Mayland B Mundon Parish Church of St Mary Maylandsea This is an extraordinary grade one listed Classic sailing boats thrive on the Blackwater, look out for Smacks and Thames Barges monument delicately restored by the moored at the Blackwater Marina. Smacks and Thames barges appear quite similar at Friends of Friendless Churches with the first glance. Smacks were small fishing boats with red ochre sails. Thames barges were help of English Heritage. Look out for the commercial sailing boats that moved cargo around the Thames, they also had red ochre mural on the east wall which shows sails but were much larger than a smack. Their flat bottoms were designed to enable tassels and bunched curtains being drawn the boats to operate in the shallow waters. They traded with the north of England above the window in an attempt at a and even across the sea to the European ports. The boats fell out of use with the trompe l’oeil (trick of the eye). development of road and rail transport. Sailing on the Blackwater remains popular 8 today with many marinas and sailing clubs. Sch
Ramsar Sites N You are now walking into an area designated as a Ramsar site. The Convention Bradwell Marshes on Wetlands of International Importance was held in Ramsar, Iran in 1971. The convention resulted in a treaty that provides the framework for international cooperation for the conservation and wise use of wetlands and their resources. You can find out more at www.ramsar.org. Many bird species from all around the world are dependant on their migratory behaviour and therefore governments from around the world need to work Glebe together to protect the habitats needed to sustain them. Our coastline here supports thousands of Brent geese. The coast here is populated by a large and varied bird population and is an important feeding ground for overwintering birds. In fact it is so important that the coast here has been recognised not only as a Ramsar site but also as a National Nature Reserve, Weatherwick a Site of Special Scientific Interest, a Special Protection Area and a Special Area of Conservation! Bradwell Road East Brick House St Lawrence Hyde Farm Hall Hall Farm Marsh Road Bradwell Road Kings WT St Lawrence Farm Steeple Road Brook Road B B Viewpoint West Hyde Recreation Marsh Road Sch Ground Black House Workings Marsh Road Farm (disused) PH B Tillingham B Southminster Road Stows Brick House Reddings Lane Farm West Newlands Estuarine Saltmarshes The coastal scenery of Essex is a mosaic of estuaries, twisting creeks, mudflats, large areas of saltmarsh, and shingle beaches. The creeks are relatively permanent and they are tidal which provides a fascinating habitat in which specialised species, 9 called halophytes, can thrive. Halophytes are tolerant of high salinity conditions. Flood Management The Chapel of St Peter on-the-Wall The extent of the saltmarshes was reduced when men found ways to drain the land. In Roman times the area you are standing in was the defensive fort of These large areas of re-claimed land were put into agricultural use. You will Othona. After the fall of the Roman Empire the fort became a walk along the large sea walls that protect this land from village that a missionary called Cedd came to in 653AD. flooding. The remaining saltmarshes are delicate and need Cedd built the chapel dedicated to St Peter across the protection from the strength of the sea. Moored just west wall of the old Roman fort using the stones and off shore you can see some sunken Thames tiles from the fort remains. Most of the building you Lighters that are being used as wave breaks. see today is exactly the same as it was when it was Lighters are a type of flat-bottomed barge built over a thousand years ago. However, that were used in the River Thames to during Elizabethan times the Chapel fell Bradwell transfer goods from ship to shore Power Station into disuse and was used as a barn when larger boats could not moor probably housing animals, grain at the river edge. Community and carts! Look carefully at the Settlement Airfield walls to spot where the farmer (disused) Chapel of removed some of the wall to St Peter on the wall Offshore Wind Farms get his carts in. Visitors are Bradwell East Hall welcome to enter the Those with really good eyesight Farm chapel to find out more or PH Waterside will be able to see the faint Curtis Grove P just to sit for a while. outline of a wind farm beyond the Thames Lighters. Offshore windfarms are increasingly common due to the East End Road difficulties of finding suitable locations on land. These large turbines harness the power of the wind and turn it into electricity in our homes. The turbines you can see are at Gunfleet Sand, Sch located off Clacton-on-Sea. Bradwell-On-Sea Bradwell Marshes Glebe N 10 Weatherwick This leaflet is issued by Essex County Council, Environment, Sustainability and Highways, Public Rights of Way Team. You can contact us in the following ways: By Telephone:
By Post: Essex County Council Environment, Sustainability and Highways Public Rights of Way County Hall, Chelmsford Essex CM1 1QH By email: prow.web@essex.gov.uk Visit our website: www.essex.gov.uk/prow
Published June 2011 09 2146 DS