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Stage 13
-
Hutton Village to
Thames Chase Forest Centre
(10.85 miles)
Start: Grid
Reference TQ6347395123 Post Code CM13 1RR
(nearest) StreetMap
ROUTE
DESCRIPTION
We follow
Hutton Village, then off-road past the old church and cross-country to Ingrave,
past the huge pile of Thorndon House & thru' Thorndon Park North. As well as the
park, the route takes in many other properties owned by the Thames Chase
Community Forest, including Warley Gap, Codham Hall Woods & Franks Wood. We pass
thru' Little Warley, Great Warley and skirt the outside of Upminster on our way
to the finish at the Thames Chase Forest Centre at Broadfields Farm.
Start
at the entrance to Hutton Village and next to the
old wooden bus shelter.
Follow Hutton Village, signed Hutton Church, for 550 yards, staying on the LHS.
Immediately before, where the
road turns sharp right,
turn left onto a path through the trees, signed public footpath. After just a
few yards, turn right onto a path with trees and wooden fences to the right and
grassland to the left.
Just to the
right of the path, but hidden from view, is
Hutton Hall.
It stands on the north end of a large rectangular moat which has been partially
filled in. The present house dates from the 17th Century with later
alterations. Evidence suggests an older house on this site dated back to at
least Norman Times.
The
path leads directly to the car park of All Saints Church. Go straight through
the car park and onto a lane. Turn right along the lane and past the church.
Immediately past the church turn left onto a footpath, signed
"Footpath
94 to Bridleway 72".
Hutton
is a large village in Essex, but really can be described as an outlying suburb
of
The small
All Saints Church is
The village got
national news coverage a few years ago when a car wash opened where cars were
cleaned by scantily clad young ladies using their busts and backsides to wash
while the occupants stayed inside. BBC News covered this. I watched the
programme, but I don't
know if any news footage still exists or if the young ladies managed to clean
all parts of the cars.
Hutton also has
a darker side in its history for being in the news. The first police officer of
the
Essex Constabulary
to be killed whilst on active duty was
Robert Bambrough
- he was drowned in a pond in Hutton by the criminal, He was escorting William
Wood from Billericay Magistrates Court on 21st November 1850. Wood
overpowered him and put his head in a pond at the junction of
Follow
the footpath straight, with the wall of the churchyard to the left. Then
straight for 350 yards on across a field (past a
pond to the right at one
point) and out onto a lane at the opposite side.
The photo at the link is
taken from the lane and looking back along Footpath 94 towards Hutton Church.
This is the path we've
just walked along. The trees to the left of the photo are by the pond we have
just passed.
Go
straight across the lane and past a gate onto a wide track along the edge of a
field signed "Bridleway
72 to Ingrave".
After another 0.43 miles follow the track through a gap in trees, and then as it
veers right along the edge of a wood to your RHS and a large field to your LHS.
The
track eventually turns left then right, always with the trees (Hall
Wood)
to the RHS and the field to the LHS and after 0.35 miles comes to a T-junction
with a farm to the left
(at 1.4 miles).
Turns
right and follow the lane / Bridleway 72 for 0.7 miles where it turns left at
fingerpost. Turn left
along the road (Do not go straight on).
The lane (Middle
Road)
is a pleasant walk but soon passes a sewage works (sorry about that). Then past
Ingrave Hall
and farm and a couple of isolated houses (at 2 miles). When it turns left, we
pass a large house named Heatleys.
The Manor of Ingrave dates back to at least Saxon Times with the name coming from Old Saxon - Ging-Ralph (land or people owned by to Ralph).
According to
IngraveHall.com (Link broken):
"We have been told that the village of Ingrave goes back to Anglo-Saxon times when it was named as a shortening of Ralph's Ingas - meaning the "people of Ralph". History suggests that Ralph was a Domesday tenant and that he lived where Ingrave Hall now stands. A lovely legend that is certainly supported by the evidence of a moat fully surrounding the site (much of which is now filled) and the beautiful cone shaped pond."
There are the
ruins of the 12th century St Nicholas Church just west of Ingrave
Hall. In c1736 it was replaced by
St Nicholas'
Church,
just over half a mile south of here, on Brentwood Road in the centre of the
village.
During an
archaeological dig, of the old site on Middle Road, in 1975, it was discovered
that Roman tiles were used in the old church's
construction, but it is not known if there was a Roman settlement here.
The Rectory of the old church dates from 16th century and is still standing. It is to the LHS where I wrote "Do not go straight on above". It has been renamed "Heatleys" after the Rev. Henry Heatley, the last rector of the old church. There is a bit of a sprawl of buildings on this corner with a small lake in the grounds (you can see it through the trees on the LHS 60 yards before the corner of the lane). The Old Rectory has been developed through the years but some of the original building still exists. It is grade II listed.
In 1903
composer
Ralph Vaughan
Williams
(1872 -
1958) came to
The lane after
Heatley's
is pleasant with flowery verges, hedgerows, trees and fields on both sides.
There are no pavements, but it's
practically traffic free.
500
yards after the lane turn lefts we enter housing at Ingrave Village. Go straight
for 140 yards, soon past Common Road to the RHS and then stay with Middle Road
as it veers right and leads to a T-junction with the busy A128 (Brentwood Road).
At the
T-junction cross over the road, using the zebra crossing just to the right, and
turn left along the pavement. After 50 yards, turn right into Thorndon Gate.
After
220 yards and immediately after passing the entrance to Thorndon Hall turn half
right onto a footpath, signed
"Public
Footpath 42",
and through some trees. The path soon passes in front of the large hall
(Thorndon Hall, at 3 miles), to your RHS (see
photo),
and continues through the woods and deeper into Thorndon Country Park North.
After 0.66 miles it comes out onto a wide track.
The entrance to
Thorndon Hall Chapel
is a couple of hundred yards north along lane and to the right. It is hidden in
the trees and as far as I can ascertain has been inaccessible to the public for
many years. However, a news article in the
Times Online
dated 10th January 2009 states the
Historic Chapels Trust
have announced they are to take on the preservation and restoration of the
Thorndon Hall Chapel. It reads:
"...chantry
chapel in the
The simple exterior gives no clue of the angel roof within, as richly carved as
that in any medieval
For updated
information on Thorndon Hall Chapel visit the
Petre Chapel
section at
The
Chapels
Society.
Cross
over the lane onto a path / bridleway going west and signed
"Wildside
Walk". (Be careful as sometimes where we
join this walk moves, but only a few yards each way. Some maps have it to the
right, some to the left and some straight over).
After
350 yards at junction of footpaths, turn right and going north, for 175 yards.
Then left at junction of tracks and west along a wide path. After another 380
yards turn right (now going north and still Wildside Walk, at 4 miles) and
follow the wide path to
a car park. Turn left along the southern edge of the car park to the entrance
gate of Thorndon Park North Countryside Centre.
Thorndon Hall was designed by architect James Paine for Robert Edward, the 9th Lord Petre (1742 - 1801). It was built between 1764 and 1767. The grounds were landscaped by Capability Brown between 1766 and 1772. In 1778, fearing an invasion from France, many thousands of militia were camped nearby at Warley Common. In October, George III and Queen Charlotte visited Lord Petre at Thorndon Hall to inspect the troops. The review included a mock battle in which 10,000 men were engaged. The camp broke up the following month, but was reformed in 1779, 1781 and 1782.
The original
Thorndon Hall was situated a mile south of the present one and dates back to at
least the early 15th Century. It was called West Thorndon Hall and
purchased from the Mordaunt family by Sir John Petre in 1573. In 1603 he became
the 1st
Lord Petre.
The family fortune had been acquired by his father
Sir William Petre
(1505 -
1572). William was born at Tor-Brian, in Devonshire. He was knighted in 1535,
and became one of the chief secretaries of state in 1543. He was Secretary of
State to
Over the years
the Petre family maintained their strong Catholic faith. The family produced two
bishops and was instrumental in preserving Catholicism in
Robert, the 7th Lord Petre inspired Alexander Pope to write his famous poem "The Rape of the Lock". It was written as a favour to his friend John Caryll who wished to diffuse a family feud between the Petre and Fermor families, both Catholic and interconnected. The young Lord was an admirer of Arabella Fermor and without her permission cut a lock of her hair. Arabella a beautiful young society lady took great offence and a family feud followed. The original poem was a mock piece written in less than a fortnight with the intention of making the two families laugh at the incident and bring them together again. Pope published it on 20th May 1712. Over the next couple of years Pope extended it and republished it on 2nd March 1714. A final version was completed by 1717, and by this time Robert had already died of smallpox and Arabella was married. It is recognised as one of the finest mock epic poems in English language.
Robert James Petre, the 8th
Lord Petre
(1713 -
1742) from an early age was very green fingered with a huge interest in
horticulture. He collected trees and plants from all over the world and grew
them in his park at Thorndon. He
became the most prolific collector of American trees and shrubs in
The old hall
was demolished by
Robert Edward Petre, the 9th
Lord Petre
in the late 18th Century after building the current Thorndon Hall,
but a few
remnants
still remain in the Old Park.
You can also
read a full history of both Thorndon Halls at the
LINK.
In 1878 a
devastating fire caused a great amount of damage to the
"new"
Thorndon Hall. It fell into disrepair and left vacant for many years. In 1920 a
group of businessmen leased the remnants of the hall along with 240 acres of
park. Their intention was to build a championship golf course and magnificent
private housing development. The course was designed by Harry Colt, but with
building restraints the housing development never materialized. Initially
Thorndon Park Golf Club
used part of the large hall as their clubhouse. Over the years the golf club
purchased the land and in 1968 bought the hall. However, in 1974 a new clubhouse
was built and the following year Thorndon Hall was sold to a building company.
They restored the facade of the Palladian mansion to its former glory and
converted the building into luxury apartments. The building is
grade 2* listed.
In the early 20th
Century when the Thorndon estate was broken up and sold off, parts of it were
bought by
Essex County Council.
The present country park occupies 385 acres of this and includes the North Park
and the
"Thorndon
Country Park is in two parts, the northern section on a gravel ridge and the
southern part on clay soil lower down. The two parts are now linked by Old
Thorndon Pastures, which is farmland that has been restored to a traditional
farming landscape with small hedged fields, grazed by cattle.
Thorndon
Country Park offers a variety of habitats including ancient woodland, parkland,
ponds, a marsh and meadow. There are some stunning ancient trees including Giant
Oak and Hornbeam pollards, that are reminders that this was once a deer park.
Parts of it used to be heathland, now a scarce habitat in Essex, and to restore
it parts of the park, both north and south, are being grazed by goats and sheep.
park
attracts a large number of woodland birds and sees more than its fair share of
passage migrants and winter visitors. For example, large flocks of Siskins and
Redpolls often gather in the birches, and bramblings can be seen near to the
centre feeding on beech mast. There are many butterflies to be enjoyed including
the uncommon Purple and White-letter Hairstreaks.
The park is managed by Essex County Council's Ranger Service who are returning Conifer plantations to grassland or woodland as mature trees are harvested."
The
The North Park
has its own
It's
great to see that this ancient
You can
download the map to see the alternatives and also read more about Thorndon Park
on the
Healthy Life Essex
website.
The
"Wildside Walk",
which we follow, is part of a 5 mile walk around of the north and south parks,
takes in most of the points of interest and starts and finishes at the Visitor's
Centre at the end of this stage. NOTE: What's
at the links and my route may differ slightly. However, both are about the same
distance and the main objective is to get to the Visitor's
Centre.
Thorndon Park Countryside
Centre
was built from timber blown over in the 1987 storms in the park. It has a
permanent exhibition including interactive displays, a shop selling gifts and a
small restaurant. There are public toilets just south of the centre and many
things of interest close by. They include a
130 million year old tree
fossil, the wooden
Thorndon Man sculpture,
a community garden, many footpaths going off into the woods and much more. The
Essex County Council Ranger Service is based at the centre. They spent much of
their time conserving and improving the park and offer a wide range of service
to the public, including educational and fun activities to all ages.
Go
north to exit the car park and turn left along the road
-
you can use the
verge. After 350 yards out through the main gate. Immediately after a black
way-marker post, to the LHS and just before the main road, turn left onto a
footpath through the woods (do not take the bridleway going sharp left).
The woods form the northern edge of Little Warley Common. An information board on the LHS of the path provides more details and a map of the common. Little Warley Common covers an area of 115 acres but was once much larger. According to British History Online:
"Little Warley has always been a mainly agricultural
parish. In 1086 there were 2 plough-teams on the demesne and 3 belonging to the
tenants, woodland for 700 swine, and marshland pasture for 100 sheep. Since 1066
one plough-team had disappeared from the demesne; otherwise there had been no
change.
The most striking Domesday figure is that relating to swine-pastures, which shows that Little Warley was one of the most densely wooded places in Essex. At that time the north of the manor probably consisted mainly of woodland and scrub, some of which still survives as Little Warley common."
"Commoners"
were allowed to graze here up to the late 19th century. After this
most of the common was colonized by trees. At the southern end some grassland
still remains for grazing. Also, at the southern end is a
beacon,
one of the many erected in the late 20th century to herald the new
millennium. For more information on Little Warley Common visit
Thames Chase.
Follow
the bridleway for 320 yards to a road (Childerditch Lane). Cross over the road
and go just a few yards right to a crossroads. Turn left, signed Great Warley
and staying on the LHS pavement along road (Eagle Way).
After
another 0.45 miles go straight on along the LHS pavement past the entrance drive
to the Ford Motor Company.
After
another 175 yards turn left into Clive Road - Ford is still to the left.
Continue along
If you look
ahead and to your left, shortly before turning left into Clive Road, you should
be able to get a view of the huge
Warley Water Tower.
According to
British History Online:
"A temporary military camp was set up in 1742 on Warley
Common, in Great and Little Warley. The common was used for other camps on
several later occasions in the 18th century. The 1778 camp was visited by George
III and by Dr. Samuel Johnson.
In 1805 the War Office bought 116 acres of the common
and built permanent barracks for two troops of horse artillery. From 1806 to
1815 Warley House, formerly on the SE. corner of Eagle Way and Warley Hill,
seems to have been the commandant's quarters. Various army units used the
barracks until 1832, after which they lay empty for a decade.
The East India Company bought the barracks for 15,000 pounds in 1843, and in the next 15 years greatly altered and added to the buildings, further land being purchased in 1858. In 1861 the India Office transferred the barracks once more to the War Office."
The British
East India Company would train over a thousand recruits at a time here before
sending them off to look after their assets in India. However, a few years after
the
Indian Rebellion of 1857
the men and barracks here were absorbed back into the British Army. Later to
become the home of the Essex Regiment.
To the right,
at the end of the Clive Road and, is the
Essex Regimental Chapel.
It was built in 1857 for the
British East India Company,
but with the establishment of the Essex Regiment Barracks and Depot at Warley it
became the regiment's
home church in 1925. It was unique as the Essex Regiment was the only one to
have its own freestanding church. The barracks and depot were demolished in 1961
to make way for the
If you look across Clive Road, just before the junction with Warley Gap, you can see the old wooden lychgate of the church. On the ground, to the right of this, is an old milestone / War Department estate boundary marker.
At
Britain From Above
you can see some old photos of Warley Barracks and the surrounding area taken in
1932. You should be able to make out the regimental chapel, where the main
barracks sat and where Ford is now.
You can read
more about Warley Barracks at
Wikipedia and about the regimental chapel at
Thames Chase.
Just past the
chapel
At junction, turn
left along a lane behind Ford and after just 30 yards, then turn right onto a
footpath into the woods of
Warley Gap. There is soon a choice of paths, take the one to the left. This
goes downhill through the narrow woods. At points there can be tree trunks
deliberately laid across the path to stop cyclists going down here at speed. The
trunks are low and are easily stepped over.
The
Warley Gap
is part of Thames Chase Community Forrest and is an old narrow belt woodland
running south from Ford at Little Warley and steeply downhill. It is mainly made
up of oak, beech and silver birch and on the ground are the remains of pits and
banks created by old gravel works. Some of these are very popular with mountain
bikers doing stunts -
hence the trees across the paths.
In 1903 Warley
Gap was the scene of a crime of passion.
Bernard White, a 21 year old soldier of the Essex Regiment beat his 20 year
old ex-girlfriend Maud Garret to death after finding out she was seeing someone
else. He was found guilty of the crime and executed on 1st December
1903. It was the first
Springfield Prison
execution at which the famous hangman
Henry Pierrepoint
had officiated.
After 0.65 miles the path comes out onto Magpie Lane. Turn right and immediately take the left fork, soon to a T-junction with Bird Lane (at 6 miles). In front is St Faith's Farm owned by the Pennorth and Stockdale Studs.
Turn left into Bird Lane and immediately past St Faith's Farm buildings turn right to cross the road and cross a stile onto a footpath across a paddock with the farm to your RHS. The path crosses a few more stiles and soon straight on and downhill along an enclosed path along the right edge of a field, with the hedgerow to your RHS and a fence to the LHS.
To the left are
good views across southern
The
path leads to a
footbridge
over a stream and into another field. Continue straight across the field. At the
opposite side cross a
stile
to follow the path straight on along the LHS of a third field.
At the
other side of the field cross a stile to come out onto Great Warley Street
(B186). Directly across the road is the
Warley
comes from the Anglo-Saxon
"Wareleia"
meaning "wood
or clearing near a wear".
In Norman Times there were the two manors here, the Manor of Warley Abbess (or
Great Warley) and the Manor of Warley Franks. The manors were rural, mainly
agricultural and land use has not changed greatly since, apart from the building
of the M25 and A27 (T) through it. The original parish
The new
parish church
at
Great Warley
was built between 1902 and 1904 using lands and money donated by Evelyn
Heseltine.
De Rougemont Manor - a Tale of Two Families The Heseltines & The Hiltons
gives more information on the donor's background. Below is a small quote from
the source.
"Evelyn Heseltine was an extremely successful
stockbroker, a man of immense wealth and energy; he set to work not only on
Goldings but also on Great Warley. He built many properties in the village, he
also owned several local farms and employed large numbers of staff to work in
them and also handpicked "favoured" residents to be part of his private staff.
Practically every local family worked for Mr Heseltine and he was much
respected.
Perhaps, the most renowned of these building projects was the creation of the wonderful mother-of-pearl church, St Mary the Virgin only 300 metres down the road, which was dedicated to the memory of his brother Arnold, Evelyn was particularly close to his younger brother Arnold, who died in 1897, leaving a widow and a baby son, Philip."
The design and
furnishing were under the control of the architect,
Charles Harrison Townsend,
with the sculptor and
interior design
by
William Reynolds-Stephens.
The result was this magnificent church which is believed to be their best work.
St
Mary the Virgin, Great Warley
is listed Grade 1 and its
lych-gate
Grade 2. The Art Nouveau interior needs to be seen first hand to be properly
appreciated. Materials used include many metals, marble and mother of pearl,
together with walnut furniture. The elegant windows blend in beautifully with
the rest and the attention to detail is incredible. During World War II the
church was damaged by bombing and again in 1975 by an act of vandalism. However,
everything has been painstakingly restored. Locals often refer to it as
"the
The Shelwin.com website is by a descendant of the Heseltine family. It gives a very good account of the history of all three churches. There are also some good photos of the art nouveau church.
Another story
worth a mention, before leaving Warley, happened in 2001 and affected the whole
country for most of that year. It was on 19th February 2001 when the
first case of
foot & mouth disease
was detected at Cheale Meats abattoir at Little Warley. This was the first signs
of an epidemic which would basically close down the whole countryside of the
Continue south along Great Warley Street for 750 yards, staying on the RHS. Then
turn right into
Shortly before turning into Codham Hall Lane is the old Great Warley Pumping House. According to British History Online it dates from 1881. The site lay derelict for years, probably because it sat on green belt land. Four pump house buildings and the two subterranean reservoirs have been converted to offices and recently converted to luxury appartments.
Follow
the lane for 720 yards to where it turns sharp left. To the right is a narrow
lane (leading to Hole Farm) and in front is the entrance to a field, with a
large green metal gate. Go around the gate and into the field. Then immediately
turn right on a wide path, past a public bridleway fingerpost and along the RHS
of the field. Follow the bridleway around
the
edge of the field for 0.4 miles
-
it goes north, then west, then north, then west, then south. It eventually turns
right through a gap in the hedgerow and to a footbridge. Once over the
footbridge turn left.
I was hoping to
use a cross-country route between Great Warley Church and the green gate on
Codham Hall Lane, but to my surprise on contacting the local council I
discovered Hole Farm Lane was private and had no public right of way.
The lane past
Hole Farm was used by pilgrims during the Middle Ages. According to
British History Online:
"In the Middle Ages a second, more westerly road apparently ran south from the green to St. Mary's Lane; it passed Hole Farm, Codham Hall, and Franks manor-house, and still existed in the 19th century as a series of footpaths and lanes known as Pilgrims Way."
The pilgrims
were usually on their way to the shrine of
Thomas a Becket,
at Canterbury Cathedral. He was Archbishop of Canterbury and murdered by
followers of king Henry II in the cathedral in 1170 and soon afterwards was
canonised by Pope Alexander III. According to
Thames Chase:
"By this time pilgrim routes had grown up between Canterbury and York passing through this area, improving the local economy, and recorded at places like Pilgrims Hatch, Herongate, South Weald, St. Thomas Chapel, Brentwood; Great Warley and Hole Farm Lane to Warley Franks where local guides could take pilgrims across the marshes, then on to Stifford Bridge and Grays and the Thames ferries at places like Rainham, Purfleet and Tilbury."
The small
woods, just passed, around to the north of the large field just exited are for
some reason called "Un-named
Woods".
A great name to call a wood you can't
be bothered to name.
Continue straight on the bridleway along the LHS of a field, then through a gap
and along the LHS of a second field and going directly south. After another 100
yards a track to the left leads to Codham Hall Farm. Ignore this track and
continue straight on past it and eventually into Codham Hall Wood.
To our right, along this path, the constant hum of traffic can be heard. This is due to the M25 being only a short distance away and running parallel.
Codham Hall Wood
is owned and managed by Essex County Council. With the building of the
M25 motorway
(opened in 1986) the wood got cut in two and, with a major road intersection
(M25 / A127) built here, almost half of the wood was lost.
The
bridleway through the
woods is pleasant and well maintained. It leads to a picturesque wooden
footbridge over a stream
and nestled amongst the trees, then further through the woods to come out onto a
road.
Continue straight on (south) through Codham Hall Wood, avoiding a footpath going off to the RHS. The bridleway soon crosses a footbridge (at 8 miles) and after another 240 yards leads out onto a road.
A few yards in
front on exiting the wood is the busy A127 and to the right are the M25 and the
intersection of these two major roads. Don't
get confused with all the hustle and bustle of the surroundings, as somehow the
route manages to keep to a quiet and well protected route screened off from
those who are speeding back and forwards.
I don't
think I would have ever found this route without the help of pleasant young lady
who at the time was the Essex County Council Public Rights of Way Officer
-
and it works so well.
Turn
left along the road, the busy A127 is just to the right and running parallel.
After 175 yards a road going off to the left leads to Codham Hall Farm. However,
stay on straight past this and soon gradually climbing uphill to turn right over
a wide footbridge / road bridge over the A127. Once over follow the track as it
turns right again and descends parallel to the A127, but this time west and back
towards the M25.
It seems
obvious from the size of the track, width of the bridge and the large storage
park immediately south of the bridge that this was all originally built to give
farm machinery and other vehicles access. However, through the work done by
Thames Chase, in providing the public with more access to the countryside, this
is route serves us well, as there seems to be no other safe ways to cross the
A127.
Follow
the track for 500 yards to just before the busy A127 / M25 intersection.
This was the
junction we turned away from three quarters of a mile ago as we left the Codham
Hall Wood. In real terms, as the crow flies, it's
only a distance of 160 yards. However, we have covered 0.66 miles, but there is
no alternative so we should be thankful.
From the track
it is easy to read the motorway signs and see the expressions on the faces of
vehicle occupants as the speed past. Luckily the track turns left to run
parallel to the M25 as it climbs above to hide on an embankment. The hum of the
motorway is almost removed and to the left is pleasant countryside stretching
off in the distance. I often wonder if man had found this route before now as I
have never come across another human being along this stretch. However, there
are a few tell-tale signs to contradict my theory.
When I first
walked this route in 2005, accompanied by Mike Hutchins, then a young and active
octogenarian, I had a few reservations as to where all this would lead. When we
eventually came out the other end his first comment was
"That
was remarkable, and it works very well".
This made me realise it was good, it did work really well and what a varying
mixture of landscape it was. However, through time this has changed so please
read the update below.
ADDITION NOTE /
CAUTION:
Since 2009 there has been a lot of road-works going on in the area of this busy
road junction. In the
fourteen
years since then a large community of road workers
living in
caravans
has built up here. There are new roads
and much
heavy machinery. However, the route is still accessible and next to the track is now a service
road for
"motorway
maintenance".
It appears all road construction for this
part of Essex and maybe even most of the M25 is based here. I don't
know when work finishes, but have been assured by the local council (on
25/09/18) that the public right of way will remain in place and any movement of
the bridleway should be marked. I have researched why this
"new
temporary
village"
has grown up here. It was due to a M25 motorway widening project, intended to
last until 2014, but now seems to be lasting forever. You can read about this
HERE.
Turn left to cross over the service road and follow the wide bridleway / track as it veers right, then as it turns left to runs parallel too and below the M25, and soon under a large electricity pylon.
The crop fields
to the left and the width of the track make it obvious that farm
or
other heavy
vehicles also come this way, so PLEASE BE
CAREFUL.
After
half a mile the track reaches a railway line. Turn right to follow the path next
to the railway and under the M25. Stay straight on, along an enclosed path, with
the railway to the left and fields to the right. After 380 yards, follow the
path straight on into a wood (Franks Wood).
Across the
railway, after passing under the M25, is Franks Farm. This has a manor house
dating from the 15th century, built on what seems to be the site of
the original manor house.
Franks Wood
is owned by Essex County Council. According to the
British History Online
website it gets its name from Frank Scotland who owned land here in the 13th
century and also gave his name to the Manor of Warley Franks.
"The manor of WARLEY, later known as WARLEY FRANKS, in the SW. of the parish, consisted in 1066 of two hides, held by Godric. In 1086 Swein of Essex held it in demesne...
By the 13th century the demesne lordship had passed to the Scoland (Estotlond, Escoland, or Scodlaund) family. Osbert was the first member to hold it; Geoffrey was party to a case concerning land in Warley in 1220; and in 1262 Frank Scoland agreed to pay 10 pounds and 1 lb. cummin annually at Christmas to Geoffrey Scoland from whom he was to hold a messuage and 2 carucates of land in Warley. Frank died shortly before 3 April 1285 and was succeeded by his infant son Frank. From one or both of them the manor took its name of Warley Franks."
The link at
British History Online also states, Codham Hall belonged to the Warley Franks
estate and in 1837 the estate consisted of 640 acres.
The wood is
dissected in two by the railway and is classified as a
"Site
of Importance for Nature Conservation".
The trees are ancient hornbeam coppice and to the west is the built-up area of
Cranham.
On occasions,
when walking through Franks Wood, I have come across some burnt out cars and
that old British pastime of fly-tipping.
The path is basically straight through, never going more than a few yards away from the railway. It emerges from the woods into an opening / field (a recreation ground called Cranham Playing Fields). Stay left along the southern edge of the field and soon next to the railway. Eventually, at the far corner, turn left to cross a high metal stile, and cross over the rail line, using the level crossing, to another stile. This is a main line so please TAKE GREAT CARE and make sure no trains are approaching before crossing.
Cranham Playing
Fields is also named Cranham Brickfields. The name comes from a previous use of
the site. From
The Brickfield Birder:
"This nature reserve was once the site of an old brickworks called the Cranham Brick and Tile Company. They established clay digging and brick kilns used for "firing" in 1900, near to Frank's wood and north of the railway. Men from the local area were employed, possibly as many as seventy workers. Prior to the manufacturing process, many men in the area were agricultural workers. A railway spur was built by LTS&R about 1900, from the eastern edge of Frank's Wood to a siding in the brick works for transportation of materials and of manufactured bricks. The brick-earth began to run out in 1915, and the site was closed in 1920 but the buildings were not demolished until 1929. Part of Brickfields was also claimed during the 1940's to grow vegetables and fruit as part of the wartime governments "Dig for Victory" campaign and then handed back to the local authorities after the war. In the early 1950's much of Cranham housing stock was built and it became more urbanised. It's hard to believe that this peaceful oasis of meadows and scrubland was at one time used for excavating clay to make bricks. These days, Cranham Brickworks site is recognised as a Grade 1 listed place of Borough Importance for Nature Conservation. It is now listed as a Local Nature Reserve and open to all."
You can read
more about Cranham Brickfields at
Thames Chase.
As for Cranham, the area to the north and west of here grew up after World War
II. It was one of the towns built to take the overspill of the population from
After
crossing the stile, to leave the railway, go directly south and away from the
railway along an
enclosed track
(at 10 miles).
This soon leads through a gap and into a field. Go straight on along the LHS of
the field and after 360 yards to the southeast corner of the field. Go through a
kissing-gate and out on
a road (St Marys Lane).
Directly across
the road is the entrance to
Cross over the road, veering to the left corner of the junction of the two roads. Here go through a wooden kissing-gate and stay right onto a path going south along the RHS of Cranham Golf Course and parallel to Pike Lane. After 420 yards (with a gate to your right) turn left to follow the path across the golf course – it goes along what was the original lane to Broadfields Farm. Soon past a lake to the right and after 250 yards veer right past a golf tee and to a wooden gate with a kissing gate next to it. Please be wary of golfers as you cross and try not to distract them from their game.
Go
through a kissing-gate, to leave the golf course, and onto a lane. Turn left
along the lane, towards Broadfields Farm (now the
The
Thames Chase Forest Centre,
at the end of the stage, is absolutely beautiful and completely built of wood.
It is one of my favourite buildings on the whole course. I will talk more about
it and let you see some photos of it on the write up for the next stage.
I was really
disappointed to hear the building got struck by lightning on 6th
August 2008 and burnt to the ground. However, I am pleased to say the Forest
Centre has been rebuilt to the same specifications and re-opened in late 2009.
To read more
about Thames Chase Forest Centre, Broadfields Farm and the Thames Chase Forest,
see the start of the next stage.
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