Title: East Hanningfield Distance: 8 miles / 9 miles Time taken: 3-3½ hours Location: 5 miles south east of Chelmsford Parking: Free car park off The Tye, East Hanningfield, next to the primary school OS Explorer Map: 183 & 175 Grid Ref.: TL 769 012 Transport: Regal Busways No 1: Hourly bus service to Chelmsford and Canvey Refreshment: Woodham Ferrers: The Bell Bicknacre: The Brewers Arms East Hanningfield: The Windmill Tavern Walk Description This part of south east Essex is truly lovely, with beautiful views across country in the rolling hills along the southern section. But there's a quandary: having enjoyed the walk, and taken in the sights, which route do you want to take back to East Hanningfield? The middle route has stunning views and a wonderful wildlife meadow to walk through, and the northern route includes tranquil lanes, wide open skies and some quiet woodland. Which to choose? We've written up both. To return along the more hilly middle route via Quilter's Farm, follow the instructions AA AM. Or to return along the northern route through the woods and open fields around Bicknacre, follow the instructions BA BQ. Directions First Section - East Hanningfield to Crows Lane A. From the car park (P), walk east to the end of the access road and turn right along The Tye for about 350 yards, passing All Saints Church on your left and The Windmill Tavern on your right. 75 yards past The Windmill Tavern, where the road turns to the right, carry straight on along The Tye still heading south. B. About 150 yards later, cross a footbridge and stile on the right side of the road, hidden in the hedge. It's about 20 yards before a white fence at the roadside marking the end of the 30 mph limit (1).
C. Cross the field diagonally, heading south west. You may have to climb over several stiles to navigate through the paddocks. Look for another stile through the western hedge, about 30 yards before the corner of the field. Cross this stile and the footbridge behind it, then turn left to walk south along the field edge. D. Keeping the hedge on your left, continue around the field edge for about 300 yards, until you come to a two-plank footbridge (2). Cross this bridge and continue southwards along the field edge with a hedge on your left for about 300 yards, ignoring the new sturdy footbridge about half way along. E. Turn right along the hedge line heading south west for 200 yards until you reach a gap through the hedge, with a white topped waymarker on the far side. Go through this gap and cross the next field still heading south west, aiming for a small wooded area (3). F. Enter the woods and bear left to walk through old All Saints Church graveyard for about 50 yards. Turn left to exit the woods over a stile into a small field. Cross the field diagonally aiming for a point just to the left of a house (4). Climb over the stile and follow a path skirting the property, to a lane. G. Turn left on the lane for 30 yards then bear left to walk up the side of a field with a hedge on your left, (5) and some newly planted trees on the right. H. Keep going up the slope, then along a tree-lined track (6), then bear slightly left to walk alongside a hedge to the top of a hill. The official route runs to the right of the hedge but if this is not walkable it is OK to divert onto the track to the left of the hedge. I. Turn left over the footbridge and walk along the crest of the hill (7) with the hedge on your right, for about a third of a mile. Just before you come a private garden, turn right over a stile through the hedge (8). Turn left with the hedge now on your left, and walk to the roadside. J. Walk down the road for 20 yards then turn left along a green lane for about a third of a mile to Buckhatch Lane (9). Turn right along the road for 30 yards then cross over a stile through the hedge on the left. Passing to the right of a solitary tree, aim for the white post you can just see in middle of the facing hedge (10). K. Climb over a stile and bridge (11) into a small green lane and turn left. A few yards later turn right up the slope into a field. When we came through the way ahead was not marked, but you need to get to the crest of the hill straight in front of you, to the right of the Hyde Hall greenhouses and weather station. L. Passing the weather station on your left, walk down the track (12) to Creephedge Lane. Cross the road and continue ahead to a line of trees, then bear right to walk up the hill towards a couple of trees near the top (13). M. Turn right at the trees and walk past a single tree to a group of three trees overlooking a reservoir. Turn left here, passing another single tree, and walk towards the village of Woodham Ferrers, aiming for the inverted field corner in front of you, then carry on with the hedge on your right (14). N. Cross a footbridge into the next field and walk up the hill with a hedge on your right. Carry on up the steps into St Mary's churchyard and go straight on to the roadside.
O. Cross Main Road into the car park of The Bell and go straight ahead, into a small beer garden. As you leave the beer garden turn left to walk along a footpath behind the pub, with a hedge on your left and paddocks on the right. P. Carry on for 220 yards, then turn right in front of the facing hedge (15) and walk down a path and later a track almost to the bottom of the valley. Turn left just before a stream, then 30 yards later, turn right to cross the stream. Q. Walk up the slope with a hedge on your right for 150 yards, then fork left to walk north east along a path between newly planted trees towards a more mature specimen (16). R. Continue walking north east to the top of the field and look for a stile through the hedge on your right, off the main path. (17) S. Cross the stile and continue north east across a field passing to the right of a pylon, and walk for 50 yards along a path to the access road to Hollands Farm. Turn left and climb over a stile into a small field adjacent to a farm track (18). T. Make your way to the corner diagonally opposite, and climb over another stile into a large field. Walk ahead along the field edge. Just past an oak tree, turn right over a stile. (19) U. Walk ahead initially with a hedge on your right, then Brazils Farm, then as the field opens out continue ahead to the facing hedge. Turn left walking with the hedge on your right to the north west corner of the field. Cross over a stile and footbridge and bear right to continue along a field edge with a hedge on your right. V. Bear right again in the next field to keep walking with a hedge on your right towards a pylon, then go round a huge log into Crows Lane. W. Turn left here for the shorter walk back to East Hanningfield, or right for the slightly longer walk via Bicknacre. Turn LEFT to return on the shorter route via Quilters Farm: Directions AA AM AA. Turn left along Crows Lane with a black barn on your right (20). AB. Continue for a quarter of a mile to the T-junction with Main Road. Cross the road and turn right. After 30 yards turn left along an access road beside a house called Kismet (21). AC. Follow the access road to the end of the track. As you approach Barrack Cottage turn left immediately before the house (22), then right at the end of the garden, so as to skirt around the property. AD. At the crest of the hill, by Arthur's seat, cross the field in front of you heading due west. Because of the folds of the hills it can be hard to orientate yourself. Start off aiming slightly to the right of the road you can see in the distance (23). AE. As you cross the field, go towards a small bush ahead of you. When you reach the bush, head across the next field passing to the left of a lonely oak tree (24). AF. Carry on to Creephedge Lane ahead, aiming to the left of the oak tree by the roadside (25). Turn right to walk along the lane past a cottage to the corner.
AG. A few yards past the corner of Creephedge Lane, cross over a stile on the right through a hedge (26). AH. Walk up the field with a hedge on your right, then climb over a stile on the right onto a path through the trees. Walk along the (sometimes overgrown) path for about 30 yards, then go right over another stile into a wildlife meadow (27). AI. Make your way up the slope through the flowers and grasses to the top of the hill, then look for a stile on the left into a lane by Quilters Farm. AJ. Turn right along the lane for 200 yards (28) and then turn left onto a farm access track. Go along the track for 100 yards until you come to some poultry sheds beside a line of trees. Turn left and then right to walk along a track with the trees on your right, heading north west (29). AK. Walk along this track for a quarter of a mile, then before you reach some low sheds, turn left by a waymarker (30) to cross the field to a footbridge beside a dead tree trunk (31). AL. Bear slightly right across the next field, aiming to the right of the house you can see over a hedge. AM. Climb over another stile and cross the final field diagonally towards to north west corner, then walk along the footpath beside a wooden fence to get back into East Hanningfield, and turn right to return to the car park. Turn RIGHT to return via the longer route via Bicknacre: Directions BA BQ BA. Turn right along Crows Lane going under the electricity cables (32). BB. Walk along the lane for a third of a mile to the corner. Where the lane turns right, go straight ahead for a few yards towards Emberson Lodge and turn left through a rusty gate to walk northwards along a broad grassy track (33). BC. Keep going along in roughly the same direction through several fields, keeping the hedge on your left. After about three quarters of a mile, you will reach Thrift Wood. BD. Walk along a broad track through the trees (34), then continue along a woodland path for a quarter of a mile, passing the Thrift Wood SSSI on your left. BE. About 200 yards past the entrance to the SSSI, you will come to a footpath crossroads. Go straight across. 70 yards later, at a T-junction, turn left (35). BF. You will come to a Y-junction a few yards later. For the Brewers Arms, take the left fork then when you reach the B1418 the pub is roughly opposite. Turn right towards Bicknacre to rejoin the walk. BG. Otherwise, to continue the walk, take the right fork and walk into Bicknacre. Cross the B1418 and turn right.
BH. Take the first left into The Grove and then turn left again into Lyndhurst Drive. Follow the road round until you come to a T-junction. BI. Turn right along Brockenhurst Way to the next T-junction then turn left along Deerhurst Chase almost to the end of the road. BJ. At the end of the modern houses, before the older style Mill House, there is a footpath on the left opposite a telegraph pole (36). Turn left along here. BK. Immediately before the playing fields turn right on the bridleway so as to skirt around them. Walk along a wide grassy track with a fence on your right, until you emerge onto a patch of grass by Leighams Road. BL. Don't walk to the roadside but instead turn right immediately to walk alongside the fence towards a stile (37). BM. Climb over the stile, and walk between the fences with Leigham's Farm on your left. Follow the route between the fences as it bends left and then right, to a hedge at the far side of the farmyard. BN. At the hedge turn left then right to cross a footbridge and stile (38). Walk westwards along the path, and then cross another stile into a large field. BO. Officially the footpath crosses this field diagonally to the left, but the path is often obstructed by crops and people generally turn left and walk around the field edge with the hedge on their left (39). BP. Continue along the field edge towards the low huts ahead, then take the path to the left of the gate. You will emerge onto a gravel track, continue ahead past some bushes on your left. BQ. Keep walking along the track through a small industrial estate (40), then continue ahead into East Hanningfield, and turn right along The Tey to return to the car park. ROUTE DIRECTIONS at www.essexwalks.com The ROUTE MAP and ROUTE PHOTOS also need to be downloaded and saved on your computer for printing. The Route Map PDF can be downloaded from this page: Description & Map The Route Photos PDF can be downloaded from this page: Photos This route description is not meant to be used in isolation, it is one piece of a three part guide to the walk. The other two pieces are the route map, and the numbered photographs. The walks work best when the description, map and the photos PDF are printed off and used in conjunction with each other. The numbers in brackets in the description refer to specific points along the route, marked with numbered symbols and these in turn are matched to illustrative photographs which show you the lie of the land. These symbols are shown at strategic points along the route, overlaid on a 1:50K Ordnance Survey map: Online OS Map at www.essexwalks.com.