Length: 23.7 km (14.7 mi) or 17.5 km/10.9 mi
Ascent/Descent: 258m (full walk)
Net Walking Time: ca. 5 ¼ hours (full walk)
Toughness: 4 out of 10 or 3 out of 10
Take the 08.58 Cambridge North train from Liverpool Street (Tottenham
Hale [Victoria Line] 09.10), arriving Audley End at 09.50.
Return trains: at xx.19 and xx.40. Buy an
Audley End return.
Start an hour later for the short walk…
This is a relaxing walk in the quiet chalky uplands of north-west Essex,
on the borders of Hertfordshire and Cambridgeshire, very much off the beaten
track, and with gently rolling hills, plenty of woods and copses as well as
some pretty villages. Right from the start the walk takes you past picturesque
thatched cottages with ample examples of pargeting, a decorative medieval
plastering technique, and on through some farmland to the early lunch stop in
Arkesden, one of the prettiest villages in Essex with one of the best pubs and
loveliest churches.
The route then gently ascends to Chrishall, the dedicated lunch stop on the full walk, along field boundaries and green lanes. Chrishall village is close to Essex’ highest point and the approach offers fine views into the Hertfordshire plain and back down the wide ‘winding valley’ that gives Wendens Ambo its name. After lunch you follow the Icknield Way to Elmdon, with views north out across the Cambridgeshire plain to Cambridge, then alongside a high hedge with views off to your right into the winding valley back to Wendens Ambo.
A slightly longer, more westerly route
(25.7 km/16.0 mi) takes you over Essex’ highest point itself.
Lunch: The Axe & Compasses in Arkesden
(4.9 km/3.0 mi) amazingly has reopened after a devastating fire in March
2022, but you will pass it before it opens for lunch (unless you start an hour
later and do the short walk). So, there is only The Red Cow in
Chrishall (13.1 km/8.2 mi, food to 14.30).
Tea: The Bell Inn (open all day), 10 minutes from
the station.
For walk directions, map, height profile, photos
and gpx/kml files click here . T=swc.116
2 comments:
After just making the morning train out of London, this walker was relieved to join 4 other walkers at the platform. Meeting walker 5 I was told other walkers were waiting. In total we started as 10. 2 set off separately and 8 walked together with good group cohesion until 1 walker split off doing the shorter walk. At the recommended lunch pub in Chrishall 3 dined in and the remaining 4 picnickers found a conveniently located bus shelter (complete with a roof and bench). The food was good but sadly this walker had to shelve his planned desert fearing the natural light would close in before Wendens Ambo (WA). In the pub the picnickers came for a drink but departed before the diners had finished. Post lunch the walk was muddy and sections of tarmac were welcome respite but hard going. When it was known that the 16:19 train was achievable to London, this walker found a burst of pace into WA. He reached with time in hand, passing the picnickers and on the platform met up with the 2 morning walkers (who had done the extension) and the rest of the group also made the same train. Overall the weather was pleasant cloudy with short bursts of sunshine.
N=10 W=Cloudy-with-short-bursts-of-sunshine
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