Length: 15.8 km (9.8 miles). Toughness 3/10
Take a Central line tube (towards Epping) to arrive at Theydon Bois by 11:15. It's about a 45-minute journey from central London. Theydon Bois and Epping are both in TfL Zone 6.
This Essex walk got a good turnout on its début last year, with several making the detour into Epping Forest Woodland Burial Ground to pay their respects to one of our long-standing members, Bridie.
The introduction to this walk says it is “GPS-led” but in fact some reasonably detailed directions have materialised in the PDF document. From its description I see that transport buffs are particularly well catered for: heritage buses and trains on the Epping Ongar Railway at North Weald, an airfield and no fewer than three motorway crossings.
The notes don't recommend a specific lunch pub but there are at least three along the route, plus a café at the heritage railway station and more refreshment places on Epping High Street.
The notes point put that you could finish the walk at North Weald (after 9 km) and take a bus to Epping station, either the 420 from the High Street or one of the regular heritage buses from the station. Another option for a shorter walk would be to cut out the 2.5 km loop through North Weald by turning left onto the Essex Way in Ongar Park Wood.
As usual there's no leader, so please download the GPS file and/or the directions from the L=swc.409 page.
1 comment:
Surprisingly, only n=4 for this pleasant walk. A hint of drizzle at the start but that had disappeared by the time we set off. So a w=dry-cloudy-day-sunny-later
Pleasant, that is, after an early stretch of builders yards and maybe a motorway or two. The ‘marshy’ bit was dried out and cracked and, apart from the occasional predatory bramble or briar (ow) lurking in the goats rue, was easily traversed. The encroaching vegetation was wet, though, and our trousers got an unscheduled wash.
Two stopped at the Doghouse (formerly the Moletrap) which was as pleasant as before. The other two sped on, one eager to watch England, the other just eager. We came across one later, dozing in the grass. He promptly leapt up and continued with us as far as North Weald where he got a heritage bus back to wherever. There was vintage trains chuffing about and we stopped to watch a Thomas-esque engine leave the station.
The new ending was fine though I was slightly disappointed not to be going past the Theydon Oak, of which I have fond memories (possibly tinged by last year’s cider and beer festival).
The Gernon Bushes was a pleasant enough alternative.
Another grand day out.
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