15.5 km 10 miles 3/10
A pleasant rural walk, with plenty of shade, taking in nature reserves, a Roman road, an interesting old church All Saints, Theydon Garnon (do look inside), and a Railway Heritage Centre.
Posted recently, but you’re getting it again because the Theydon Oak are holding hold their annual Oakfest "Sausage and Cider" Festival (50 ciders, 10 ales) this weekend. Unfortunately, SWCs official cidernado will be unable to attend, but don’t let that stop you. You can always buy him one next time you see him.
Transport
Get the Central Line to Theydon Bois to arrive at 10.30. Use Journey planner to time your journey.
Finish at Epping Station, also on the Central Line. Both stations zone 6. It is also possible to finish at North Weald and get a bus to Epping. Maybe even a heritage bus (there's a special bus event today).
Lunch
The recommended stop is the Dog House, (formerly the Moletrap) open from 12 tel: 01992 522093 Booking advised. Picnickers can stop at the nearby village pond. (There’s a bench).
You also have the Kings Head in North Weald tel:01992 525001 and a café at the Railway Centre there
Tea
The Theydon Oak, innit.
For a quieter end to the day, the other ending would take you past The Garnon Bushes pub +44 1992 560211, and, later, pubs and cafes in Epping High Street.
Directions here t=swc.409
The Theydon Oak ending is the leftmost of the two GPS options.
One more thing:- If you have an old print-out, note that at the decision point for this ending, after the motorway bridge, the route through the Garnon Bushes Reserve has been tweaked. (The original path is overgrown). You now continue ahead and take the second left, a well defined path at a fingerpost. (GPS and written directions updated).
3 comments:
Arrived Dog House 12.01, poor beer selection - Doom Bar & Timothy Taylor Landlord - so pressed on. Arrived King's Head in North Weald at 12.40 - more Doom Bar! So again pressing on in the hope of decent ale (& sausages) at the Theydon Oak.
Arrived Theydon Oak 1.45pm. Happily, a fine selection of good ale (& 15 varieties of sausages).
N=9 in W=fine-and-sunny weather. A bridge over a drainage ditch at the end of the marshland, before the first motorway crossing, is on it's last legs. Surprisingly it hasn't yet been closed. If (when) it collapses it will present a problem, as the ditch is much too deep, even when dry for scrambling over.
Rather too much road walking in the first half of the walk was offset by a very pleasant second half. Parts of the walk resembled country scenes far away from London until one was brought back to earth by evidence of the national sport of Essex.....burnt out vehicles!
Everybody liked their food or drink in The Moletrap but the walk highlight was the beer and cider festival at The Theydon Oak. As many as 200 people in the huge garden with many interesting and affordable brands on offer.
Mercifully only a mile or so back to Epping station where we collapsed unto a Central Line tube. Lovely way to spend a Sunday.
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