A lovely waterside walk, which then climbs to provide scenic views towards London and Hertfordshire
Words and photos: Simon Taylor, Public Rights of Way team at Essex County Council
Distance: 6.2 miles (10.0km).
Starting point: Beaumont Park Drive free car park, postcode CM19 5HB, grid reference TL409098.
Getting there: From Harlow follow signs to Roydon. In the village, Beaumont Park Drive is off Harlow Road on the left, just before the junction with the High Street (B181). From the A10, take the Hoddesdon exit then at the Amwell Roundabout follow the B181, via Stanstead Abbotts, to Roydon. Turn left at the junction with Harlow Road and then right into Beaumont Park Drive. There is a bus stop at Roydon Village Hall, served by the 31 Epping to Harlow service (essexbus.info). The walk also passes close to Roydon railway station.
Map: OS Explorer 174 Epping Forest & Lee Valley
Refreshment: The White Hart and The New Inn – on Roydon High Street.
Places of interest: Roydon has Tudor heritage. Only derelict parts of Nether Hall remain, but it was a grand Tudor mansion in the parish, owned by the Colt family into which Sir Thomas More, one time Lord High Chancellor under King Henry VIII, married. The wedding was held in 1505 at St. Peter’s Church (passed on the walk).
Nowadays, Roydon is noted for its proximity to the Lea Valley, a large area of waterways, nature reserves and open spaces. Roydon is also noted as a stronghold for the black poplar, a native but threatened tree species.
Interactive map: essexhighways.org/getting-around/public-rights-of-way/prow-interactive-map
The walk
1. Head down Beaumont Park Drive and turn right onto Harlow Road. Cross it carefully and take the footpath beside the Village Hall. After 200 metres bear left through an old iron gate then bear left again, to emerge at the village green. Cross it, passing the village sign, and opposite St. Peter’s Church head right, along the roadside pavement.
2. Just before the bridge over the canal, cross the road and head off along the lane beside the canal. Just before the bridge into the Marina Village, fork left to follow the canal-side towpath and continue along it for over a mile, passing Brick Lock 14 and enjoying the riverine scenery, the birdlife and the variety of canal boats to be seen.
3. At Feildes Weir, bear left (Hertfordshire is on the other side of the weir) through a gap beside wooden railings onto a gravel track. When the track reaches wooden raining beside a bridge, go through the wooden gate and continue in the same direction, now on grass but still with the canal behind the hedge on your right.
4. Beside the next bridge, under overhead power lines, turn left. There are splendid views along the lake to the left. At the next waymarker, turn left and in 350 metres the path crosses a bridge to emerge onto a tarmacked lane. Turn right along the lane, and at the junction bear left. Just past the farm on the left, take the footpath over a stile beside a field gate. Follow the field edge, with the trees/hedge to your left. After 500 metres, start to veer right, heading towards the far corner of the woodland opposite.
5. At that corner, take the path on the right, which heads steeply up through the wood before emerging on the corner of a large arable field. Continue straight, admiring the broad rural vista to the north, marred only by the distant line of pylons. After 200 metres, the path crosses a bridge through the hedge (great views south, as far as the City of London on a clear day) before continuing east, through a couple of metal gates, to emerge via a stile onto Low Hill Road.
6. Turn right and in 100 metres access another footpath via a stile on the left. Keep left and admire the sweeping views into Hertfordshire, including the power station. Pass through a gap in a hedge then kink right before turning left through another gap. Keep the hedge on your left then pass diagonally across part of a field to the waymarker in the corner. Follow the arrow along the next field headland, then through a hedge gap to a crossroads of paths, taking the wooded path on the left between two ivy-covered posts. This path is a bit of an adventure but keeps straight, passing through several chain stiles, to emerge onto Reeves Lane by Epping Road.
7. Turn left, and carefully follow the verge of Epping Road to the next bend, where a footpath leaves on the right via a stile beside a gate. At the next gate, head diagonally across the field and over the stile on the opposite side, then follow the field edge path beside a wood, which bends left, downhill. At the bottom of the dip, take the path on the right, with hedgerow on its left-hand side. After 300 metres, turn left through a waymarked gap in the hedgerow, leading to a concrete footbridge, then diagonally across the field to a large oak tree. The path continues north on the field edge, back towards the village, along the right-hand side of the recreation ground, leading to a lane from where steps on the right return to the car park.
