WTEC - The north bank of the Roach

The north bank of the Roach stretches from Stambridge Mills near Rochford north eastwards to Wallasea Ness where the river flows into the Crouch, a distance of about eight miles. The Roach is joined by its major tributary, Pagelsham Creek, just north of Potton Island. It is possible to walk uninterrupted along the sea wall to Pagelsham and continue north west by Pagelsham Creek to Wallasea Island. I made this walk over a couple of days with varying degrees of sunlight but the same chilly easterly breeze.

It’s very peaceful by the river, with just birdsong and waves lapping on the shore for company. The north bank was more popular with walkers than the south bank but I encountered only a few. Next to Stambridge Mills is Broomhills, the former home of Captain John Harnott, founder of the Thames River Police. A mile or so further along is the large inlet of Bartonhall creek, now almost silted up. The sea wall is a bit wild and overgrown in places. The next inlet, Stannett’s creek has been damned and is now a freshwater lagoon that was humming with birds, large and small.

The only village close to the Roach is Pagelsham, divided in Churchend (near the Church) and East End (in the east). There are lots of old interesting houses dotted about; Churchend has several white weatherboarded cottages and pub, the Punch bowl; Jubilee cottages really stand out with their bright colours and the church was very pretty with a very welcome seat. To reach Pagelsham East end you have to follow the footpath through the boatyard back to the village about a quarter of a mile away.

Here I stopped for lunch at the other pub, the Plough and Sail, owned by a member of the Oliver family, the pub mafia of Essex. The pub is well known for its food and was almost full by 12.30pm so I was lucky to get a seat. Not so lucky as it turned out as I broke a tooth on a piece of French bread but luckier than my neighbour who found a hair in his bubble and squeak. If you still fancy giving the place a try, either arrive early or book.

The last few miles past Pagelsham Pool and along Pagelsham creek are a bit of Essex wilderness. Looking mostly east, are very big skies filled with the river and the empty islands of Wallasea, Potton and Foulness, and those mysterious military buildings dotted on the horizon. There were a few craft moored in the river, either romantic looking sail boats or interesting wrecks. Turning north towards Wallasea, the occasional sail drifted through the landscape on the river Crouch and the yacht club at Burnham gleamed in the sunshine.

My base for this walk (and several others) was the Riverside Holiday Village on Wallasea Island, a large static caravan site with a few pitches for tourers. I don’t usually choose to stay on these sorts of sites but this one was clean and quiet, with all the usual facilities and some unusual ones like mobile library stops, wall-to-wall ducks and nesting swans.

To see more picture of the Roach Estuary click here
To see pictures of the Thames Estuary click here

Click here for directions and map for a nice long walk to Pagelsham and the Roach Valley.

WTEC - The south bank of the Roach

The next estuary north of the Thames is the Roach. The river rises in Hockley woods, flows through Rochford, becomes tidal at Stambridge Mills and flows into the Crouch between Wallasea Island and Foulness, a distance of about ten miles. The first few miles of the southern bank from the mouth of the river at Naze Point to Potton Island are inaccessible, being owned by the MOD. It is possible to walk from Barling Ness on mainland Essex to the lowest bridging point near Rochford. The first couple of miles west are along the sea wall and then over fields and through an industrial estate to the disused flour mill on the north bank where the tidal range ends.

I covered the distance from Barling Ness to Rochford over two days of the finest weather of the year to date, wall to wall sunshine tempered by a chilly easterly breeze on the coast. My base was the campsite at Shopland Hall Equestrian Centre, a place populated entirely by women with ponytails, tight trousers and knee length boots. The camping field was adjacent to old churchyard. Shopland Church was severely damaged by enemy action during WW2 and was subsequently demolished but the churchyard is rededicated annually. It was a pleasant camping field, very quiet at night but I was disappointed to find the café closed at teatime.

Barling Ness was about five miles from the campsite along some very busy country lanes. I picked up the sea wall at Little Wakering and followed it as meandered alongside several creeks towards Potton Island. Despite the lovely weather I only passed one family of walkers during the five hours I was out. I had lunch sitting on the headland overlooking the confluence of the Roach and a creek called the The Violet. To the east is the mysterious military Potton Island and to the north is the boatyard at Pagelsham on the north bank. In contrast, the north bank of the river was very popular with walkers.

The sea wall runs for a couple of miles past yet another landfill site and farmland. The Roach estuary is quite wide compared to the length of the river. I took my binoculars for a spot of twitching but all I saw were seagulls. The slight elevation of the sea wall makes for good all round viewing. Several miles to the north is the church at Canewdon which sits atop a little hill making a great landmark; to the west are the abandoned flower mills and a very singular white factory chimney which mark out Rochford. Walking west it was impossible to avoid seeing the tower blocks of Southend. The cottages and church are in Pagelsham on the north side of the river.

At the end of the sea wall the footpath went inland past a couple of very nice farmhouses. At Sutton Hall someone had a very large train set. I eventually came to Prittlewell creek, negotiated a field with some very inquisitive ponies, wandered through an industrial estate before picking up the Roach Valley Way, a 28 mile circular path, to Stambridge Mills on the north bank of the river. The flour mills have now been abandoned and will probably get developed into expensive riverside properties. There are motley fleet of house boats in various states of disrepair at the end of the navigable section of the river.

Rochford is an old market town with a regular Tuesday market in the Town Square. Rochford Hall was the home of Ann Boleyn’s sister and the town was probably once a flourishing port. Next to Rochford Hall, which is now a golf club, is the fine church of St Andrews with a very impressive brick tower. A puritanical sect known as the Peculiar People originated in Rochford during the nineteenth century. All these facts and many more are provided by Rochford District Council in their two excellent guides of the area, a fact that Slough Council could take note off.

Rochford District Heritage Guide
Rochford District Visitors Guide

To see more picture of the Roach Estuary click here

Haven Point to Barling Ness

Turning my back on the Thames, I headed north west toward Barling Ness on the river Roach to pick up the coastline. Mainland Essex is separated from the islands to the north east by a series of creeks, some large, some small. Along with Foulness the MOD also occupy Potton Island and Rushley Island, linked to mainland by bridges and causeways.

The sea wall takes a serpentine route along Havengore Creek and Potton creek that I seemed to walk in every direction. At one point you can see Southend and at another Burnham on Crouch. The land is very, very flat so the elevation from the sea wall makes for excellent views all round. There wasn't a great deal to see except for clouds and mysterious military buildings on Potton Island.

Potton Creek was large enough to be navigable and hidden halfway between the Roach and the Thames was a boatyard with a wide variety of craft; houseboats large and small, crusiers and sailboats, and some boats have obviously come to die.

Thames Estuary in pictures

Walking the Essex Coast - Shoeburyness to Foulness Point

It’s about nine miles from the MOD site at Pig’s Bay to the mouth of the Thames Estuary at Foulness Point. However this is a walk only for the exceptionally determined. The coastline between Pig’s Bay and Haven Point is accessible when the MOD aren’t firing on their ranges. The island of Foulness is a much harder proposition.

Foulness is the fourth largest island in England, (behind Wight, Sheppey and Hayling), so it would be quite a challenging walk even if you could just turn up and go but you can’t. The island has been owned by the military since the first World War and access is severely restricted. Until 1926 the only way on or off was via the Broomway, a footpath across Maplin Sands, so called because of the broom handles that mark the way. The Broomway follows the east coast of Foulness for about six miles and should only be attempted by fit people who have good local knowledge and a tide table. Turning up unannounced on Foulness may also get you arrested, so pack a toothbrush.

Foulness has about 200 residents who don’t mind the odd loud bang but their community is in decline. They live in two small hamlets in the north of the island and on scattered farms. The pub and the church have recently closed and several houses have fallen into disrepair. The old school is now a Heritage Centre and can be visited on the first Sunday of the month (between April and October). There are warnings everywhere about not wandering off unaccompanied or taking photos. It would be possible to do a circular walk on existing footpaths that would take in the northern coast on the Crouch estuary and the eastern coastline of the Thames, but there is no public access to Foulness Point at the river's mouth. Probably the best way to see Foulness it to take an organised visit or boat trip.

I left home for my final walk along the Thames under leaden skies, but the weather improved the further east you went. I arrived at Shoeburyness in lovely sunshine and had a pleasant walk along a deserted East Beach. I then took a three mile detour to rejoin the sea wall at Morrins Point after walking across the New Ranges which were open to the public. Warning signs were everywhere forbidding photography which I ignored. It was about a mile and half to Haven Point, the last part of mainland Essex on the Thames Estuary. The sea wall was deserted apart from some hardy dog walkers. It was mostly sunny but quite breezy.

The estuary is now very wide, with the Kent coast about eight miles away. Maplin Sands are about a mile wide so ships and boats sail along the other coast. I looked out for my old friend, Hamburg Sid, but the boats were too far way. The sands are also famous for birdlife but there was no sign of the Brent Geese, which spend the winter here. It is possible to drive down to Wakering Stairs when the ranges are open to the public. This is where the Broomway starts. I walked about a hundred metres but wasn’t tempted to go further.

At Haven Point, I got my first look at Foulness Island, which is very, very flat and dotted about with mysterious military installations. It is separated from mainland Essex by Havengore Creek and there are plenty of other creeks, inlets and islands making it another Smuggler’s Haven in the past. As I turned my back on the Thames for the last time, I realised that I'd walked alongside the river all the way from Hampton Court. I must do the rest of it!

Now it’s off to pick up the coastline on the River Roach at Baling Ness a few miles to the north.

To see more pictures of Foulness and the rest of the Thames estuary coastline click here.

One is small, the other is very far away

This is the third time I've spotted the Hamburg Sud container ship on my saturday walks. It was well beyond Southend Pier and disappearing into the gloom.