Cycle Route – Layer, Tiptree, Tolleshunt D’Arcy, Peldon, Fingringhoe

After a very wet Friday, today dawned with clear blue skies, and the opportunity to do one of my regular cycle routes – 26 miles through some lovely quiet countryside south of Colchester.

I’ve put the route up on the excellent Google Pedometer site which makes it very easy to keep track of your cycle, running, or driving routes, and I’ll refer you to the map at various points below. Click here and the map will open in a new browser window. And here’s a mini picture to give you a feel for the route.

I’ll start you off at Colchester Town railway station, which overlooks the unlovely St. Botolph’s Circus. It’s not the most salubrious introduction to the town, and there are plans to improve it. Head out over the roundabout to go up Mersea Road. First point of interest is the very old, very delapidated wall to your right, held in place with sheets of corrugated iron.  Second point of interest is to your left, the Odd One Out pub. This used to be our local, and is an absolute must for real ale drinkers. It’s a traditional pub – what is often referred to ’spit and sawdust’ although I’m sure long-standing landlord John would have you out on your ear very quickly should you try spitting!

Not far up Mersea Road, turn right at the lights onto Napier Road. You’ll travel on this road, aka Circular Road North,  until you come to a T-junction and mini-roundabout. But as you approach this, take a peek to you right, and you will see the old army barracks where they filmed the opening credits to Blackadder Goes Forth (the army band sequence which ends with Baldrick on the triangle).

After this junction, a quick left at the next t-junction, which as you approach you can marvel at the total lack of use of their indicator lights by the majority of car users.

At the next roundabout turn left, with the Drury Arms to your right, and head up Layer Road. You will pass the delapidated Layer Road football ground, although in truth it’s not much more delapidated than it was when in use for Colchester FC. One word of warning : Layer Road is quite wide most of the way up, but the powers that be have cunningly narrowed it for pedestrian crossings, so you will find that you will go from being on a road with plenty of space of a cyclist and a lorry one side of the road at the same time, to places where you have to be assertive and make sure that cars aren’t tempted to squeeze through these crossings alongside you.

Straight ahead at the two mini roundabouts with Kent Blaxill’s to your right (one of the few places in Colchester to get window glass from). You’re on the B1026 now, and if you exercise the shorter route option offered later you will come back this way.

A lot of the traffic will have peeled off either right or left at the mini roundabouts, and you’re now headed out into the country. You’ll zoom downhill after while, with a bend to the right that can be a bit tricky if you’re going too fast. You will find out that what does down also goes up, as you’ll be checking down the gears to get up the hill past the wonderfully named Donkey and Buskins pub (can’t comment on it as I’ve never been in).

Once you’ve breasted the hill you’re heading into the village of Layer, and watch out for the right turn. Here’s a video of what to look out for, but I can’t guarantee you will see the horses!

You’re on the back road to Birch now, and you’ll see to your right a white farmhouse which features on Essex Days Out as one of our ‘rotating’ headers.

Follow this road around to the left, which will take you down (and up),  and down (and up) and you will go through a couple of farmhouses to your left and stables to your right.

Straining the sinews a little bit more (who says that Essex is flat?) you will come to another t-junction with a pub to your right.

Turn left and admire the small church to your left

And immediately take the next right turn, signposted Layer Marney, onto Shatters Road. You’re going to drop down a steepish hill, and then bend right and climb right back up again, and bend left onto Winter’s Road. Keeping to the road you will pass a junction at which you can turn left to take a peek at Layer Marney Tower. It’s well worth the short detour!

Carrying on, you come to another t-junction at which you turn left. It’s a busier road than of late, but generally quiet. You’re going to follow this for a while, and when you get to a long downhill followed by a short but steep climb you’re entering Tiptree from the north. As you come into the village look out for the elegant United Reform Church on the right, and the inelegant aluminium gates someone has put on their driveway (someone who clearly values their privacy!)

At the junction in Tiptree you could turn right to seek out some refreshments in the many shops on offer. But the route is to the left, and you pass the Wilkin & Son jam factory, and have the option of refreshing yourself at their excellent tea rooms.

You whizz downhill at this point, and have the option of turning right halfway down the hill to incorporate Tolleshunt Major into the route. At the bottom of the hill is a mini roundabout, and if you’re feel the strain you can turn left to skip Tolleshunt D’Arcy and go via Tolleshunt Knights, but this route takes you up the hill at the mini roundabout.

As you climb up the hill you are rewarded after a few minutes more with some excellent views. Make sure you don’t miss them, as they’re at the top of a long downhill stretch. Here’s a panoramic pic to show what you will see before you start down …

and once you’re at the bottom of the hill you will see some excellent ‘Big Sky’ views to your left…

You will now head into Tolleshunt D’arcy, which hase a pub and a corner shop for refreshments. There’s a quaint central roundabout cum street sign cum seat, which I’d have shown a picture of, except there was a very unphotogenic royal mail van parked in front of it.

Turn left here, which is spot on the halfway point, and you’re headed home. (More than halfway if you exercise the shortcut later).

There’s a long stretch of road, starting off downhill (wheeee) and then uphill past the Five Lakes centre to your left, where people play gofe and similarly relaxing things. Some cute waterfowl are to be seen in you’re lucky.

At about 15 and a half miles, you’ve got the option of turning left onto the B1026, which you follow round to take you back to through Layer and into town again.  If you decide to press on, then regret it a mile later, you can turn left again at Great Wigborough to go through School Lane (admiring their church onthe way) to pick up the B1026.

Watch out for the left turn to take you up a short but sharp hill into Peldon. They’ve got a nice church there

Today, and not for the first time either on this route, the blue sky was enhanced by, of all things, someone flying a Spitfire. I tried to catch him (or her) doing the barrel loop, but the camera wasn’t up to it. And in my eagerness to capture the sight on film, I made the mistake of trying to dismount quickly to the right, which is something I rarely do, almost invariably swinging off the bike with my left foot planted.  I can now claim that I was brought crashing to the ground by a Spitfire. Luckily I had my ribs and knee to break the fall.

There’s a big drop downhill after Peldon, taking you whizzing past a reclamation yard to the left, and a pond that often has a family of peacocks roosting there. There’s another climb to take you to Abberton, and you will cross Mersea Road. If you’re desperate to head back to Colchester you can turn left, but it is a busy road! Crossing over,  you’ve got a nice ride into Fingringhoe. You’ll come to The Whalebone pub, and have the option of a drink there, a look at their church, or heading down Ferry Road to look over the river at Wivenhoe.

Turning left at the Whalebone you will drop down quickly, possibly missing their nice mill to the right.

You follow this road all the way back to Colchester Town statio. En route you can turn right and drop down Rectory Road into Rowhedge, which is worth doing if you’re not likely to be here for a while, and you can pick up the road into Colchester easily.

As you get into the outskirts of the town, look out for the old tin tabernacle church on your right. After a couple of mini roundabouts and past the Co-op, you drop down and whill whizz past the old Cannock Mill to your left, and then strain up Old Heath Road  – keep your eyes open for the almshouses on the left.

You will pass the Recreation Ground to your right, go straight ahead through the traffic lights and look at the white army church to your right, now taken over and being used by the Greek Orthodox church. As you drop down towards the station, take a look at the almshouses to the left and right, which are charming.
And that, after 26 and a bit miles if you’ve followed the full route, gets you back to Colchester Town station. If you’re thirsty, try the Odd One Out.

Hope you have found this interesting. It took me almost as long to write as it did to do the route!