Return to EADT Suffolk Walks
|
Wickhambrook consists of a village of 11 scattered greens and is recorded in the Guinness Book of Records as the village with the greatest number of greens. It is also ten miles from Bury St. Edmunds, Newmarket, Clare and Haverhill a fact that is recorded in the title of a book by local author John Bean - 'Ten miles from Anywhere'. There is an extensive network of Public Rights of Way in the area and this is a walk recommended on the Wickhambrook Parish website (see Information File). However it is not for the fainthearted, at the time of my survey parts were overgrown with summer growth of nettles and brambles and, unless they have been cleared, a pair of secateurs and a stick are recommended. From the village hall turn right and right again to take the footpath that runs between the childrens play area and the cemetery. Turn left across a sleeper bridge and continue along a field edge path with a ditch on the right. At the corner turn left and follow the path out to the road. Turn right to enter Coltsfoot Close and take the footpath on the left behind the houses. Follow this more or less straight ahead and eventually to a junction, bear right of the hedge and continue past the Waste Water Treatment Works to Cloak Lane. Turn right passing Cloak House, the first house on the left. This was once the Cloak Public House until it closed in 1989. It was the only pub in the country with this name and it is reputed to be haunted by an old lady in white. At the road junction cross to the stile and footpath opposite next to a 5 bar gate. Follow the left hedge and look back across the meadow to view Commerce House - the 3 storey pink building. This is the tallest thatched house in Suffolk and was once a coffee house and grocery shop. At the second stile follow the path beside the ditch on the left alongside the rail fence and diagonally right across the last paddock to a gap in the hedge at the road. However it appears that the frisky horses in the paddock can be avoided by taking the permissive path right between the fences to reach a gate out to the road. Turn left and walk along the road to the grass triangle at the next junction and take the road to Stradishall and Clare. Walk uphill past Grove Farm Stud, past the turning to Cowlinge to reach the next left bend. Continue straight on along the footpath ahead, over a stile and through a kissing gate to a meadow. Continue to the left of the hedge to the corner, ignore the kissing gate on the right and turn left to a fallen tree then right following the electric fencing on the right. Walk through a series of traditional flower and butterfly meadows and enter a small wood. Follow the path generally through the centre of the wood, but a little difficult to follow where it is overgrown. Follow a section of boardwalk to exit to the road via a kissing gate and a stile. Turn right and walk along the B 1063 for 300 metres using the verge where ever possible to avoid the fast moving traffic. Turn left at the footpath sign along the wide tree lined track following the curve round to the left. At the end turn left along the field edge and then right uphill following the track along a line of trees to Great Mill. The first building on the left was once the village bake house. Here I met Ron Penhaligan, the former baker, who told me all about the mill and the flour that was milled from the local wheat. He baked the bread and his wife Edna made the deliveries to the local community until they retired in 1996. Opposite the bungalow Minyfelen turn right along the track on the recently diverted path. Turn left after about 100 metres along the field edge to the left of the hedge following the path downhill, towards the church that can be seen in the trees. At the bottom follow the path around to the left and along the bank of the stream to reach Wash Lane. Turn right and cross the ford (footbridge available) to reach the junction with Church Lane. Turn right to the pretty pink thatched almshouses next to All Saints Church. Although they were probably built in 1615, a plaque on the end advises that they were restored in 1807 by the friends of the poor. It is believed that regular worship has taken place on this site for more than a thousand years. Inside the 14th century church you will find a simple puritan decor with traces of wall paintings still visible. Continue on along the roadside footway for about 100 metres and take the first path on the left. Follow the wide grass path along the field edge of a very large field. Halfway up the field the path crosses the ditch and continues upward, now on the left of the ditch. Ignore any left and right turns but continue straight up with occasional sections of hedge on the right. After passing under some electricity wires cross a stile into a meadow and follow the left hedge to another stile leading out to the road. Turn left along the road for 150 metres to turn right along a shady bridleway. This path is quite sheltered and is likely to be quite muddy during wet weather. Continue along a field edge path with a ditch on the left to the bottom of the field. Turn right and then left across a concrete bridge following the track up across the field. At Australia Farm turn right and then left along the straight access track to reach the road. Turn left down to the cross roads at Meeting Green. The chapel on the right was opened in 1734 giving the green its name. When dissenters broke away from the Church of England around 1670, services were held in a barn at Badmondisfield Hall. But money was raised to build a new chapel nearer to the centre of the village by the instigator, a pastor named Thomas Priest. The Greyhound pub is 100 metres up the road to the right if required, otherwise continue up the hill to return to the start of the walk at the village hall. InformationLocation: Wickhambrook is 10 miles south west of Bury St. Edmunds, 10 miles north east of HaverhillStart: Wickhambrook Village Hall Ordnance Survey map reference TL 745553 Length: 5 miles Conditions: Field edge paths, track, road and roadside footway, 6 stiles. May be overgrown in places and muddy in wet weather How to get there: - Public transport: For details telephone Suffolk County Council's Public Transport Information TraveLine - 08459 583358 By Road: From Bury St. Edmunds south on A143 and right at Stradishall on B1063, follow signs for Village Hall Car Parking Wickhambrook Village Hall Refreshments: The Greyhound and Plumbers Arms Pubs, Thorns Corner Stores and Post Office Public Toilets: None Map: Ordnance Survey Explorer sheet 210 Newmarket and Haverhill Information: http://www.wickhambrook.org Suffolk Country Walks: http://www.anderton.btinternet.co.uk
Map
EADT Suffolk Walks
Home Page
|