Stour Valley Path 5: Rodbridge to Bures

27 March 2011

Walking from the Rodbridge car park to the route of the Stour Valley Path itself, we approach the Stour, and the old railway bridge. The route of the railway is to carry the path for a little while.

Crossing the Stour

On the Path itself, we are on the trackbed of the railway from Bury St Edmunds to Sudbury

Brundon Mill - its Suffolk pink rightly hinting that we have crossed the border back into Suffolk from Essex.

Nearby cottages

Sudbury Common Lands form a pleasant open space either side of the river here

A weir takes some of the water away from the upper course of the river which eventually feeds the mill.

This curved bank is apparently the "old bathing place".

George checks out the patrons sitting outside the old mill.

Below the mill. Tthe bells of the church were ringing out.

As we leave the meadows of Sudbury, a look at the attractive brickwork of the sewage pumping station.

Briefly returning to the trackbed of the railway, we cross the A131 at a good height

And eventually escape Sudbury for this path between new trees.

It's a hazy but fairly pleasant afternoon in north-east Essex.

A bench at a pleasant resting point beneath a tree

The church of Great Henny

George on the track between Little and Great Hickbush

Heading across a field towards Valley Farm

A t-junction of some little-used roads

The unusual church tower at Lamarsh

Cottages in Lamarsh

Crossing the railway line to Sudbury, this section of the line having survived the Beeching axe.

Approaching the Stour once more for the final section of the walk into Bures

There's quite a bit of willow being grown here

And journey's end for today is Bures - it is a decent village rather than a hamlet, but straddling the Essex/Suffolk border (which lies along the river here), the Suffolk civil parish is called Bures St Mary and the Essex civil parish is called Bures Hamlet. Good to see the village celebrating its railway

Total 14.2 km in 3 hours 19 mins.