It's a good walk even in the rain....

Daniel

Overall a safe journey if maintaining the intended route....

Tony Ferguson

Walked this route in August’23 as part of a longer attempt to follow the old Blackwater railway from Witham to South Woodham Ferrers. The only part that’s an issue is around Langford where the footpath ends at the B1018 and the path the other side is impassable because it’s overgrown. Walked south on the verge of B1018 until farmers track on left....

Clive

The short section on Steeple Road where there is no pavement connecting the two public footpaths, nor a formal crossing point should be taken with care. If the local authorities could improve this connection with paved footways joining the footpaths exiting onto Steeple Road, designated crossing points and some traffic control they would enhance this valuable route....

James Piers Taylor

We modified the originally proposed route between Maldon and Burnham-on-Crouch to significantly reduce the amount of verge walking alongside busy rural roads. This revised route works very well; it is a varied and scenic route. Much of the route is on well-defined public rights of way, although there are a few cross-field paths (particularly between Maldon and Mundon) which can be be very muddy....

Chris Harvey

A good route but we had to walk across three plowed fields which after rain were very muddy. I believe the fields were recently plowed and the farmer hadn’t yet reinstated the footpath. I would give this 4 stars apart from the field issue but this probably won’t be an issue for most of the year....

John Driver

There was too much road walking for my liking but no clear alternative to doing it (when the approved section of the England Coast Path opens it’s likely to be a preferable route between The Strood and Salcott-cum-Virley). It’s then road walking up Dawes Lane and onto East Mersea Road until reaching The Strood. En route, you cross Colchester Road and you might as well take this to The Strood instead, it’s also road walking with some verge but it’s more direct than the mapped route. The only alternative is walking along the Wigborough Road until reaching the field path north. After Frame Farm the route takes a southerly turn on The Chase to Tolleshunt D’Arcy Road, this is not listed as a public right of way. Then more road walking on Tolleshunt D’Arcy Road where the hedges are tight to the road and there was more traffic than I would have preferred....

James Piers Taylor

The Slow Ways map has poor alignment; there's a section of road walking on the B1018 with fast traffic; an unnecessary bit of navigation in Wickham Bishops; and an undesirable section into/out of Maldon that is poorly mapped and is easily avoidable by taking another route. Once out the other side I decided to interpret the straight line across Elms Farm Park as meaning I should take the Blackwater Rail Trail (path of a dismantled railway) around the north side of the park before taking the footpath to Langford Road. This footpath north is poorly signposted and delivers you straight onto a busy section of Langford Road. Taking this northwards provides access to a bridleway east across fields back to the B1018 again - but now opposite the onward section of this Slow Way, avoiding the section of road walking. The footpath proceeds north skirting around Likely Wood (rendered as Lucky Wood on the Slow Ways base map) before exiting onto Grange Road. The next section is a pleasant jaunt through the woodland of Mope Grove and Benton Hall golf course, and a short section of road walking on Blue Mills Hill before a footpath across fields delivers you to Whetmead nature reserve and a tunnel under the A12....

James Piers Taylor

Please also add a comment to this review so I know to come back and remove this review and the route attached....

Slow Ways Cristie

From Woodham station, it’s up Hullbridge Road to the roundabout junction with the Burnham Road (B1012). There is a traffic light crossing with a beg button just east of the roundabout but there’s no pavement on the north side of the road, so you’re best off using the pavement on the south side until you are opposite Hamberts Farm. Suitably refreshed you carry on north through New Hall, the oldest of the local vineyards and up past Hazeleigh Hall before turning east towards the old railway line. (At my time of walking a new solar farm was being constructed on the intervening field - not yet updated on maps or Google Earth.) The embankment of the dismantled railway line now takes you north to the edge of Maldon....

James Piers Taylor

It’s a mixture of pavement walking, footpaths over fields and through woodland, a short traipse across a golf course, private tracks and a small amount of road walking on quiet lanes. I’ve marked it down for some loose route alignment in the mapping (easily mitigated by map use) and for the section of pavement through Maldon which runs alongside a busy road and is rather tedious (I’m perhaps being unfair here as there’s not currently a good alternative - but it’s an aspiration for future improvement). A short stretch of pavement through Tilbury down Church Road, Station Road and Hall Road quickly gets you to the edge of town (there’s a slight shortcut if you take Surrey Land off Station Road)....

James Piers Taylor

Malsou soon breaks off east across the field, but this route continues south a while longer before taking a couple of turns around some bits of remnant creek and then south again to Steeple Road. You'll need to cross the road at Tideway Farm to pick up a footpath going south. (You could halve the stretch of verge walking by sticking on the Malsou one route to Lawling Creek and shortly before reaching Maylandsea taking a southerly footpath past Lawling Hall that joins Steeple Road close to Tideway Farm). The footpath at Tideway Farm starts on the driveway to houses then runs along the east side of the fence line past a golf driving range and into the camping and caravanning field behind the Huntsman and Hounds pub....

James Piers Taylor

Just after South Chase Farm the route turns south on a footpath over fields, joining the route of Malsou One. It goes through a small woodland to emerge on Mill Road which you take a short distance south before taking an eastbound footpath. After a short stretch of eastwards road walking there’s a public footpath going south along the field edge by Sunfield Farm. The route is then a diagonal south-east across the sward, crossing the drive to Mayland Court and then taking a sharper slant to exit onto Southminster Road at the drive entrance to Hemmells.

A short road walk is necessary to reach Ewenny Farm on the south side of Southminster Road. It’s eastward road walking on Old Heath Road until the next northbound footpath you find (shortly before Filey Road), this turns east around the settlement of Old Heath and continues on a footpath across an agricultural field....

James Piers Taylor

This is a fine rural route taking in sea walls, field paths and the lovely St Mary’s Mundon. There’s a reasonable grass verge on the south side of Steeple Road until there’s pavement again on the north side of the road. I’m not convinced this is safe enough for road walking (the alternative Malsou three that I’ve added avoids this).

The route proceeds on a public footpath going south along the field edge by Sunfield Farm. The route is then diagonal south-east across the sward, crossing the drive to Mayland Court then taking a sharper slant to exit onto Southminster Road at the drive entrance to Hemmells.

A short road walk west is necessary to Ewenny Farm on the south side of Southminster Road. Ignore the private signs, phoney cameras and alarms to take the PROW south to Old Heath Road. It’s an eastward road walking on Old Heath Road. This Slow Ways route takes the road to the junction with Burnham Road before turning north on a footpath across the fields. To avoid some of the road walking you can instead take the next northbound footpath you find (shortly before Filey Road), this turns east around the settlement of Old Heath and joins the designated route in the field....

James Piers Taylor

Paper Mill lock at the halfway point has a cafe, and you can sit out on the canal with a cup of tea and rest your feet. River path gets very muddy and floods in places after heavy rain, so not recommended when the water is high....

Andrew

Sections can be muddy after rain or flood....

tony77

Couple of road sections have no path and the single track bridge at Blue Mills is very narrow, care required. Doable with care with a pushchair but not wheelchair friendly, a few sets of steps....

codesmon

Follow the canal, can get a bit soggy as you get to Paper Mill Lock....

Bob!

In entering Purleigh, from south, it would be more interesting and less road walking to take path leading to the Purleigh Hall, Church and The Bell (food available). A longer alternative route in to Maldon would be to go from Purleigh to Mundon (interesting church), then footpaths north to the Promenade Park....

tony77