Group Walk

Southern England

London

26ml.

09.00

Start from Epping Station (meet at the coffee van by the car park entrance). Central Line trains every 10-15 minutes. Finish at Bishops Stortford Station probably between 19:00 and 19:30. Trains to London every 10-15 minutes.

Route taking us through Gernon Bushes, along(ish) the Essex Way through Toot Hill bypassing Chipping Ongar to a first b-y-o refreshment stop at Shelley churchyard (approx 9 miles).
Then via Clatterford End to meet up with the Three Forests Way and a second b-y-o refreshment stop at Abbess Roding (approx 14 miles).
Continue along the Three Forests Way (approximately) to the first opportunity for purchased food/drink in White Roding (approx 16.5 miles); onward again mostly along the Three Forests Way to the second food/drink option at the Cock Inn in Hatfield Broad Oak (approx 20 miles).
Final leg branches off and we traverse the lower part of Hatfield Forest before crossing the fields into Bishops Stortford.

This is (apart from the first 50 feet) a completely different route from Dave's Bishops Stortford to Epping walk of February. Fairly level and open terrain - as of 9 June - mostly quite dry. The geography and hollowed-out nature of the Roding villages mean that we really do need to bring packed lunches - Bretts Farm Shop in White Roding offers a fair variety, including ice creams (eta 15:00). the Cock Inn does an extensive and unpretentious menu all day, but we are not likely to arrive there much before 16:45. There is a Plan B in the event of inclement weather (less distance, more roads, but with a pub lunch stop).