Essex Saltmarsh and Suffolk Villages · short arc

Waypoint introductions and full write-ups

1. 1. Fuel stop near Amersham

   Amersham is two towns in one. Up on the hill is the modern town, built around the station at the end of the Metropolitan line in the early twentieth century, the heart of what was marketed as Metro-land. Down in the valley of the Misbourne is Old Amersham, a beautiful street of coaching inns, timber-framed houses and Georgian façades, with a seventeenth-century market hall on its arches. The contrast is striking.

   Read the complete Fuel stop near Amersham write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   Essex Saltmarsh and Suffolk Villages is where the day begins. Next is High point near Henley-on-Thames.

2. 2. High point near Henley-on-Thames

   Every summer since 1839, rowers have raced up a straight stretch of the Thames at Henley, and the Royal Regatta has become one of the fixtures of the English social season, with blazers, boaters, Pimm's and picnics on the riverbank. The rest of the year, Henley is a handsome market town on the river, with a fine bridge, old inns and the River and Rowing Museum, which tells the story of the Thames and the sport.

   Read the complete High point near Henley-on-Thames write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   You top out here; the road stops climbing. Next is Food stop near Midhurst.

3. 3. Food stop near Midhurst

   Midhurst is one of the nicest market towns in the South Downs, and it sits on one of England's most loved biking roads. The A272 runs east and west across Sussex and Hampshire, through villages and woods and over little hills, and it has a cult following among riders who prefer charm to speed. Midhurst is a natural pause along it, with old coaching inns, timber-framed houses and a broad main street.

   Read the complete Food stop near Midhurst write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   A break here. Next is London motorcycle escapes return.

4. 4. Pevensey, on the way back

   In September 1066 William of Normandy brought his army ashore here, onto a shingle shore that has since moved, and camped inside walls that were already seven centuries old. Pevensey Castle is that layered thing: a late Roman fort, Anderitum, built against Saxon raiders, with a Norman castle planted inside one corner of it. The Roman walls still run most of the way round, and walking the circuit takes ten minutes and a lot of imagination.

   Read the complete Pevensey, on the way back write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   London motorcycle escapes return, about halfway. Next is Scenic stretch in South Benfleet.

5. 5. Scenic stretch in South Benfleet

   Vikings once had a fortified camp at Benfleet. In 893, the forces of Alfred the Great's kingdom stormed it while most of the Danish army was away raiding, capturing ships, women and children, and archaeologists later found charred remains of ships in the creek. Today, South Benfleet is a quiet residential town on the Thames estuary, but the creek is still there, lined with boats and mudflats, and the history adds depth to an otherwise suburban place.

   Read the complete Scenic stretch in South Benfleet write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   Scenic stretch in South Benfleet sits at 345 km, about halfway. Next is Photo stop in Mayland.

6. 6. Photo stop in Mayland

   Mayland lies on the Dengie peninsula in Essex, on the southern shore of the Blackwater estuary, a flat, quiet landscape of farmland, saltmarsh and wide skies. The village and its neighbour, Maylandsea, have a marina where small boats lie on the mud at low tide, and the estuary stretches away to the north, glittering in the sunlight.

   Read the complete Photo stop in Mayland write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   Photo stop in Mayland comes up about 381 km into the recorded legs. Next is Essex Saltmarsh checkpoint 8.

7. 7. Wembley

   The arch is what you see first, a white steel hoop rising over north-west London, visible from the North Circular, from Harrow, from the planes coming in to Heathrow. Wembley Stadium was rebuilt and reopened in 2007, replacing the old twin-towered stadium where England won the 1966 World Cup. The new one is bigger, slicker and less romantic, but on match nights the whole district still hums.

   Read the complete Wembley write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   Essex Saltmarsh checkpoint 8 closes the day.