Day 14 – Saturday 1 April 2000 - Shotley Gate to Manningtree

16.5 miles walked today

190.5 miles walked in total (average 13.6)

I left Portsmouth at half past six this morning and was parked, booted and walking at quarter to ten.  I’ve some misgivings about walking in my new boots now as I’ve apparently grown/ rubbed bunions on my Achilles tendons.  My doctor wants to see me in three months’ time, when she will make a decision on whether to operate to cut them out.  Not the sort of news a walker wants to hear.  However, I’ve worn the boots today, but have left off the knee support to see if my knee’s any better.

From the start, I was on footpaths which hugged the estuary.  The only sounds I could hear were birdsong and the occasional thud from Felixstowe as containers were loaded.

I jumped out of my skin when I heard someone behind calling me.  A mad runner!  He walked some of the way with me and told me he was very envious of what I was doing.  He’d done some of the Suffolk Coast and Heaths Path with his son last summer.  He advised me of the best route to take and suggested I head for the tea shop at Flatford and that I should look out for Griff Rhys Jones who has a weekend cottage at Holbrook.

I had to make a slight detour inland as the fields were being ploughed, but I was still on footpaths and bridleways – very little road walking today.  The hedgerows were covered in primroses, daffodils and gorse in all shades of yellow.

I walked past the Royal Hospital School which, according to my guide book, was founded in 1712 for the sons of disabled and retired seamen of the Royal Navy.  Preference is still given to the children of seamen, including lifeboatmen, although the school is open to all.  It all seemed a bit quiet though, considering there are six hundred and sixty pupils living there.  The neat houses and gardens surrounding the school are for the teachers.

There’s a truly scary figurehead at the entrance to the school, presented by HMS Ganges – it looked so real that it quite gave me the creeps.

I had a quick drink at the Bull in Brantham before heading on to Flatford Mill.  I wasn’t disappointed when I got there – it’s absolutely beautiful.  I had a pot of tea and a slice of lemon cake in the tea rooms – how very civilised!

John Constable was born in East Bergholt in 1776, a village which is a mile north of Flatford.  His father was the miller of Flatford Mill which is now owned by the National Trust and has been turned into a field studies centre.  In 1799, Constable became a student at the Royal Academy in London, but kept returning home to Suffolk as it was the scenery that “made me a painter”.  I could see exactly what he meant.

Feeling refreshed, I made my way to Manningtree Station, which is actually based in Lawford, so I had a couple more miles to walk.  The first B&B I saw – a pub! – had a room – what a great end to a fantastic day.  Today’s been excellent – the walking just gets better.

I’m in Essex too – yes!  I’ve just knocked off my first full county.  I really enjoyed Suffolk – it’s got some of the best footpaths I’ve ever come across; some incredibly tolerant farmers letting me walk across their land and, in some instances, through the farm buildings; some amazing houses and loads of space.

Let’s hope Essex has lots of attractions of its own.