Essex Walks
Starting from the village of Roydon, these walks combine riverside scenery, open countryside and a welcoming village finish.
All three routes follow stretches of the River Stort, with the longer of the walks adding a circuit of the attractive Glen Faba and an optional riverside pub detour.
There’s a gentle climb in places and a small amount of roadside walking, but overall these walks offer a relaxed and varied day out, easily reached from Roydon railway station or Rye House railway station.
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Walk information
This is a nice circular walk from the village of Roydon.
The walk is quite varied with a stretch of walking alongside the River Stort, some open countryside walking for fresh air, peace and quiet and a walk through the village itself where you will find plenty of eateries for refreshments.
If you head anticlockwise, there is a mild ascent on the walk as you climb up through The Grove woodland.
Based on 14 user ratings
A very popular walk
Real feedback from people who have completed this walk using the Essex Walks app.
First-hand experiences
Nice start along the road then the river. Easy to miss the path that leads onto the field so watch out for it! Very steep climb up the hill but a nice view once at the top. The new inn pub has a lovely beer garden to relax in once finished.
We enjoyed this walk, there was some slight confusion towsrds the end but we made it!
Nice houses along the road at start of walk then a nice river bank walk ( DONT MISS THE LEFT TURN AT THE BRIDGE!) then around the field up a steep bank ( when you look back from the top view is worth it then all down hill to the carpark great walk.
I walked in November after heavy rain the week before, all along the river path was brilliant and buggie/wheelchair ok but when using footpaths an entirely different situation, very, very muddy and slippy, especially when walking the steep hill. A walk in spring/summer would be glorious. Nice to see a different aspect of Roydon and surrounding area.
Absolutely loved walk 1! We went as a family with a 13, 9 and 2 year old and it was perfect. A lovely mix of surroundings. Thank you for posting! This was our first walk using the App.
Great walk. Kids loved it. The little section through the woods was a bit muddy when we went, but easy to walk around on the other path marked on the map instead. Will do again!
Lovely accessible walk. My 7 year old enjoyed it.
Walk information
This second route is an extension of the first route that still enjoys a long stretch of walking alongside the River Stort, but it also takes you on a walk around the pretty 130 acre lake, Glen Faba.
The footpaths are in good condition and there is a small amount of roadside walking. There are also some lovely pubs in Roydon Village.
As with the first route, there is a mild climb on this route.
Based on 22 user ratings
A very popular walk
Real feedback from people who have completed this walk using the Essex Walks app.
First-hand experiences
Lovely walk, steep hill right at the end of the walk by the woods. No pub or cafe en route so take a drink with you. Walked through a field that looked like it had recently had sheep in.
Very pretty walk.
Paths were narrow and overgrown. Sheep in a field that was part of the route so had to improvise. Peaceful but not enjoyable
Lovely walk along the canal and lake. Route back over the fields bit rough and overgrown in parts. If i do this walk again, i’d be inclined to walk back along the canal.
Beautiful and easy to walk. Wear Wellies if raining for some parts get very muddy. Facilities at the beginning but nothing on the way. Very nice landscape if you like waterfront and autumn colours. Super easy to reach from Roydon train station.
Great walk with the dog if its been raining wellies a must for second half of the walk
Lovely walk...
Nice walk, but very wet and muddy near the lake. Had to turn back halfway as i got soggy feet, ended up back near where walk 1 and 2 meet to complete the loop
It’s slightly longer than advertised 5.3m and took an hour and three quarters at a moderate 3mph. ...Nothing spectacular but pleasant enough.
Our first walk with this app. Easy and straighforward, pleasant walk. Best bit along the river. Lake circuit easy walk but massive pylons and cement works chimneys spoil the views. Avoid the New Inn in Roydon, they dont welcome dogs!
Pleasant walk. Nice variety of fields, lakes and canal.
The walk was great. We continued on to Dobbs Weir at the bottom of Glen Faba to stop at a different pub called the Fish and Eels. It's on the canal and has lovely outdoor seating and food. The walk was perfect. Had canals, lakes, woodland and cattle. Altogether, with our additional detour, the walk was around 2 hour 15 mins. Really wonderful.
Walk information
This final route option is basically exactly the same as the second route, but with an additional detour that takes you to a lovely riverside pub for refreshments half way around the walk!
Train Station:
Roydon
Rye House
Based on 12 user ratings
A very popular walk
Real feedback from people who have completed this walk using the Essex Walks app.
First-hand experiences
Lovely walk for the summer
A very enjoyable summer walk with variety of wildlife, water and countryside plus a choice of pubs or a cafe. One path was blocked due to sheep but easy to find alternative path.
Enjoyable, mainly waterside walking with just about enough variation to keep it interesting. Easy parking in Roydon, the route takes you down the High Street (a lot less pubs there now compared to when I was young). The New Inn looks like the latest victim. Shortly after the 5 mile mark, the route goes across a small field. However, the gate is tied up and the signpost looks to have been ‘accidentally’ knocked down. It’s easy to bypass though (see photos). Overall, a good, easy walk (with one steep climb near the end) and plenty of birdlife.
The public footpath into Roydon (just after the big hill) was blocked with a cage of sheep, but easy enough to detour round. Was a lovely walk other than that and Fish
The footpath into Roydon had been fenced off with sheep in it, but easy enough to detour around and a lovely walk overall :)
The lake had totally flooded the footpath, and the only way around was to head back the way we had come to go around the lake the other way.
Great walk in the summer but very muddy after rain.
A really picturesque walk mostly beside rivet/canal/lake. It was a bit muddy towards the end after heavy rain, but overall a great walk.
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