Sudbury to Bulmer Walk

Today we did a circular walk from Sudbury via Bulmer and Belchamp Walter, a walk we last did two years ago (see here).

This was the invite from Joyce:

"Wednesday September 7th Sudbury to Bulmer walk. A decent 11 mile circular walk that nudges into Essex. Please meet at the Kingfisher Leisure Centre, Station Rd, Sudbury CO10 2SU for a 10.30am start. There are toilets here at Waitrose. Parking is £3 at the station or park in a side street.  Please bring your packed lunch. We will have a drink at The Fox at Bulmer Tye at midday when they open.  The walk is hilly to start with so bring poles if you wish. Lifts are available from Mildenhall and Bury so please get in touch. "

I met with others at Dobbies and Joyce drove us to the start. This was our route:

Here are a few of my photos.

Crossing the River Stour near the start.

Lovely butterfly bushes.

Alas we were too early for a drink at The Fox.

Bulmer Tye village green  has an interesting monument, of which more anon.

We turned right at the bottom of the green past this Tudor house.

Blackberries galore!

At St. Andrew, Bulmer Church....

..we found a replica of the famous painting shown on the Bulmer Tye village green monument which features Mr and Mrs Andrews as portrayed by Thomas Gainsborough (see here).

Lunch.

The church of St. Mary, Belchamp Walter.

We admired the gardens we passed.

We had a good view as far as Eyston Hall in Borley Green.

Getting closer to the church now

Avoiding the nettles, but I went through the nearby  kissing gate unstung.

The abandoned "Venetian canal", part of the Belchamp Hall estate..

Belchamp Hall.

 We passed through Belchamp Walter village. We liked this house, dating from 1717.

Heading back towards Sudbury, we heard a rumble of thunder, and then we were caught by this.

Crossing the River Stour once more.

We came to, and stopped at, the Mill Hotel.

Theb it was across the meadows...

...and past the old sewage works...

...to return to the start, A nice walk. It was lovely to do it again.

Thank-you Joyce for leading us and the rest for the company.

You can see more details of our route here on MapMyWalk and more of my photos here on Flickr.