This well-trodden route offers plenty of coastal views, wildlife to enjoy and plenty of pubs at the end. It’s easily accessible by rail and therefore never too far from civilisation. The bustling Thames Estuary is home to marine wildlife, fishing fleets and container ships. As is to be expected then, the walk has numerous examples of urban and wild coexisting. The walking route is busy and suffers from graffiti and litter in places but there’s an abundance of wildlife to make up for it; we were lucky enough to spot an adder!
8.7km / 5.4 miles (low tide, 7.4 miles at high tide)
Link to OS Map Route: Leigh-on-Sea Circular
Conditions: Sunny spells, hot and humid, dry
Car Park: Essex Wildlife Trust on Two Tree Island (free) – if full, there’s another free car park at the south of the island, and you’ll also pass two pay and displays before crossing the bridge onto the island.
Essex Coastal Challenge
We did this walk as part of our Essex Wildlife Trust Coastal Challenge. We’ll be walking 35 miles of Essex coastal habitat throughout August (Marine Month) and documenting our journey here to raise awareness of Essex Wildlife Trust, the work they do, and the impact of climate change on our coast. You can support our challenge and donate to the trust here: https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/lovewildwalks
Since the walk was part of the Essex Coastal Challenge and week one focuses on the Thames Estuary, our initial idea was to walk between two Essex Wildlife Trust nature reserves in this area – Two Tree Island and Gunners Park. That involves a straightforward walk along the coast (following the Saffron Trail) between the two reserves and getting a train back to Leigh-on-Sea from Shoeburyness. However, because of the pandemic we wanted to avoid Southend seafront and public transport. We also love castles. And it being the weekend we wanted a pub walk! With all this in mind we plotted a different route – the one you’re about to read – from Two Tree island and then drove to Gunners Park afterwards for a mile long stroll.
Read about our other walks from the challenge:
Week Two: North Fambridge to Burnham-on-Crouch River Walk
Week Three: Dengie Peninsular Circular Coastal Walk from Tillingham, nr. Bradwell-on-Sea
Two Tree Island
We started the walk on Two Tree Island, a 257 hectare nature reserve of Special Scientific Interest. If you’re wondering about the name of the island (we were), it comes from two large elms that were a prominent feature until they were brought down by storms in the early 1960s.
We started on the footpath opposite the Wildlife Trust car park and turned left to follow the footpath south alongside the road. The gravel path had tall brambles either side. Small birds flitted between the shrubs but higher in the sky, model airplanes dominated! This is because the island is also home to South Essex Model Aircraft Society. The model jet was particularly impressive.
Nearing the south of the island there was quite a lot of litter, probably from the car park on the other side of the bushes here. There are a few paths you can take to ramble through the reserve to the western point of the island. We walked inland alongside the tall, wild grassland (and a couple of blackberry foragers!) before meandering alongside Hadleigh Ray channel and the saltmarsh. In the distance we saw a huge container ship making its way down the Thames while closer to land, paddleboarders and birds enjoyed the water.
On the western side is the tranquil Salt Water lagoon with a creek to the north. The lagoon is an important roosting and breeding site. According to a notice on the Essex Wildlife Trust website there were two hides around here but both were vandalised over the summer and have since been removed. In addition to this abuse, what we thought was a swan turned out to be a white plastic chair in the lagoon. Community litter picking efforts on site have been affected during lockdown so to help the Trust maintain the site and buy new hides, please donate to them: https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/lovewildwalks
Two Tree Island Western Creek Crossing
A little past the lagoon is a crossing over the creek – but we didn’t realise that it’s only accessible at low tide. We reached it about an hour after high tide and it was impassable! Perhaps with wellies and waterproofs it would have been ok, but a) we didn’t have these and b) it’s rarely wise to wade into a waterway when you can’t see the bottom!
As we stared at the creek, not-so-silently cursing our (Lindsay’s) poor planning, a pair of kayakers rowed past. It was VERY tempting to ask them for a lift!
Crossing here would have made a 5.4 mile route but we had to add 2 miles by walking the northern path of the island, back past the car, over the road bridge then turning left onto the sea wall – the Thames Estuary Path. When we reached the creek again from the northern side it was about passable in boots; probably not in trainers though. So depending on the time of year, reaching the crossing about 2-3 hours after high tide should be fine.
Hadleigh Marsh Sea Wall: Thames Estuary Path
We followed the snaking sea wall west. The sun was blazing by now and the salty breeze offered much needed respite. We got another good view of the salt water lagoon from up here, as well as salt marshes and mud flats all along the southern side. Hadleigh Marsh, farmland and the C2C railway line is to the right/north. Further inland are the woods of Hadleigh Park, and the remains of Hadleigh Castle sitting proudly on the hilltop.
The seawall walk follows the well-trodden Thames Estuary Path. This is a popular route with both walkers and cyclists, the latter of which may have been returning from using the Olympic mountain biking trails at Hadleigh Park.
The most unusual feature of the seawall was the sheer amount of pearlescent blue and white mussel shells on the path, reminiscent of a smashed-up mosaic! This got us wondering about the wall’s construction.
Anglian Water raised the sea wall in the eighties using local household rubbish and then capped it with clay. If the shell remains are 30-year-old household rubbish rising from the landfill, it’s a charming example of how intrinsic the mollusc trade is for this area; ingrained in their culture and their sea wall! However, it may just be that mussel shells are abundant in the clay here, which would make sense. An even less romantic theory is they are the aftermath of a sea bird’s lunch. If you know for certain why there are so many shells on the path, please leave a comment!
We walked along the sea wall for about a mile before leaving the Thames Estuary Path by bearing north over the farmland and railway crossing. Even on a weekend the c2c trains pass in either direction every few minutes so we crossed quickly but carefully. For a longer estuary walk, continue on the sea wall path to Benfleet, returning east through or around the edge of Hadleigh Park. This adds another 3 or 4 miles to the route.
Hadleigh Castle and the Saffron Trail
The hike to the castle was steep; a climb of 50 metres on a 300 metre stony track. We certainly couldn’t complain as we passed a man using the hill for training. He was carrying two 10kg bags and a weighted belt. Hats off to you!
Catching our breath at the top, we turned around to take in the magnificent view over Hadleigh Marshes, Hadleigh Ray and Canvey Island. Other walkers on the seawall path now appeared as tiny dots. Further on up this track is the Hadleigh Rare Breeds Centre and tea rooms (closed at time of writing due to coronavirus). The Saffron Trail officially goes behind the fenced grounds of Hadleigh Castle, but we walked through the castle grounds instead.
The remains of Hadleigh Castle are one of many English Heritage sites that are free to visit. Construction of the castle began in 1215 by Hubert de Burgh and was extensively refortified by Edward III during the Hundred Years War. The castle was sold for building materials in 1551. Despite the subsequent demolition and landslips on the south side, remains of the curtain wall, barbican and eastern drum towers survive.
Despite the elevation there was precious little wind and the afternoon heat was blistering. Heading east out the English Heritage site, we followed the Saffron Trail down the undulating but steady decline back to Leigh-on-Sea. Towards the bottom of the path, an adder was lazing on the side of the track. Unfortunately he slithered swiftly into the long grass too quickly for us to snap a photo.
This section of the Saffron Trail gives great views across Two Tree Island and the Thames Estuary all the way over to Kent. Looking ahead (East) we could see Southend Pier stretching out into the sea. At 1.34 miles long, Southend Pier is the longest pleasure pier in the world. It’s also home to millions of marine animals; barnicles, periwinkles and common shore crab.
Old Leigh and pubs
The landscape around the path gradually became a more urban strain of untamed, letting us know we were almost back to Leigh-On-Sea. Passing the station on our right, the road split. You can turn right after the station and follow the path back to the car park or carry straight on to explore Old Leigh. We did the latter then took the forking road to the right alongside the railway line until a bridge that crosses into Old Leigh.
Our plan here was to spend some time at a pub but The Crooked Billet didn’t have real ale and The Peterboat garden and seafront was even busier than what we experienced in Maldon. We bought a pint of ale in a plastic glass and took it to an alleyway out the way of other people! The inconsistency in dealing with coronavirus is striking – at some pubs you wouldn’t know there’s a pandemic on, yet others have their customers spaced far apart and staff in full PPE.
We have both been to Old Leigh before and it is worth a stroll when it’s quieter. With three pubs to choose from it’s a great ending a pub walk. We bought an ice cream and headed back to Two Tree Island, this time on the path south of the railway line past the cockle sheds.
Leigh Marsh
From Leigh-on-Sea station we were briefly back on the Thames Estuary Path. The footpath skirts slightly south of the road with interesting views of Leigh Marsh. The tide now completely out, the scene was that of a boat graveyard with decaying boats abandoned on the marsh. It would look even more striking on a misty day.
We left the Thames Estuary Path where we joined it, at the road bridge, and returned onto Two Tree Island. We attempted to explore the eastern part of the nature reserve by taking a path at the north east of the car park. We found that the maze-like paths did not match the route on the map. As we got deeper into the island, the bramble hugged the increasingly narrow paths all leading to over-grown dead-ends. We exited the wild back the way we came. There is also a path that leads from the south side of the car park but we didn’t have time to explore further. That path should take you to the eastern point of the island to a WWII pillbox and views over Leigh Marsh, one of the best surviving salt marshes in the Thames Estuary.
Gunners Park and Shoebury Ranges
We drove along Southend seafront (cheating, I know) and parked up at Gunners Park and Shoebury Ranges. The nature reserve is on a former military firing range and has a variety of listed buildings in addition to the wildlife habitats of grassland, dunes, and a large pond. The reserve is an important roost for migrating birds including Ring Ouzel, Spotted Flycatcher, Wheatear, Whinchat and Yellow-browed Warbler.
We took a tarmacked path towards the coast past a tree densely populated with crows. The path opened beside a large pond with a war memorial and a couple of benches. We sat on a non-memorial bench and ate some chips we’d stopped to buy on the way. Looking over the pond with its variety of birds, we were in turn watched closely by a squawking crow.
Our walk along the concrete seawall was punctuated by intimidating Ministry of Defence ‘DANGER’ signs and impressive military relics; Gog’s Berth, Barge Pier, gun mounts, casemates, and the enormous Heavy Quick Firing Battery.
Looking out to sea, the low tide revealed a vast expanse of shimmering sand and mirages. The seabed is rich with eelgrass making it popular with several species of bird. Grey seals are sometimes spotted here, too. The beach is owned by the MOD but oddly there was remnants of apparently abandoned picnics, perhaps left there or perhaps washed up to shore. We could spy people seemingly miles out to sea too, who must have walked out there from East Beach further north.
As the park edge reached a small road, we turned left past the foundations of an Iron Age settlement and former powder magazine. Heading back to the car park, we ambled along Gunners Rise with its cannon and fancy but identical houses. You can extend this 1.3 mile route by following the sea wall further then coming back through the former garrison.
Whether you do one or both of these routes and use foot, car or rail to go between them, both locations present poetic examples of human and wildlife habitats intertwining.
Love Wild Walks
