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St Edmund Way

78.9 miles (127 km)

Ordnance Survey Map Open Streetmap A walk through Essex, Suffolk and Norfolk from Manningtree to Brandon.

The walk begins in Essex at Manningtree rail station and heads through Dedham, Sudbury, Bury St Edmunds and Thetford before finishing at Brandon.
You begin with a pleasant waterside stretch from Manningtree to Sudbury along the River Stour, passing Dedham on the way. Also of note is the 16th century Willy Lott's Cottage - scene of the famous Hay Wain painting by John Constable.The path continues to Bury St Edmunds passing the National Trust owned Melford Hall stately home, Kentwell Hall and the village of Lavenham as you go.
The next stage runs from Bury St Edmunds to Thetford, following the River Lark before a wooded section through King's Forest. A wildlife rich section through the lovely West Stow Country Park and Lackford Lakes Nature Reserve follows soon after.
At Thetford you will pass the ruined priory and join the Little Ouse River, which you follow through Thetford Forest to the finish point at Brandon.

St Edmund Way OS Map Ordnance survey map - Mobile GPS OS Map with Location tracking

St Edmund Way Open Street Map Open Streetmap - Mobile GPS Map with Location tracking

Pubs/Cafes

At Bures you could stop off at The Thatcher's Arms. The 19th century pub includes a cosy interior with wood burning stoves and oak beams. Outside there's a lovely garden are with splendid views over the valley. You can find them on Hall Road at postcode CO8 5AT for your sat navs.
The village occupies an interesting spot, straddling the border between Suffolk and Essex. There's also a historic medieval church and a 12th century Motte and Bailey Castle which are well worth a visit.

Photos

St Edmund Way - geograph.org.uk - 279527

St Edmund Way. With Marmansgrave Wood to the left and Thetford Heath to the right. Thetford Heath is Open Access Land between November and March.

Track to Rockwood Hall - geograph.org.uk - 1092120

Track to Rockwood Hall. Rockwood Hall is a new house, which does not appear on OS maps. It is situated close to Little Rockwood Farm. A metalled road leads to the house, but this is also a bridleway, part of the St Edmund Way long-distance walk.

Lower Stour valley west of Manningtree - geograph.org.uk - 487940

Lower Stour valley west of Manningtree. The river itself is to be found somewhere amongst all the vegetation. Taken from the St Edmund Way footpath.

River Stour from Ballingdon Street bridge - geograph.org.uk - 2074685

River Stour from Ballingdon Street bridge

Willy Lott's Cottage, Flatford - geograph.org.uk - 155476

Willy Lott's Cottage, Flatford. A private house not open to the public.

Melford Hall 2

Melford Hall

Kentwell Hall - geograph.org.uk - 179210

Kentwell Hall

West Stow Lake - geograph.org.uk - 639767

West Stow Lake. This 8-acre lake, a former gravel pit, is part of the West Stow Country Park.

GPS Files

GPX File

St Edmund Way.gpx (On Desktop:Right Click>Save As. On Ipad/Iphone:Click and hold>Download Linked File)

Memory Map Route

St Edmund Way.mmo (On Desktop:Right Click>Save As. On Ipad/Iphone:Click and hold >Download Linked File)