12
of Warwick for the convenience of such important guests as
the Prince of Wales. A brick gatehouse entrance to Easton
Lodge still stands a short distance away along the A120.
The Halt was on the Bishop's Stortford side of the road
to Bacon End and has now disappeared, but the Crossing-keeper's
house still remains. Alongside this a private siding was built
in 1962 to serve Geest's warehouses, known locally as the
'banana factory'. This section of the railway continued
working until 1971 and the track was lifted in 1972. The
section between Dunmow and Easton Lodge was closed and the
track lifted in 1969.
Entrance to the disused track is made through what must
have been a yard, and many of the plants here are typical of
waste ground. More unusually are Wormwood (Artemesia absinthe),
Lesser Yellow Trefoil (Trifolium dubium), Field Pansy (Viola
arvensis), Hairy Tare (Vicia hirsuta) and the leaves of
Mullein (Verbascum sp.).
The first section of the track still has ballast lying
and the flora is typical of a dry stony habitat, but it in-
cludes Smooth Tare (Vicia tetrasperma), Herb Robert (Geranium
robertianum) Creeping Cinquefoil (Potentilla reptans), Goats-
beard (Tragopogon pratensis) and the seedheads of Cowslip
(Primulaveris). In the lusher verges Birdsfoot Trefoil (Lotus
corniculatus) soon become apparent and the common Horse-tail
(Equisetum arvense), which persists in large quantity for most
of the walk. Flowering shrubs included Dogwood (Cornus san-
guinea) and Dog Rose (Rosa canina). This section of the walk
ended where it was crossed by a farm track, which divides to
Round House, which is exactly that, with a thatched roof.
Possibly an old windmill, as on the day of our visit there
was certainly plenty of wind in the open areas.
To enter the second section a large tree trunk has to be
negotiated, obviously placed to keep out vehicles. On the left
is a high bank, which appears to be a small chalky area, with
Salad Burnet (Poterium sanguisorba). It is here that there is
evidence that the railway had to cross several streams and had
drainage problems, as after the recent wet spell, there were
large puddles and patches of wet sticky clay. These presented
problems to those (Obviously non-botaniets) who had disregarded
advice to wear their wellies.