3
THE ESSEX WAY
This long distance footpath, which originally
extended from Epping to Dedham, was created by
the Essex Branch of the Council for the
Preservation of Rural England as a contribution
to Euro-Conservation Year 1971. I decided to
walk the Essex Way in 1984, with my brother-in-law,
Michael Dixon, to provide photographs to illustrate
my last presidential address to the Essex Field
Club in 1985. We decided to complete the
journey in four days, covering about fifteen miles
on each of the first three days, and seventeen
miles on the last.
DAY 1. 29th July, 1984
The walk began at Epping Station in glorious
weather, leading us soon into farmland, and then
past the "Theydon Oak Public House" too soon for
refreshment Back into farmland again we
observed the Great Horsetail, growing as a weed
in a field of wheat almost ready for harvesting.
The first woodland area contained areas of Bracken.
This fern is able to compete against any flowering
plant, spreading by rhizomes from its point of
establishment. It attracts ants which probably
accounts for the few species of insects which
attempt to feed on it. The plant also wages
botanical warfare on a large scale; it produces
cyanide, it can turn sheep blind, induces cancer
in cattle and probably humans, and destroys
vitamin Bl. Consequently it can spread widely
in overgrazed areas.
The footbridge over the M11 motorway led to a long,
straight track through Birching Coppice. The
Small Balsam was photographed here. This plant
is a native of Siberia and Turkistan and was
first recorded in Cheshire in 1848. Like its