Start : St. John's Church Car Park, Little Leighs (TL71871680).
(S/E) Leave St. John's Church car park by the left hand exit, cross Church Lane and go straight ahead on the width-restricted Rectory Lane. Cross the very narrow bridge over the River Ter keeping ahead on the road.
At the T-junction turn left to continue following the lane. Ignore a public footpath off to the right and another on the left. Continue on this hedge-lined narrow lane, passing The Old Rectory, for nearly half a mile until reaching a T-junction on a bend.
(1) Bear left at the junction and after a few yards take a footpath on the left beside a fingerpost and large wooden post. Go straight ahead keeping close to the field boundary towards trees ahead. At the time of writing this path was between two field boundaries and was quite easy to follow; it does deviate slightly to the right of the OS map marking, but should be quite obvious.
(2) Just after meeting a hedge and fence, turn off to the left into a wooded area with a pond on the left. Keep ahead on this path through trees and bushes to eventually drop gently down to cross a footbridge (the River Ter again).
Pass through lines of newly planted (probably cricket bat) willow trees to cross another footbridge then cross the field, towards an oak tree to the right of a telegraph pole, virtually directly ahead. The path leaves the field at a fingerpost and joins a narrow country road - Church Lane.
(3) Turn right on the lane passing Little Warricks, ignoring a footpath on the left shortly after. Pass the optimistically named Court Hill to reach a T-junction. At the junction cross the road to take a marked footpath beside a gate. (April 2024 - you may need to go under the gate, or open and close it if possible, as the verge either side is very overgrown)
Follow the field edge track shortly after a concrete standing, with the hedge and trees on the right and field on the left, soon passing a white-topped marker post. The path begins to swing gently to the left.
(4) Just after meeting a small copse on the right there is a T-junction of paths - turn right to follow the track downhill, passing the end of the copse. At the corner of the field beside a large willow tree, turn left to follow the field edge track, again with a hedge and trees on the right. Behind these trees is Lodge Lake which cannot be seen due to its very high bank.
Keep ahead very gently downhill, swinging right on the obvious gravel farm track. This drops down to a ford where there is a footbridge on the left, behind a beech tree. Re-join the track which shortly turns sharp right (where it can be quite wet) and then sharp left. Here it is possible to climb the bank to see the rather attractive fly-fishing lake, where there is a handily placed bench to rest awhile and admire the scene.
(5) Continue along the track until reaching a small parking area. Here turn sharp left to follow the tree-lined gravel track - the access road to the lakes. Pass on the right hand side of the metal gate if it is (most likely) locked, keeping straight ahead, passing farm buildings and two cylindrical fertiliser stores on the left. Just after these, do not go ahead towards Leighs Lodge but turn left to go between farm buildings towards an earth bank.
Turn right to pass by a black barn then leave the farm on the left side of a gate by a fingerpost beneath a horse chestnut tree. Turn left to follow a lane.
(6) Where the lane bears left, with a large oak tree on the right, take a fingerpost marked footpath off to the right, initially through trees and scrub, across a plank footbridge to reach a field corner. Follow the path gently downhill along the line of power cables and a hedge on the left. At the bottom corner of the field cross the footbridge and turn sharp left following a fairly distinct path with trees mainly on the left. After a few yards ignore an unmarked path which heads off to the right across a footbridge.
(7) There are many ancient fish ponds (no doubt used to feed the priory) marked on the 1:25,000 OS map, but I could see no evidence of them. Pass through the hedge where there is a field gate on the left, keeping straight ahead. Keep ahead through another hedge on the grassy farm track. This eventually starts swinging to the left.
Where it meets a low but obvious earth bank, there is a Y-junction of paths. Keep left here, soon passing a post with Saffron Trail and other waymarks on it. Continue with the trees on the left until eventually reaching a low stile. Cross this to enter a delightful hay meadow.
The path follows the left hand side of the field, keeping quite close to the trees, hedge and fence on the left. Here there are more fish ponds marked on the map. At the end of the meadow, where it meets a plantation of willows, bear slightly right to cross a rather substantial footbridge (the Ter - once again) which bears a Saffron Trail waymark. Follow the obvious path left as it meanders beside willow trees towards a footbridge and finger post, where it meets Leez Lane close to a road junction. Turn right, then left, following the road sign to Littley Green and The Walthams.
(8) Pass the entrance to Leez Priory wedding venue, following the road sharp right, rising slightly uphill, past a pair of cottages. Shortly after another pair of cottages - 3 & 4 - keep straight ahead, leaving the road as it turns left, passing to the left of a pair of gates to follow a farm track (bridleway), with a line of trees and ditch on the left, for a little over half a mile.
This rises very gently and soon offers 360° panoramic views of the largely unspoilt Essex countryside with virtually no traffic noise. The path begins to descend gently towards the houses and farm buildings of Littleypark. At the end of the bridleway pass to the right of the gate to meet a lane.
Turn left, passing cottages, continuing along the lane until it reaches Littley Green. Follow the road around to the left, signposted to Willows Green and Braintree, passing a K6 telephone kiosk and, shortly afterwards, the award winning Compasses Inn.
(9) Just after the pub, opposite its car park, take a marked footpath on the right to follow the Saffron Trail away from the road. This path follows field boundaries with a hedge and trees on the left.
At the corner of the field, where it meets another line of trees, there is a T-junction of footpaths and remnants of an old gate in the fence ahead. Turn right to follow the line of trees along the side of the field going gently downhill with a red-roofed building visible ahead.
The path swings slightly left where there is a break in the hedgerow and a marker post showing the Saffron Trail and public footpath. Keep left here to reach horse paddocks. Continue alongside the paddocks until reaching their entrance, bearing left to join the tarmac drive. Continue along the lane to reach a T-junction. Turn left along a tree-canopied little used lane. Ignore the signed Saffron Trail footpath on the right, keeping ahead on the narrow lane.
(10) Just before the lane swings to the left, where there is a break in the trees on the left, there is a fingerpost (it can be very hard to see it in the bushes) showing an almost imperceptible footpath (see * below) that joins a field (discarded tyres may be visible here) and immediately turns right, following the field edge. At the corner of the field where the path meets properties there are waymarks: turn right at the hedge/fence to meet a gravelled drive, turn left and on reaching a lane and fingerposts turn sharp left towards Ivy Cottage (11).
* If the path is impossible to find (or, having found it, the field corner is too wet/muddy) continue along the lane, turning left at the drive towards Old Shaw's Farm (Spot Height 64 on the map) and continue at waypoint (11).
(11) Go through the swing gate and follow the path alongside the cottage garden then either climb the stile or, more likely, walk past it, and keep straight ahead. Keep to the left of the ditch, cross the footbridge to a marker post and follow the field edge path, keeping the hedge and trees on your right, going gently downhill.
The path leaves the field at a gravelly yard with a liquid fertiliser store. Keep left of the cylinder to join a bridleway/farm track going downhill with a line of willows, and a group of beehives, on the left. Follow this track gently downhill for 1200 yards (1.1km) to meet a road - Church Lane - at a fingerpost.
(12) Turn right on the road and follow it back to the church car park, where the walk began. (S/E)
