This circular walk attempts to give a flavour of the typical landscape of the area: arable fields, some meadows and pasture, ancient hedgerows and trees. The Rattlesden River rises at Felsham and this provides the added interest of gentle valleys with small streams, often dry in summer but frequently in full spate in the winter or after thunderstorms.
(Image produced from the Ordnance Survey Get-a-map service. Image reproduced with kind permission of Ordnance Survey and Ordnance Survey of Northern Ireland.)
The walk is just over 4 miles in length and you need to allow between 1½ hours - 2 hours to complete it. The walk could be tackled in two parts: eastern and western loops - by using the footpaths that run from the Church towards Brooke Hall farm [point C on the map]. The walk begins at the Village Hall where there is a free car park.
Directions:
Leave the village car park and turn right along the road towards Lower Green – a triangular green with a large graceful poplar tree in the middle. The Old Rectory can be seen on your right. Cross the green, passing the tree, and look for a signed footpath on the other side leading into the fields. After about 300m at footbridge/footpath T-junction turn right. The path keeps to field edges for about half a mile until you arrive at a narrow quiet by-road (A on the map). Here, you turn right.
(At this point, you could if desired, turn left, and take a short 10 minute detour to see the beautifully restored Hill Farm – a timber-framed farmhouse with many interesting features. This house is right on the parish boundary between Felsham and Gedding. After looking at the house return to point A on the map.)
Continue along the by-road for about half a mile passing Poplar farm and an interesting wind vane depicting a 2nd World War bomber. Over to the left you may just see the runway used by the USAF over 60 years ago, and now used by the Rattlesden Gliding Club.
See http://felshamwalksairfield.blogspot.com/
When you reach Moore’s Farm, note the now rather faded picture postcard paintings on the barn walls completed by Mr Steadman, the previous farmer, many years ago. Immediately after this ancient farmhouse, take the track to the right and then, after about 70m turn left down along a wide grassy footpath towards some meadows. There is an excellent view here to the west, across the valley to Felsham Church tower nestling among the trees in the distance.
On reaching the meadows, keep to the footbridges, and bear roughly 2 o’clock for about 50m heading for a gap in the thick hedge which hides a stream. This stream eventually becomes the Rattlesden River which flows towards Stowmarket and joins the River Gipping and the Orwell estuary at Ipswich. After the footbridge, take the signposted route across the middle of a field to join the Felsham to Brettenham road at point B on the map.
Cross the road and continue along a gravel farm track towards Brooke Hall, ignoring the alternative path to the right, which takes a diagonal route across the field. With the hedge on your left continue until you reach a modern house. Turn right between this house and a small pond and look for a small signposted opening to the left after about 30m [cottage ahead]. Turn left, cross ditch and after a few steps up to the field, turn right and follow the field edge round the moat until you can see the village church in the distance. Follow the path towards the village with the hedge on your right until you see a small way-marker [Point C on the map]. Here, you ignore the path continuing to the village [unless you want to cut short your walk at this point], and take a left hand route [not signed!] straight across the field towards some large trees on the far side where you will find another way-marker.
Bear left, with hedge on right hand side until you spot a narrow gap through the hedge on the right after about 20m. Cross the ditch using the planks and turn left along field edge with hedge on left. Here the path can become indistinct, but you will OK as long as you keep roughly to the line of the old oak trees heading towards a ditch. As you near the ditch look for a footbridge with handrails towards the end of the field on the right hand side. Cross this bridge and turn immediately left following field edge with hedge on left hand side.
Just before reaching the road [at point D on the map] the path turns into a grassy track. Turn left along the road and after about a 100m note the protected roadside nature reserve on the left hand side. Pyramidal orchids can be seen here in the spring. Ignore the junction on the left to Thorpe Morieux, with red post-box, and continue towards Cockfield. Just after bungalow turn right over footbridge and skirt the farm buildings belonging to Rookery Farm. Follow the path veering to the right then after about 20m ignore the path that continues to Maiden Hall and turn sharp left through a hedge gap and then immediately right to follow the field edge path towards Glebe Wood. Keep the hedge on your right while crossing the small ditches between the fields. When you reach Glebe Wood, the fields open up to your right and you can see the vast expanse of Bradfield Woods ahead of you. Continue towards the Woods along a wide grassy path crossing the large field with a lonely oak tree on the left hand side.
When you reach the woods, (point E on the map), you turn right to follow an easy grass track along the edge of the field. (If you wish you can cross a footbridge into the trees at this point and join the extensive network of footpaths that criss-cross the National Nature Reserve of Bradfield Woods.) As you walk along this path you can spot the complex of farm buildings that make up Felsham Hall over the fields to your right. When you reach a footpath crossroads near some large oak trees, continue straight ahead. Go along the field edge, with the hedge on your right hand side, towards the tall trees surrounding Felsham House. At the end of the field, the footpath carries on through a small shady thicket of shrubs and trees. Take care of exposed tree roots and cross planks to arrive in the grounds of Felsham House to your left. Continue towards the road and turn right back towards the village centre watching out for fast moving traffic on this slight bend.
As you approach Upper Green note the old village pump opposite the garage.
After the green, turn left, passing the pub, church and shop to arrive back at the Village Hall car park [your starting place].
