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Essex

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Walking the River Crouch: Burnham on Crouch to North Fambridge

by Ian Tokelove March 12, 2022

March 12, 2022

A winter walk along the River Crouch, part of Essex’s Saltmarsh Coast Path. Lots of wildlife with a warm, welcoming pub …

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Estuary walk from Paglesham in Essex & the Beagle’s final resting place

by Ian Tokelove October 27, 2020

October 27, 2020

Exploring Paglesham Creek, the River Roach & the final resting place of HMS Beagle, the ship in which Charles Darwin circumnavigated …

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Remote London

Remote London is a website dedicated to the quieter, wilder side of Greater London and beyond. Places away from the crowds, where nature can flourish undisturbed. Places where you can walk and see few others.

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Wild spaces, rivers & seas
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Kayaking, walking & writing

“The rusting boat was a small tug and was towed

“The rusting boat was a small tug and was towed to where it remains now in the 1980's. I don't recall where it came from originally… There was a young boy of about 14 yrs and his dad living on it for a couple of years. "One night the gas tanks were set alight but the two were able to escape before the tanks exploded and burnt the boat to its existing condition. Dad and son never returned. The boat has been left in situ since then.” I’ve been intrigued by this curious, remote hulk since I first noticed it, out on the River Roach in Essex, close to the village of Paglesham and its small boatyard. Unable to dig up any info, I turned to the ‘Paglesham Past and Present’ website, and they responded to my request, for which I am grateful. Every boat has a story. I’d love to know more, so if anyone out there has more info, do get in touch. And thank you, Paglesham Past and Present: www.pagleshampastandpresent.co.uk - - - #RemoteLondon #RiverRoach #Roach #Essex #Creek #Paglesham #ThamesEstuary #Estuary #CoastPath #PagleshamBoatyard #Abandoned #Wreck #TugBoat

My favourite urban coastal walk, Purfleet to Grays

My favourite urban coastal walk, Purfleet to Grays in Essex, along the Thames estuary. Abandoned jetties, container ships, oil silos and chemical works. And lots of wildlife. Scrubby vegetation encroaches along the path, rich in late-summer seedheads, and house martins skim the saltmarsh edge. Blackberries in places, and damsons too, for those who like their fruit wild 🍇 - - - #RemoteLondon #ThamesPath #ThamesEstuary #Estuary #UrbanLandscape #edgelands #Essex #Thurrock #WestThurrock #Purfleet #Grays #Coastpath

Walking the River Roach last Monday, out from Roch

Walking the River Roach last Monday, out from Rochford and Stambridge Mills to Paglesham boatyard and back. Along the way, the seawall paths are tightly wrapped with prickly wild grasses and in places, the roads are surfaced with crystal-white fragments of crushed cockle shells. The remnants of Charles Darwin’s famous ship, the Beagle, lie hidden in the saltmarsh, just beyond Paglesham boatyard. In around 1847 the ship was repurposed as a Coastguard Watch Vessel, a static base for coastguards, whose principle job was stopping smuggling. And a lot of that went on in the Essex creeks, back in the day. The body of the ship is long gone, but the keel is believed to be preserved under the salty mud. Sadly there’s nothing to see, other than a small interpretation panel, overlooking the saltmarsh. - - - #RemoteLondon #RiverRoach #Roach #Essex #Creek #SaltMarsh #Saltings #StambridgeMill #StambridgeMills #Rochford #Paglesham #Darwin #CharlesDarwin #TheBeagle #ThamesEstuary #Estuary #CoastPath #SeaWall

Early August walk along the edge of Kent’s Hoo P

Early August walk along the edge of Kent’s Hoo Peninsula, drawn again to the sculptural remnants of old jetties, still standing after more than a hundred years. They served an inland explosives works, from roughly 1898 until 1920. The site closed following a reduction in post-war demand for munitions. The jetties would have remained in much better condition, but during World War Two they were deliberately broken, to render them useless in the face of wartime invasion. - - - #RemoteLondon #HooPeninsula #ThamesEstuary #Estuary #Thames #NorthKentMarshes #EnglandCoastPath #CoastPath #Abandoned

Wandering Kent’s Hoo Peninsula at the weekend, t

Wandering Kent’s Hoo Peninsula at the weekend, the flat landscape offset by the distant gantry cranes of London Gateway, across the wide reach of the Thames. The path was dry, beaten down by summer heat, and coated with drifts of thistle seeds. Inland, the quiet ruins of munition works dot the grazing marshes, and beyond the seawall, huge container ships slide past – their massive bulks slowing as they cautiously approach their berths. - - - #RemoteLondon #HooPeninsula #ThamesEstuary #Estuary #Thames #NorthKentMarshes #EnglandCoastPath #LondonGateway #CoastPath

Harwich, July 2025. There’s much more to Harwich

Harwich, July 2025. There’s much more to Harwich than these pics show, but these are some of the bits that caught my attention on a recent trip. I liked Harwich, with its beautiful old buildings contrasting with modern concrete banality, its slightly rough around the edges feel, and its views of Felixstowe, across the mouth of the Stour. - - - #Harwich #StourEstuary #Estuary #CoastPath #CoastalWalking #Stour #RiverStour #Folkestone

The disused, dilapidated gantry bridge at Harwich

The disused, dilapidated gantry bridge at Harwich Train Ferry Berth. Dating back to 1923, this once served train ferries to Zeebrugge in Belgium. The last service ran in 1987 and the structure is now Grade II Listed. The gantry controlled an adjustable train bridge which was hinged at the shore end, while the other end could be raised or dropped to rest on the stern of a ferry. The gantry was originally constructed in Richborough, Kent in 1917 to support overseas troops fighting in the First World War. Other parts of the structure are from a sister berth in Southampton, repurposed after the war’s end. These were Britain’s first ever roll-on/roll-off ferries. In their original role they played a critical part in resisting the German Spring Offensive of 1918. Pics from a week or two ago, while walking the Stour coastline. Lots more info at www.historicengland.org.uk - - - #HarwichTrainFerryBerth #HarwichTrainFerry #Harwich #HarwichZeebrugge #StourEstuary #EssexWay #Estuary #CoastPath #CoastalWalking #Stour #RollOnRollOff

Exploring the tidal River Colne last week, from Fe

Exploring the tidal River Colne last week, from Ferry Road, Fingringhoe to the head of navigation at East Mill in Colchester. A surprisingly green journey, alongside new housing and old and repurposed industry. And one old hulk, slowly melting into the river. - - - #RiverColne #Essex #Colchester #EastMillColchester. #RemoteLondon #Fingringhoe #Estuary #ThamesEstuary #Kayaking #Kayak #SeaKayaking #UrbanKayaking

Last week I stumbled across this intriguing, forgo

Last week I stumbled across this intriguing, forgotten curiosity, while walking the Essex Way between Copperas Bay and Ramsey. It’s a locally-built swather, a small harvester that cuts and ‘windrows’ grain and other seed crops, depositing the cuttings in a long row to dry before collection. This one dates back to 1981 and was built by @shelbournereynolds. The cutting blades are hidden in the brambles, at the opposite end to the unrelated yellow bucket. - - - #EssexWay #Swather #ShelbourneReynolds #ShelbourneReynoldsSwather #ShelbourneReynoldsEngineering #Ramsey

A couple of abandoned hulks on the Stour Estuary.

A couple of abandoned hulks on the Stour Estuary. Spotted while walking the Essex Way last week, from Mistley to Harwich. One hulk was within reach, one was not. The coastline is gorgeous, quiet and remote, but not always accessible. - - - #StourEstuary #EssexWay #Abandoned #Hulks #Hulk #Estuary #Wrabness #CoastPath #CoastalWalking #Stour

The gnarled, sculptural remains of a riverside wil

The gnarled, sculptural remains of a riverside willow, upstream of Flatford Mill on the River Stour. Stripped back to its core, its bleached, twisted bones seem almost alien. It’s the sort of stump that looks as though it could move itself, when the mist is thick and no one is watching.

My favourite ‘easy’ escape – a train ride to

My favourite ‘easy’ escape – a train ride to Higham in Kent – a shortish walk out to the estuary, and a long, circular route back. On a warm weekend evening, rabbits were grazing on the foundations of a long-erased cement works, last active some 100 years ago, and soldier beetles were getting jiggy atop bouquets of wild carrot. Lots of space out here, and room to breathe. - - - #RemoteLondon #HooPeninsula #ThamesEstuary #Estuary #Thames #NorthKentMarshes #EnglandCoastPath #CliffeMarshes #CoastPath #Abandoned #LondonGateway #CliffePools #RSPBCliffePools #CliffeCreek

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Recent Posts

Walking Faversham Creek and Oare Creek, and the Oare Marshes in Kent
Walking the River Roach: Rochford to Barling Ness
From the Swale to Bedlams Bottom, a Medway Marshes walk
Walking the River Roding, from Redbridge to the Barking Creek Barrier & the Thames
Walking the River Ebbsfleet, from Northfleet Harbour to its Springhead source
Yantlet Creek: a short walk between two estuaries, the Thames & Medway
Walking the River Crouch: Burnham on Crouch to North Fambridge
Walking MOD Shoeburyness and the Wakering creeks
Exploring Milton Creek, from Sittingbourne to the Swale
Walking the Broomway, Britain’s deadliest footpath

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All content © Ian Tokelove 2025 unless otherwise stated.

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