The JRT
Mile 1 - The Annoyingly Complicated Mile
Turn left out of the station; head to far left corner of car park; Ignore the Flitch Way on your right, and turn right along path that runs parallel behind the Flitch; follow path around left hand bend; Straight ahead over River Brain; turn right on road between flats; turn left at mini-roundabout; head uphill and turn right in to Hoppit Mead; continue until the end of Hoppit Mead; Continue ahead on sneaky public FP; Follow Gatekeeper Close around LH bend; turn left into Tortoiseshell Way (feels like straight on); after RH bend look for another sneaky public footpath sign on LH side, and take the path; follow path, turning left, then follow path some more.
Mile 2 - The First Trail Mile
Continue to follow path until T-junction; turn left; continue along path until you get to steps; take the steps to get over A120; come down steps and go left; stay on path for approx 350m; Where path meets farm track, turn right to take obvious footpath across farmer's field; continue across grassy area and across wooden platform; bear slightly left; through trees and across bridge; head straight across field (aim for trees in the middle, there is a waymark on a post in the middle of the trees if you look carefully) and keep the same line afterwards; At road turn left but stay on main road (don't turn down Buck Hill on left); After approx 250m turn right and head towards church.
Mile 3 - The Farmer's Field Mile
Stay on road until you get to church; enter church yard by gate; keep church on left hand side, and follow path to gate at back of the graveyard; bear right out of gate; head along footpath across Farmer's field; head through tree line; across another farmer's field; stay on same direction and take path along tree line until you get to Notley Village; travel through Notley Village in same direction of travel, crossing two roads, until you go through tree line.Ignore track that runs goes straight across your path, and go ahead; Head slight right across farmers field; head slight left along tree line; take path across farmer's field;
Mile 4 - The Mile of Plough and Road
Head slight right to follow grassy bank on left, until you get to t-junction; turn left at T-junction; follow obvious line as path bends around to the right; At road turn left; follow road downhill until you get to junction; go right at junction and stay on road for 40m, turn left into farm (access to the right of main gate); head downhill for 80m; turn right and follow obvious footpath;
If you get desperately lost, call James - 07850184268
Mile 5 – The Pretty Mile
Stay on path; when faced with a choice of paths take the slight left (not straight ahead) to aim for bridge; cross thin bridge; after bridge turn right; follow footpath going slightly right along obvious track. Keep going straight ahead ignoring track that runs off to left; go past decent house on you right with gravel out front, and then follow path round to right; stay on this path until T-junction with road; turn right onto road, then turn left onto footpath immediately before bridge/ford; keep going straight over stile
Mile 6 - The Danger Mile
Cross another stile; you're now at bottom edge of farmers field; continue ahead; when you get to the far corner of field (three trees together), turn left to head uphill; Cross railway line OBVIOUSLY BEING CAREFUL; go through trees and cross farmers field in same direction (look for waymark post on far side of field as you cross to adjust direction of travel); Cross Cressing Road OBVIOUSLY BEING VERY CAREFUL AGAIN; cross stile on other side of the road (look carefully as sometimes hidden by shrubbery); follow path to right; eventually bringing you out in Cressing Temple Barns car park; head left, running along main track keeping the barns to your left; keep following track/road round to left
Mile 7 - The Half & Half Mile
Keeping going to road junction and then turn right running along road; stay on road for approx half a mile, until you get to funny gate made with steel barrels on right; Turn right along footpath immediately before funny gate (don’t follow direction of footpath sign); Stay on this footpath for quite a while.
Mile 8 - The Proper Trail Mile
When you get to T-junction (you should be level with farm on your right) turn left and then immediate right; follow field edge, then turn left at field edge corner; stay straight for approx 238.87m, then turn right onto obvious footpath; at t-junction turn right; run a bit; then turn left;
Mile 9 - The Green Mile
Keep on footpath (should be all under canopy) until you get to Rickstones Road; Cross Rickstones into Rectory Lane, and stay on road until T-junction
Mile 10 - The Last Mile
Turn left onto Forest Road, run past all the new houses on left; turn left to run in front of very first row of old houses on left; run past the all the houses on your left; when you get to field, follow field edge around to the right; keep running through tree line; keeping running along grassy bit; just after new railway bridge turn right, run for a bit; turn left onto Cut Throat Lane; keep going until you get to T-junction; turn left, and follow road until you get to station; bask in the glory of completing the John Ray Trail; sit down; maybe have a beer