A cycle ride between the art, history and local services of Halesworth and Darsham.

This was written for the benefit of the High Tide Theatre Company



From: The Cut, New Cut, Halesworth, IP19 8BY
To: Haw Wood Farm, Darsham IP17 3QT

Distance: 5.4 miles, 9.18 km
Although the majority of this route is along a main road which HGVs travel between Ipswich and Norwich, the upside is that the road is smooth and wide with gentle climbs and descents. It should take a moderately fit person less than half an hour to travel by bicycle between the site of the High Tide festival at The Cut, Halesworth and the festival's campsite at Darsham.

On leaving the entrance to The Cut, head north (uphill) on New Cut and turn left at the A144/Norwich Rd, going downhill towards the roundabout.

But if your tyres need some air, turn right to Hammonds petrol station instead as this is the only local petrol station with a free air line.

Go straight ahead (second exit) over the roundabout onto Saxons Way. (The third exit Bridge Street leads to The Thoroughfare, a pedestrian shopping area.) A shopfront on Bridge Street belongs to the World Land Trust, an international conservation organisation that takes direct action to save rainforest and other wildlife habitats by buying it. The public library is almost opposite it.

On the roundabout on your left is Hooker House, once the home of the botanist Sir Joseph Dalton Hooker which is now a dental surgery. Behind it the park on your left was given to the town by Lady Rugby, the grandmother of disgraced MP Jonathan Aitken who spent his childhood in Halesworth. This is the site of the annual ‘Gig in the Park’ every August.

The river running through the park was once navigable until embankments built downstream caused it to silt up and there was a busy quayside where grain from the many maltings in Halesworth (of which The Cut was one) was taken by boat to Southwold and from there by ship to London. At one time all of Halesworth's malt went exclusively to the Truman brewery in London's Brick Lane.

The car park on the right has a rank of bottle banks and beside them is Huggy's, a cycle shop and motor mechanic.

At the next roundabout continue on ahead. (The right turn is signed Angel Link and leads to The Thoroughfare and the town Marketplace.)

The road now sweeps in a curve to the right. Lansbury Road on the left is named after the founder of the Labour Party George Lansbury (see Mells). Archaeological evidence suggests the derelict land on the right was occupied in medieval times with lead-working, spinning, weaving and brewing carried out in several tenements. It is now the contested site of a development for a Tesco supermarket.

At the next roundabout take the first left A144/London Rd. On the right is a Co-operative supermarket and a petrol station with a coin-operated pressure washer. Facing the roundabout is the Rifle Hall, originally built in 1792 as a theatre and was used from 1812 - 1844 by the theatre manager David Fisher. He owned an itinerant theatre group which travelled a circuit of theatres in East Anglia (including the Fisher Theatre in Bungay). It would take the company two years to complete the circuit travelling with their costumes, props and sets and publicising their plays as they went. They were highly successful with strong links with the London stage and the acting circle and the Rifle Hall once provided Halesworth what The Cut does today. The Rifle Hall has regretfully been neglected by Waveney District Council ever since they took it over in 1974 and its future looks uncertain.

Continue up the incline, mindful of the T-junction with the B1123 Chediston St causing traffic to stop or pull out in front of cyclists, passing Kerridges car dealership, and after that, turn left (heading south) at the A144/Bramfield Rd (at Highfield Residential Home). The road then sweeps downhill passing Blyth industrial estate. A cottage that once stood at the crossroads for Mells and Walpole was the birthplace of the founder of the Labour Party George Lansbury. His grand-daughter is the actress Angela. The Mells road continues onto Wenhaston and this is a good route if you want a quiet back road to see the Wenhaston Doom. In the distance to the east along the valley you can also see the Holton Windmill.

At the 2 km mark, the road climbs again as you pass the Halesworth Golf Club, crossing over the East Suffolk Railway, until it reaches a plateau. The trees at the right bend in the road have seen two fatal car accidents here in the last two years. A memorable road safety poster said "you see a lot of flowers in the country" and the remnants of wreaths were still there at the time of writing. To give a sense of distance if contemplating a side trip; to the east on the far horizon can be seen the Hinton Lodge water tower and next to it is Blythburgh Church, one of the finest churches in East Anglia.

The road then begins to descend towards the village of Bramfield and with enough initial speed it is possible to coast to the centre of the village.

After the village sign, a short way up the first left turning is K W Clarkes, a quality butchers who produce local ham smoked on the premises as well as stocking locally sourced groceries.

After that turning, the North Manor Equestrian Centre stock the surrounding fields with horses and beyond that, The Bell, a 17th century pub, sells firewood and serves real ale but not food. It is one of the last places in the world where the traditional pub game ‘Ringing the Bull’ can be played.

Further on the Bramfield Garage services and sells secondhand cars and motorcycles. Opposite the garage is the Queens Head, a long established award winning gastro-pub. Even though it is now only 5 kms since you left The Cut, you may want to slake your thirst from passing the half-way mark with a pint of locally brewed Adnams there. Nearby an overgrown dovecote made from a barrel raised on a post is a charming oddity.

At the village crossroads a choice of diversions awaits: The Walpole road to the right passes a crinkle-crankle wall and leads to the fine St Andrews Church.

In the opposite direction; a short way down the Thorington road, a path following the ancient Dunwich road leads to circle of felled elm trees at TM 403 736 which often holds outdoor performances. The landowner is the managing director of a display pyrotechnics company who has evidently done extensive and sensitive natural landscaping.

The Thorington road also leads to Wenhaston and a ride to there and back to Holton and Halesworth via the Mells road is a pleasant circular route.

Continuing out of the village, an ancient defensive earthworks, the ‘Bramfield Castle’, becomes apparent on the left side. The road now divides two separate estates. On the right; the Georgian façade of Bramfield Hall can be glimpsed. This Tudor pile is the weekend home of the chairman of the Royal Opera House.

The road begins to climb again and here the surface has deteriorated in some places. A cast iron milestone is at TM 401 727 and near here a large colony of rooks makes an audible landmark that car drivers would miss.

Then on the right, Brights Farm raises organic meat and is a special area of conservation. From the farm you can access twelve miles of grass walks passing a variety of different habitats including old meadows, ancient woods and ponds. Polocrosse is sometimes played in the fields too.

On reaching a flat plateau again, passing two WWII pillboxes marks the last kilometre. The vista is marred or enlivened depending on your mood by the sight of the A12 road and the whiff of a poultry farm.

At the junction with the A12, to reach Haw Wood Farm turn left towards the Little Chef restaurant and then turn right (signed for Hinton) and continue on, passing the turning for High Lodge golf course and shooting school, to reach Haw Wood Farm.

Otherwise, to continue onto Saxmundham, turn right at the A12 and continue on the cycle path towards the train station and petrol station which will become visible 2 km further south.

Darsham has all the basic essentials for a bicycle visitor including a cycling centre and The Fox Inn is popular for Sunday lunches. A bicycle will ensure all its amenities are convenient as they are scattered over some distance.

Clustered around the train station 2 km further along the A12 from the A144 junction are two cafés, a Jet petrol station with a market, Monkey Drum; a shop selling multicultural musical instruments and fair-trade gifts, a paint and tile shop and a automotive tyre centre.

If you want to return to Halesworth by public transport, your choices are the train from Darsham which takes under ten minutes but only runs every two hours or the hourly 521 Anglian Bus which stops outside the station and The Fox Inn on which so far folding bikes have been tolerated.

Local Bike Shops

Halesworth

Coopers (an ironmongers selling tools but no bike spares)
53-54 The Thoroughfare
01986 872 110

Huggy's Bike Shop
Unit 5
18 The Thoroughfare
Tel: 01986 873932

Darsham

Byways Bicycle
Priory Farm
Tel: 01728 668764

Mountain Bike Hire for Snape and Rendlesham forests (delivery and collection to your door with 24 hours notice).

Avocet Sports

07706 479965

http://www.eastcoastmountainbiking.co.uk/

Another map link: http://www.mapmyrun.com/route/gb/halesworth/959027424273

Services in Halesworth

Besides The Cut, services in Halesworth cluster around the Thoroughfare and The Marketplace, both a short walk from the New Cut. Halesworth has a wide range of shops including specialist butchers, a fishmonger, a delicatessen, a organic shop, several greengrocers, a toyshop, several giftshops, an ironmongers, several cafes, a picture framer, a teddy bear emporium, several banks and building societies, a travel agent, a sports shop, a Spar, two newsagents, three hairdressers, a gun shop, a wine merchant, a copy shop, a stationers, chemists and several takeaways. There is also a Co-operative supermarket and several petrol stations and car dealerships locally.

For bike related items there is Huggy's and Anglia Sports has some clothing and Coopers is hardware shop with good tool department but it doesn’t stock bike bits.

Barclays and Lloyds cashpoints are in the marketplace (beyond the Thoroughfare, opposite the Angel Hotel) and HSBC has one at the north end of The Thoroughfare opposite Focus Organics.

PART TWO TO COME: DARSHAM to SNAPE via SAXMUNDHAM

Electric bike shop up for green award.

One of my clients, the Leiston based Light Electric Vehicles, has been short listed in the Creating the Greenest County awards under the category Business transport.

The Creating the Greenest County Awards Ceremony is being held on Wednesday 18 March at the West Wing in Ickworth House, Bury St Edmunds.

FWIW I'd like to sound my endorsement to LEV getting an award. The owner James Fitzgerald is a former racing car engineer who has become a passionate advocate for electric bikes and has a vision we should be listening to.

Although I don't own an electric bike yet, I figure when my legs get too old to push me along on my Dahon folder, I'll be getting one too.

I have seen a lot of misunderstanding about electric bikes bandied about in the press and on blogs lately. These machines can massively increase your range without being huge and heavy (I very much doubt James' Sparta pictured is any heavier than an old Pashley) because they provide 'power assist' where electronics deliver juice from a Li-ion battery to a motor to take the edge off the hills and enable you to speed along on the level with very little effort. If they were fully powered, they would be electric motorbikes and would need road tax, helmets etc. I've tried these bikes and they work. A trip of 30 miles seems like trip to the store and back. In Suffolk you can now hire one of their bikes and use a network of charging stations for free.

Suffolk County Council are thoughtfully putting on some coaches for people to travel to the awards ceremony (it would be a bit foolish if they didn't consider the carbon footprint of all those trips to Ickworth for a beanfeast) but I know James will be making the trip on his bike. He makes the following calculation for travelling from Leiston to Ickworth:

James will thus save £1.75 in fares, 31kg of CO2, and have a couple of hours to work (read: snooze) on the train.

James says It’s always interesting to see how this would pan out on a national scale (LEV’s long term aim): If the entire population were to make this sort of journey by trainebike once, it’d save 1.519Mt of CO2, or 44% of the NHS’s entire transport related emissions.

With the governments’ commitment towards reduction of green house gas emissions, electric bikes are becoming very popular in Europe, where 124,000 were sold last year alone. Estimates put this years figure at 750,000 units!. Electric bikes stand out among many sustainable transport products because they allow individuals to travel when they want and where they want. Most rail companies allow them to travel free. Ebikes could be the biggest contributor to reducing the UK’s green house gasses: *assuming current UK nuclear, coal and gas energy mix, and excluding renewables, ebikes emit only 0.0036Kg per kilometer. Government figures (SQW, Nov 2007) put the monetary value for each additional cyclist travelling 8km 160 days a year at £560 (combined benefits of improved health and reduced pollution and congestion).

Chuck the Helicopter

Last Saturday I held a yard sale. The increased traffic that was passing my door for Gig In The Park was an opportunity to recycle a lot of toys and clothes my children had grown out of.

Unsurprisingly nobody wanted any of the five varying vintage Apple Macs, a surplus laser printer (works perfectly) that I originally salvaged from a skip myself and the six foot stack of out of date film production directories I'd collected over the years. If anyone wants the DGA list of members 1994 get in touch. 

By the end of the day we had passed on a lot of toys and clothing for 0-5 year olds to pleasant and grateful people and had made oh, at least ten pounds. Our chickens must have sensed the occasion too because for the first time they produced ten eggs that morning enabling us to offer a full dozen for sale which were snapped up by some appreciative campers who could see the chickens that gave them their breakfast. It's nice to think that something as simple as an egg stand and honesty box will add value for visitors. Perhaps SCC's tourism department should be notified.

Although yard sales can attract to your door people living in an alternate reality and the tiny minority of dishonest people who will pocket a child's toy even though the seller was only asking 10 pence, you also meet your neighbours near and far and many people will hang about just to make conversation. Such chances for fellowship are a fine thing.

One constant topic of conversation that day was the visit the previous Thursday (July 31st) to Southwold and surrounding area of HRH Prince Charles and HRH The Duchess of Cornwall. I was asked in an employment capacity if I could be there to photograph His and Her Royal Highnesses but, being a Thursday, I had a five thousand word research report to finish and had pledged to lock myself away until it was done.

As I have done the Royal Rota before, I know that in my heart, that my report will be much more important and useful than anything that could result from any photographs I could take at such a tightly controlled photo-opportunity.

Although our corner of Suffolk is thought very conservative (my MP John Gummer has one of the safest Conservative seats in the UK) I think any republicans would be encouraged if they had polled my yard sale visitors. Southwold is a property hotspot for wealthy second-homeowners, allegedly mostly meeja types from London, and if any of them were amongst those who stopped by my stall, they joined the vast majority who were rather disparaging about there being any benefit or value in being visited by - as the official advance memo called them - Their Royal Highnesses (TRH). In fact, against the carbon footprint of a brief royal visit, they would prefer they stayed at home and didn't bother anyone.

To be fair, they didn't see any value in the attention gained from the Prime Minister Gordon Brown visiting Southwold either.

There was some tabloid outrage that the TRHs visited Southwold to see how a brewer reduced their carbon footprint and taste a carbon neutral beer by flying the 85 road miles from Sandringham to Southwold in a helicopter.

I should like to point out that it's not just the helicopter that affects the Royal's carbon footprint but the fact that someone had to drive the royal Daimler or Aston Martin empty (from Sandringham presumably) to meet the helicopter at Southwold for the twenty minute journey down to Snape Maltings afterwards and then drive it empty back again and wherever TRH go, there is an advance party of about twenty vehicles checking for bombs and snipers and any dodgy characters such as protesters outraged at the leaving of Southwold's sea defences to the whim of nature.

With all the extra mileage from the vendors convened for a 'Farmer's Market' at Snape Maltings as a photo opportunity, (as one had already been held the week before) let alone all the media, VIPs and onlookers which should be discounted of course, the Royal Party must have been a huge procession spewing tons of CO2 in its wake.

A palace spokesman is reported to have said the helicopter was the "most effective" way of travelling.

"We always look at the most effective way of travelling, taking into account the different factors... On this occasion it was felt a helicopter was the best way to travel so the Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall could carry out various engagements in Suffolk." A more neutral Press Association story is here.

Hmm, most effective for whom? So TRH can be back at home in time for tea?

A point that many bloggers and internet news stories seem to have missed is that TRH were also visiting Snape Maltings to see the result so far of the £14M of public and private funding spent on creating a music campus, which will have excellent green credentials itself, created out of long derelict buildings.

But, according to the advance reports, this trip was not about showing support for a venture that will advance Britain's status internationally and create many real and sustainable jobs in an area where the alternative employment is factory turkey farming and processing, but for a photo of the Prince sniffing at a jar of chutney to show his support for "the people behind the products that are putting Suffolk on the food map."

Given the esteem held for TRH - rather more a sort of tolerance encouraged in the great and the good by chances at the occasional gong - I wouldn't think TRH is the sort of celebrity endorsement that's wanted or even needed for Suffolk's food.

What publicity does Suffolk food need? Why Suffolk? What food in particular? What happens when TRH goes next week to somewhere else, does the magic wand of TRH's presence lead to an improvement in those vendor's bottom line also? I don't think so. I agree with his sentiments but it's quite a lot easier to be green when you own half (or more) of Cornwall.

The brand value of TRH is practically nil unless it is tied specifically to something you can identify with them like rather dry and dull oat biscuits. Unlike his pronouncement made on his last visit to Blythburgh in 2001 to "make the pub the hub" and keep shopping local which was tremendously effective, I haven't heard of any speech or subsequent sound-bite derived from this visit. So Sir, what is your point? I am in fact, very keen to know.

A message to "support Suffolk food" is too vague a notion which is why I suspect the story got hijacked by something more newsworthy. Charles is preaching to an already converted (and dwindling) constituency.

In 2001 Charles urged people to buy locally and the visit this time was pitched as a follow up. Well, my experience is that some of the public already did and they still do so but most don't because the things they need and can afford are not sold locally in Suffolk. Local produce tends to be (and there are a few exceptions) aimed and priced at the luxury 'gourmet' market because that's where the margins are, meeting the wants of the demographic of the wealthy second-homeowners in Southwold who may buy a few of my eggs but get 99% of the rest of their shopping online. In any number of Suffolk towns, these consumers can support a delicatessen stocking expensive olive oils imported from Italy but don't buy enough locally caught fish to keep the fishmongers in business.

If Nelson Mandela ever came to Suffolk the crowds would likely be ten-thousand deep, for it is a very great honour for a such a man to devote any of his precious time to grace anyone with his presence. One participant said "I felt about as honoured and excited to meet Prince Charles as I did when I met Bet Lynch" and there lies the rub. Ms Lynch is of course a fictional character and so are TRH, being persons with status and advantage only conferred on them by virtue of practically nothing but marriage or accident of birth.

I'm sure a great number of people were pleased to see TRH and I know a few children were excited to present their posies but quite a few, including mine, when offered the choice, wanted to go to somewhere else. "Why?" they asked. I could only answer with what is expected of a loyal subject: "because he might be your king one day" but that was not sufficiently convincing.

That lack of credibility is unfortunately the problem for Charles. I am quite happy for Prince Charles to devote himself to something, to find some relevance he is so sensitive about, but I feel he can't have it both ways. Kingship is synonymous with luxury; king-size, 'fit for a king' and so on and HRH certainly enjoys plenty of luxury regardless of how much composting they do at Highgrove. Why isn't there solar panel on Buckingham Palace? I don't think anyone would object to the planning application and I reckon you could hide a pretty big wind turbine in the gardens as well. If they went for a vertical axis one, it might be quieter too.

Saving the planet is simply a matter of everyone consuming less and that, unfortunately for makers of luxury goods, is best achieved in the short term by going without such unnecessary extravagance. Status = consumption is the basic promise of most consumer advertising and wealth buys you the freedom to choose what you consume. The rural poor don't have such freedom. Those who are not brainwashed by advertising can overcome the stigma of second-hand goods and will buy recycled clothes from their neighbours because it is convenient and affordable and is far greener than bundling them up for Great Ormond Street (the local clothes charity) to ship them thousands of miles (more carbon) to Africa.

It seems that Clarence House can't get it right and I don't think they ever will while they continue to impose 19th Century ideas of duty, fealty and honour onto the 21st Century's media reality and ordinary people's priorities. Once upon a time kings and queens didn't have to go gallivanting around the country unless they wanted a free lunch and certainly didn't feel obliged to open hospitals and kiss babies and nobody actually expected them to. Perhaps we have come full circle, I think TRH wouldn't lose any public esteem if they stayed at home with their feet up for the sake of the planet.