London to Amsterdam - Day 8 - Manningtree to Harwich

Rating: 3.8 / 5

Distance: 15.2 miles

Today was my final day of hiking in England for my London to Amsterdam hike.

My father dropped my back off at Manningtree. I met a man on the high street who told me the town has a history with Henry the VIII and he showed me a clock in the town centre that for some reason went 687 rather than 678 when looking at it from a clockwise direction.

I hiked through Mistley, where there is an English Heritage site called the “Mistley Towers”. They are all that’s left of a large demolished church built in the 18th century.

There were some colourful houses and an old factory is Mistley.

In a woodland that was outside of Mistley I saw the famous “Knobbly Tree”. This oak tree is thought to be over 800 years old. I met two men by the tree. One said that the tree has its own Facebook group. The other guy said he used to climb it when he was younger before there were barriers. I said that the tree must have seen a lot.

I ate my lunch that I bought from Tesco’s in Manningtree while sitting in a bird hide facing the Stour Estuary.

The most scenic part of today was around Wrabness Nature Reserve. There was a sandy beach and many wooden holiday homes on stilts. There were even people swimming in the estuary here.

I hiked into Ramsey, passing the village windmill. I stopped off at the Castle Inn Pub and Campsite to refill my water.

After arriving in Harwich - I bought myself a portion of chips. A man in the chippie asked me if I’ve been on a long walk. I told how I’ve hiked here from London in stages and he let me know Holland will be flat.

Part two of this adventure would see me take the ferry to the Hook of Holland and hike the remainder of the journey on foot to Amsterdam.

The hike to Amsterdam was successful and I will add a write up for the Dutch segment on my website soon. If you are interested though, I have uploaded a short video of my London to Amsterdam hike that can be seen below the photographs.