United Kingdom
Stetchworth

Discover travel destinations of travelers writing a travel journal on FindPenguins.
Travelers at this place
    • Dullingham and Stetchworth

      May 8, 2024 in England ⋅ ⛅ 12 °C

      These villages were visited on a 7.5 mile walk with the Cambridge Rambling Club

      Dullingham is a small village and civil parish situated 4 miles south of Newmarket and 14 miles east of Cambridge.  It is a pretty place with a village green, local pub, church and nice properties, and even has its own railway station; opened in 1848, it lies on the Cambridge branch of the Ipswich to Ely Line, via Newmarket.  We leave the village, passing by several small horse stud farms on our way to the small village of Dullingham Ley, where we head north along Basefield Wood towards Woodditton.

      Woodditton is a small village that lies at the south-eastern end of the Devil's Dyke, a defensive earthwork thought to be of Anglo-Saxon origin (see FP post in The Cambridgeshire Dykes).  The embankment is high here and thickly enclosed by scrub and bushes, with large roots crossing the path.  After a short walk of about 1/2 mile along it, we turn off for Stetchworth.  

      Stetchworth is another small village and civil parish and we are now 3 miles south of the horse-racing centre of Newmarket and around 12 miles east of Cambridge; typically, there is a pub, church and interesting properties here; the Ellesmere Centre is a community centre, including a post office, and community store, serving Stetchworth and the neighbouring villages mentioned above - we have our lunch here before heading back to Dullingham.

      Another good walk - in splendid weather, this time
      Read more

    • The Cambs Dykes 3 - Devil's Dyke

      August 20, 2021 in England ⋅ ⛅ 18 °C

      Devil's Dyke runs in an almost straight line from Woodditton (just south of Newmarket) to Reach (north-west of Newmarket); it is over 7 miles (11 km) long and is the largest of the series of the four ancient Cambridgeshire dykes - in some places the bank measures 9 metres (30 ft) high and 36.5 metres (120 ft) across.  When it was created, Devil's Dyke completely blocked a narrow land corridor between the southern edge of a region of water-logged marsh (now known as The Fens) in the north-west and dense woodlands in the south, so making circumvention difficult and forming an effective defensive barrier for the lands to the east.  

      We start our walk at the southern access point of Devil's Dyke at Woodditton, passing the water tower; the Dyke initially passes through the woods of a private estate. The embankment is very high in parts here and is thickly enclosed by scrub and bushes. After a short while, we cross a minor road and then the B1061 before negotiating the steps down to the gap across the Cambridge to Newmarket railway line. 

      After crossing this, Devil's Dyke changes in character and becomes much more open, with chalk loving flowers along this stretch.  There are views of a links golf course before we enter the domain of horse racing, as the Dyke cuts between Newmarket's two famous courses - the Rowley Mile, with its Millennium Grandstand, and the July Course.

      Soon we reach, and cross, the A14 and have views of the surrounding flat farmland before reaching the B1102 to Burwell.  At last we arrive at the northern access point of the Devil's Dyke, close to the village of Reach, and the end of this great walk.

      There is a local Morris dancing side that is named after Devil's Dyke - follow this link to read more about them (us!).... devilsdykemm.org.uk
      Read more

    You might also know this place by the following names:

    Stetchworth

    Join us:

    FindPenguins for iOSFindPenguins for Android