London to Walsingham Day 4

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Buoyed by my enjoyment of the previous day's walk I was out of the door by 7.30am and soon out of the village heading along field tracks to the unfortunately named Ugley.
Soon after I passed underneath the M11 motorway but thankfully it wasn't long before I had left the traffic noise behind and was once again listening to the skylark's distinctive call as I made my way across fields of crops.
Between Widdington and Newport I joined the Harcamlow Way, a waymarked long distance footpath which along with the Saffron Way would lead me to the picturesque town of Saffron Walden.
Here I visited the church - another St Mary's - whose tall steeple rises way above the old half timbered buildings of the town centre. Many of these old houses have patterns moulded into the plaster of the exterior walls. This technique known as Pargeting is seen mainly in Essex and Suffolk.
The town was quite busy as it was market day and I got myself a coffee and sat people watching like I had all the time in the world. In fact it was now past midday and I was barely half way through the days 24 miles.
Making a mental note to come back sometime when I am less rushed I reluctantly set off again following tracks across the fields, only occasionally having to walk on a stretch of minor road.
In Ashdon no sooner had I stuck my head in All St's Church than a churchwarden appeared. She told me not only a lot of history of the church but also about the windmill that I would soon pass and which her husband had helped restore.
Again reluctantly I had to move on. Dropping downhill to cross the River Bourn, and then climbing back up on the eastern side of the valley, chatting away with a dog walker as we went.
The paths took me past the earlier mentioned Bragg's Mill and eventually to Bartlow.
Here in a clearing in woodland at the edge of the village stand four Roman burial mounds. Originally there were seven and then they were the largest group of Roman Barrows in Western Europe. Sadly three have been lost over time, but even given that they are pretty overgrown they still make for an impressive sight.
As I was passing anyway I had a quick look in the church, mainly to check out some 15th century wall paintings.
The next mile or so was along a road before turning onto footpaths which lead to the village of Horseheath. Here my day's walking was done and I caught a bus into nearby Haverhill were I stayed overnight.

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