The first Saturday outing for this walk. There are some cross-over points, so followers of the gpx, take care!
The Lea Valley is a wide floodplain which has long been both an important transport corridor and a natural boundary (eg. between the Saxons and the Danes in the Dark Ages). There are stretches through water meadows, along the towpath of the River Lea and past large filled-in gravel pits, one of the largest is a nature reserve where you could pause for some bird-watching from a new Wildlife Discovery Centre . A short interlude through farmland outside the Country Park and a pleasant grassy path along the edge of Cornmill Meadows Dragonfly Sanctuary leads directly into Waltham Abbey .
Waltham Abbey was built by Henry Ⅱ as part of his penance after the murder of Thomas Becket. Fortunately, part of its medieval nave survived to become the present Church of the Holy Cross : reminiscent of a scaled-down Durham Cathedral, it is well worth a visit.
After lunch the walk loops around the Abbey Gardens and leaves the town along Highbridge Street. An attraction on the afternoon leg is the Lee Valley White Water Centre , where you can watch canoeists and rafters tackling the slalom course constructed for the 2012 Olympic Games.
The afternoon route goes quite near Cheshunt station and two different link routes are described for a choice of Short Walks finishing there. The proposal is to do Short Walk 1, but all options are in the afternoon, and you can postpone deciding until the relevant turn-off point.
Trains: get the 0954 Cambridge North train from Liverpool Street ( Tottenham Hale 1006) arriving Broxbourne 1019. Frequent return trains from Cheshunt to Liverpool Steet. Also the overground via Seven Sisters.
Lunch: In Waltham Abbey
Tea: cafes and pubs just past the station. bad walk tag
This walk is really a neglected option from the Cheshunt to Broxbourne walk (#311) which has been tweaked and given its own SWC number. Much of it is through the extensive wetland landscape of 