Cycling around Halesworth
Situated in NE Suffolk and surrounded by quiet country lanes and beautiful countryside, Halesworth is the ideal location for exploring this part of Suffolk by bike. The small bustling town famous for its traffic free shopping street - The Thoroughfare, is full of independent shops and there are many cafes, pubs and restaurants serving refreshments. Only 10 miles from the Suffolk coast and the seaside town of Southwold, this is the ideal starting point for bike rides to the coast as well as setting out in all directions to discover the true flavour of rural Suffolk.
To the North the small towns of Beccles, Bungay and Lowestoft can easily be reached where The Suffolk and Norfolk Broads and Waveney Valley can be explored. One way cycle rides can be considered to any station on the Ipswich to Lowestoft rail line as you can catch the train back to Halesworth.
Access to the town could not be easier, National Cycle Network Route 1 on its 1,760 mile route from Dover to the Shetland Isles passes through the town along the Thoroughfare. By train Halesworth station is served served by the London Liverpool Street line via Ipswich to Lowestoft, or by car the - the A12 Ipswich to Lowestoft passes nearby.
The Halesworth Wheel - a cycle ride of around 21miles or less!
A beautiful ride in its own right of around 21 miles, mainly on quiet country lanes, the Halesworth Wheel is an ideal introduction to the immediate countryside surrounding the town. Do the whole ride or make use of the 8 spokes radiating in and out from the centre of town to enable you do a part of the ride.
You are never far away from a spoke and a short ride back to the town. Once back in Halesworth, spend some time exploring the delightful market town where you will discover many excellent cafes, pubs and restaurants offering refreshments after your ride.
The table below shows all the spokes, the distance to/from town to the Wheel and the distance on the Wheel to the next spoke. Additional loops can be added - see ride description and map. Any spoke can be used to start the ride, but the shortest, safest and most picturesque one, especially if you are starting the ride from the town centre, would be to cycle through Town Park and follow the off-road all weather cycle/walking path across Millennium Green. The notes below follow this spoke before describing the whole route.
| Spoke | Name | Distance to/from Halesworth |
Distance to next spoke |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Town Park/Millennium Green | 1.0 mile traffic free | 1.5 miles |
| 2 | Cookley Corner | 1.6 miles on B1117 | 3.9 miles |
| 3 | Linstead Parva Church | 3.4 miles on B1123 | 3.0 miles |
| 4 | Wissett | 2.0 miles on Wissett Rd | 1.2 miles |
| 5 | Below Spexhall Church | 1.8 miles | 1.6 miles |
| 6 | Deadman's Grave | 3.6 miles on NCN 1 | 2.4 miles |
| 7 | Sotherton | 3.2 miles on B1124 | 2.0 miles |
| 8 | Queen's Head Blyford | 2.8 miles on B1123 | 2.5 miles |
- From the Thoroughfare pass between the White Hart pub and Durrants Estate agents in to Middle car park.
- Cross the car park and enter Town park via the underpass at the far left hand corner.
Take due care crossing the car park and respect pedestrians using the underpass. - Follow the surfaced shared cycle/walking path across Town Park and Millennium Green.
- Turn right off the cycle path and onto the Wenhaston/Walpole lane.
- At the next junction cross the A144 with care and continue ahead.
Pass Wenhaston Grange (private dwelling) on your left and continue along the Blyth valley. - Turn next right onto the B1117 and after only 0.2 miles, next left onto Cookley Street.
As you cycle up the quiet valley watch out for herons and egrets on the water meadows. As you pass through Cookley the church of St Michael sits raised above the few houses. - Turn right at the next crossroads to Linstead Parva and cross the B1123
- At the next T junction turn right for the Wheel.
Consider turning left onto the Rumburgh loop. The loop passes through the village of Rumburgh where a stop at The Rumburgh Buck pub would make a good refreshment stop. Adding the loop will add 1.3 miles to the full ride and you will rejoin the Wheel ride at the Spexhall Church junction. - On the edge of Wissett turn left up the hill towards Spexhall but do consider the small detour ahead into the village and visit the church of St. Andrew with its round tower. Inside a beautiful sculpture of St. Andrew in wood by the artist Peter Ball is well worth viewing. The Plough public house is an excellent place for food and refreshment.
- At the top of the hill turn right passing Bleach Farm so named because of its associations with the hemp industry.
- At the bottom of the hill turn left and upwards towards Spexhall. The church of St Peter has a beautiful churchyard rich in flora, a lovely place for a rest and to enjoy the silence.
- Your route turns right immediately after passing the church.
- Cross the busy A144 with care and head towards Deadman's Grave crossroads.
- Continue ahead here.
After passing under the railway bridge, a left turn on to the Westall loop and into the village of Westall will only add 0.5 miles to your ride. This makes a good pub stop at the Racehorse, and an excuse to stock up with supplies at the famous Westall Stores. To rejoin the Wheel ride east out of Westall , joining The Causeway to return to the Wheel. - Back on the main route a red telephone box ahead signals a right turn at a sharp bend.
- At the next junction turn left onto the B1124 then with care next right. After passing Sotherton Hall (private dwelling) look out for deer grazing on the edge of Blyford Wood as you head along the delightful King's Lane towards Blyford where you have another refreshment opportunity at the Queen's Head.
- Cross the B1123 with care and head towards Wenhaston.
- Cross the River Blyth and turn right towards Mells at the edge of the village. Consider a detour here into Wenhaston. The church of St Peter is very impressive and is famous for the Doom painting - discovered by chance in the 1890s during restoration works when whitewashed wood removed from the church was left outside. Overnight rain washed off the whitewash revealing the medieval painting beneath. Now restored it can be seen directly ahead when entering the church. Retrace your route back to the Wheel or continue along the Wenhaston loop. The loop adds 2.4 miles to the total and will take you past the welcoming Star Inn and onto the heath-land where, if looking left across the valley, you may spot the unusual Hanging Barn - a holiday property literally hanging from the side of the valley.
- You rejoin the Wheel on the Wenhaston to Mells lane. Listen carefully here, between April and early June it is not unusual to hear nightingales singing on this area of heath-land. As you cycle along this lane you look out over the Blyth valley towards Holton and its 4 sail windmill - one of Suffolk's finest preserved windmills in external appearance. Halesworth sitting behind its 50 acre Millennium Green can be seen ahead.
- After the level crossing turn immediately right onto the off-road cycle path.
Your route back to Halesworth will follow the railway line before entering the 50 acre Millennium Green at the Six Arches railway bridge. When crossing Blyth Meadow look out for barn owls hunting low over the pasture. Passing back under the railway and into Chestnut and Angel meadows will bring you into Town Park and Halesworth. Evidence of otters are regularly seen along the river banks and kingfishers are often spotted. Cattle grazing the meadows throughout the summer are essential to maintain the Green.