Chevins Wood Walk
- 2 hours
- hard
- ca. 5 miles
About
This walk delves deep into the Estate, exploring areas further south and east, with ancient history, green lanes and a taste of a different Rougham.
The walk starts and ends at Blackthorpe Barn, where you can find plenty of free parking as well as Roots Café and the new Garden Room shop. Please remember that the gates to the avenue entrance are locked after the Cafe and Shop close. More details here.
For more general information about this and other walks, see Walks around Rougham Estate. We hope you have a lovely walk.
Use the Google Map below on your phone to follow the path shown or print the route using the Download PDF button file above, if you prefer.
If you can’t access the map through the image above, use this google map link
Go on the Chevins Wood Walk with George and Bolly in this video where George, who has lived here all his life, talks about interesting facts along the way:
Weather
Friday
14.3°C
Today
14°C
Tomorrow
12.9°C
Waypoints
01
Step 1
From Blackthorpe Barn turn right and pass through the carparks along the concrete road until you reach a wood on your right.
02
Step 2
A path leads into the wood shortly after you reach its boundary. Follow this path bearing left at a fork and then turning left after 50 metres. Follow through the wood to the far end.
03
Step 3
At this point turn right at a T junction. Follow this path out of the wood with a hedge on your left. Follow this path until it meets a path from the right.
04
Step 4
At this point follow round to the left heading for Rougham Church which appears dramatically in front of you. At the far end of this path cross the school and church carpark. Cross the public road with care.
05
Step 5
On the far side, turn left and walk along the pavement passing the splendid sight of Rougham Church on your right side. Shortly afterwards you pass the magnificent lychgate with carvings and seats within. You might like to take a short pause here. This structure was built in 1901 in memory of the previous rector Morton Shaw, whose name appears on the inner side of the structure.
06
Step 6
When you are ready to continue, turn right out of the lychgate, walk along the pavement for a few metres before following the footpath along the edge of the field as it peals away from the public road. This footpath has a tarmac surface but tree roots below the surface make it uneven in parts so take care as you walk.
07
Step 7
This path leads you to Kingshall Street which gradually appears ahead of you as you leave the church behind. At the far end of the path, you will see a convenient poop bin on your left which might come in handy.
08
Step 8
You are about to cross one of the busier roads in Rougham so take care. Cross the road and turn right for a few metres before you see a gap in the hedge on your left with a clear path leading through. Take this path.
09
Step 9
Follow this path and on the far side continue straight on with some houses set back on your left and the field on your right. Ignore various left turns. This pathway follows the edge of the field. At the far end follow it round to the right and it continues to skirt the edge of the field.
10
Step 10
Shortly after this you will see a small turning to the left which brings you immediately onto an official footpath where you turn left.
11
Step 11
Follow this footpath in a straight line to the house line. Here, follow the path through to the public road. Just before this, you descend 5 steps. There is a convenient poop bin here and a handrail for the steps.
12
Step 12
Once on the public road turn right and walk for 20 metres. At this point a private road runs off to the left and the footpath follows this for a distance of ca 100 metres. There is a footpath sign at the start on the left side to reassure you that you are in the right place! Look out for a homemade wooden sign pointing to the right for the footpath.
13
Step 13
This follows the fence line on the right and rapidly gets very narrow as you squeeze your way between the backs of the houses. This continues for maybe 200 metres, then you encounter a stile. There is a hole for your dog to pass through.
14
Step 14
Then follow the path along the left-hand side of the meadow to the next fence and into the second meadow. Leave the gate here as you find it.
15
Step 15
Partway through this second meadow the path turns left and goes over another stile before passing through the hedge and out onto the edge of the field on the far side.
16
Step 16
The path follows on to the right, so now you have the hedge on your right side. Follow this through to the edge of the field where you pass through an extended piece of hedge before you appear on a bend on the public road.
17
Step 17
You are now in another part of Rougham called Nether Street. Turn right and follow the public road with care, past a few houses and then past a field on your left. Then a track leads off to the left. Ignore this but continue down the road for another 50 metres.
18
Step 18
As you approach a sharp right bend on the public road, a second footpath heads off to the left, which immediately crosses a ditch with a footbridge. Take this route.
19
Step 19
Follow along this track with the hedge on your right until you reach Chevins Wood in front of you. Somewhere here was the Manor of Chevaunts which was mentioned in Doomsday Book in 1086 and which seems to have been the residence of the important Drury family in Rougham too during the Middle Ages. Further round the wood there are very deep and wide ditches which suggest the possible presence of former buildings of importance. For now, we turn left and follow the edge of the wood for a short distance on our right side, before we cross a short section of path between two fields and then reach a green lane where we turn right.
20
Step 20
Follow this path to the far end as it curves to the left. This area is known as High Rougham and is slightly higher than Nether Street which we have just left behind. Turn left into the public road in High Rougham and walk along it with care. It is usually a quiet road but still be careful.
21
Step 21
After a few hundred metres you pass the last house on the right-hand side of the road. At this point you will see a trackway heading off to the right. Follow this track away from the public road. After a while it turns left and runs along the edge of New Wood, turning right as it rounds the corner of the wood. You may encounter some bee hives here. Just walk by without hanging around!
22
Step 22
This track then reaches a hedge line and turns left and heads for the public road. Turn right onto this road and exercise great care as traffic can move along here at some speed.
23
Step 23
It is best if you cross the road fairly soon, as you get better visibility here. Walk along the side of the road until it turns slightly to the right.
24
Step 24
At this point a footpath heads off to the left across the field. The crop has been cleared along the route of the path. At the far side of the field, you meet the metalled footpath that you walked on earlier on in this journey. Turn right here and follow this to the public road at the end.
25
Step 25
Use the pavement to continue your walk past the lychgate and the church. As a small gate into the churchyard appears on your left, turn right across the road with care. Enter the carpark.
26
Step 26
Turn left here and follow this carpark to the far end where a footpath heads off along the hedge line on your right-hand side. This path emerges from the carpark to give a fine view of the Rougham landscape as it falls away in front of you. It is full of roadside oak trees, hedges and the great Suffolk sky!
27
Step 27
Follow this path, keeping the hedge to your right, until you cross a ditch, often with running water depending on the time of year. At this point, turn right and head back towards the Downs Wood which you came through at the beginning of this walk, continuing to keep the hedge on your right.
28
Step 28
You will enter the wood and shortly afterwards find the path leading off to the left. This will take you through the wood to the far end where you turn right.
29
Step 29
This path leads you to the edge of the wood. Turn left at an angle as the path approaches the Blackthorpe Barn carparks. Follow these through to the left and then follow the signs to the Roots Café where a welcome awaits you (and your dog).
Important information
We have endeavoured to provide a real variety of walks based on land within the Rougham Estate, however some destinations are a little remote and to achieve circular walks rather than walks which just retrace their steps, where necessary, use has been made of the extensive footpath network and chosen public footpaths on our neighbours’ land, to complete the journeys in more interesting ways.
The Rougham Estate walks, starting from Blackthorpe Barn, are largely based on existing Estate paths and public rights of way. They mostly pass through woodland and along field-side paths.
Each walk is given a difficulty rating ranging from “easy”, which are the most accessible, to “hard”, which are the most challenging and may include stiles, kissing gates, steps, steep slopes and meadows with cattle.
All these walks follow existing paths and are subject to mud and puddles in wet weather, fallen branches and trees during and after storms, ice and snow during frozen weather. Brambles and nettles are common anywhere and will overhang the paths during the summer. Stinging insects including wasps, bees and hornets may be encountered and midges and mosquitos are common on summer evenings. Adders are rare but do exist and should not be approached.
The Blackthorpe Barn has a defibrillator available for emergency use.
Rougham is located in a very flat part of Suffolk and as such is more accessible than most other parts of the country, but concepts of accessibility are all relative and the final judgement must be the responsibility the visitor themselves.
The Rougham Estate does its best to make public areas as available as possible.
The Estate cannot accept responsibility for accidents or injuries incurred during visits or walks on the Estate, though every effort is made to make them as usable as possible.
Stiles enable people to cross stockproof fences safely. Our stiles are built to Suffolk County Council standards.
If you have a dog with you then you should look for a small dog gate at the base and to the side of the stile. This may have a flap on a spring or a sliding door. Encourage your dog through first, then pass the dog’s lead through and take hold of it from above the fence. Then cross the stile yourself. This enables you to cross the stile without taking your dog off its lead.
Here at Rougham we love dogs and really appreciate the importance that they hold for people in their lives and on their walks and outdoor adventures together.
We ask that you keep your canine friends on a lead when you are walking in Rougham. It is safer for the dog and much safer for wildlife.
Ground nesting birds and other wildlife are seriously threatened by dogs running loose. They can also frighten other people who are less comfortable with dogs, but who would also like to walk.
Finally, you will not be able to see where they poop and so will not be able to clear it up and leave a hazard for future walkers.
Some of the walks shown here include sections on public rights of way over land owned by other people. As a courtesy to them too, please always keep your dogs on the lead.
Thank you!
Please ensure that you carry poop bags with you on your doggy walks. If you don’t have any with you, you can buy some in the Garden Room shop. It is so important that you clear up after your dog and then take the bag away with you.
You will find poop bins located near Blackthorpe Barn and Roots Café. Finding abandoned poop bags hanging in the branches of trees or just left on the ground is very unattractive for future walkers on the route so please do take them with you.
Thank you so much.
We have given each walk a difficulty level, as a guide to the potential walker as to what to expect, from “easy” to “hard”.
The Rougham Estate walks are largely based on existing Estate paths and public rights of way, at times passing through woodland and along field-side paths.
A difficulty rating of “easy” means the path is most accessible.
A difficulty rating of “hard” means the path is one of the most challenging possibly including stiles, kissing gates, steps, steep slopes and meadows with cattle.
A difficulty rating of “medium” is between the two.
None of the walks are very hard as we live in Suffolk, not the Lake District, however some people are looking for something very gentle and others, something a bit more challenging.
These walks lead through the Suffolk countryside and so expect to find muddy patches, nettles and thistles. It is important to remember that the weather may change during your walk too, especially if the walk is a long one.
Remember to wear sensible boots and take something waterproof along as well.
A sun hat for warmer weather is important too.
Our ancient meadows are a wonderful sight and well worth a visit on one of our walks. The reason they remain like this is that they provide grazing for cattle as they have done for many hundreds of years. You must assume that there may be cattle in any meadow that you visit.
Leave all gates how you find them and ensure that any dog you have is on a short lead and kept close to you. Cattle are curious creatures and may well approach you to see who you are. They are also herd animals, so they tend to move together with one taking the lead. They are also frightened of dogs. This is an inherited memory linking back to the times of wolves. Just walk steadily through the meadow. Don’t let anyone chase the cattle or make loud noises.
If you or anyone in your party is uncomfortable about cattle it may be best to choose another walk.
Other routes
More Waypoint Pictures
Start your walk with a coffee, end with a cake.
Experience a charming and cosy spot located in the heart of the beautiful countryside. The café boasts a tranquil and serene atmosphere, making it the perfect place to unwind and escape the hustle and bustle of daily life.
