Wrabness

In many ways All Saints was my favourite church of the day not so much for its fabric or contents but because of the stunning location overlooking the Stour and the fact that it was being used as a cafe. The congregation members running the cafe were very welcoming and the church is kept open daily - after Great Oakley and Wix this definitely helped put it into my favourites.

ALL SAINTS. The point to observe is the bell-tower, if such it can be called. It is a one-storeyed weather boarded little shed like a village lock-up, quite independent of the church. The date may be C17 or C18. The church consists of nave and lower chancel. N doorway Norman. S doorway C15, pretty, with fleurons and hung-up shields in the voussoirs. The nave has a hammerbeam roof, not a frequent feature in Essex. - FONT. Octagonal, Perp with deliberately defaced figures of the Evangelists and their symbols.

WRABNESS. It pushes itself out into the estuary of the Stour and has long views of Suffolk across the water. It has ancient thatched barns, a timbered cottage of Stuart days, and a hall with a wing 600 years old. As it has no tower the bell which summons the village to prayer hangs in a wooden turret in the churchyard. We come to the church by a porch with a 700-year-old coffin lid in the wall, through a doorway carved with flowers and shields in the 15th century. There are Norman stones above the door and facing us as we enter is a Norman doorway used no more. The font is 500 years old and has saints sitting on the bowl, with angels supporting.

Simon K -

High on a ridge overlooking the Stour, with a fine view of the Royal Hospital School at Holbrook on the north bank, is All Saints church.

Open. A delightful little country church, a little flint building that lost its tower in the 18th century, with the result that it has a bell cage in the churchyard.

This church is open every day says the notice. The interior is very bright, the result of a 1990s restoration which gave it a wooden floor and modern chairs - the effect is a bit like that at Marks Tey, and almost as successful, although here the chancel has been left pretty much as it was after the 19th Century restoration.

A sign asked visitors to make themselves a cup of tea or coffee and have a biscuit. Thoroughly welcoming, a pleasure to come to just as I was getting tired.

I stayed longer than intended, and along the narrow road back to the Harwich to Manningtree road I noticed a softness in my rear tyre - my first puncture on this bike, which I've had for nearly two years.

Time to get these Contis replaced, I fear. Stopping to pump it up, I limped on into Bradfield St Lawrence.

Flickr.