Pub walks in Hertfordshire – The Brewery Tap, Barleycroft End, Furneux Pelham
| Distance: | A 5km (3 mile) walk through a peaceful village and farmland in a remote part of Hertfordshire |
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| Getting there by bus: | Route 20 from Bishop’s Stortford interchange |
Route description
Furneux Pelham
Furneux Pelham is reached by narrow twisting lanes and is well away from the noisy main roads affecting other parts of Hertfordshire. Simon de Fomell from Normandy held the manor in 1232 and his name distinguishes this from the other Pelhams. Look for a large lump of Hertfordshire puddingstone by the corner of the Brewery Tap facing the cross road. It is a kind of naturally occurring concrete, formed where a favourable mixture of flint pebbles and quartzite have solidified. There are many delightful cottages before and beyond the large church of St Mary’s, built of locally gathered flints, stones and some recycled bricks. Below the clock, note the terse reminder not to idle.
Beyond the village
Just visible from the footpath leaving the village, Furneux Pelham Hall is a grand 16th century mansion with distinctive curved gables. A former owner, Lord Monteagle received a tip off that led to the discovery of the gunpowder plot in 1605. in recent times deer have been reared on the estate, but the soil favours barley and cereal crops still prevail. Many local people one toiled on the land and traditionally celebrated the harvest’s completion on Drinking Day. In 1864 a new vicar disapproved and led a campaign to abolish it. In July 1738 a torrential storm ruined crops and property.
Puddingstone and flint can show up in the fields after ploughing. Other rocks appear too, deposited when glaciers melted during the ice age, releasing debris carried from afar. This boulder clay smothered the previous land surface and left the gently undulating landscape visible today. The Domesday Book entry for Peleham shows extensive woodlands supporting large herds of swine. Many woods remain but the pigs have gone. Rotten Row is a remote 14th century farmhouse with a converted barn and a large duck pond. In summer, clumps of marjoram attract bees and border part of the path back to Patient End, another ancient farm site. Tall electricity pylons cross the horizon to converge on the transformer station on the Essex border near Stocking Pelham.
Other routes
As not all paths are waymarked, use an Ordnance Survey map to create other routes. For a short, pleasant walk north west from the church, go to the far end of The Willows returning through Lady Wood. If using Violets Lane past the brewery note that even in summer the young river Ash can flood stretches. Generally there is little traffic on roads in the area so they can form part of longer routes such as south towards Albury. The area is also ideal for cycling and a blue flag on signposts indicates a route through Furneux Pelham.
The Brewery Tap
The Brewery Tap is a fine Victorian pub at Berleycroft End serving a wide range of food (except on Sunday and Monday evenings) and drink. It stands opposite the brewery built by William Rayment in 1860. This produced much acclaimed beers until its closure in 1987 and is now a depot. Rayment’s trademark, a proud brewer raising his tankard decorates the sign of the Brewery Tap whose beer now comes mainly from Bury St Edmunds. The landlord allows walkers to use the car park providing they purchase refreshments from the pub before or after their walk.
Rights of Way symbols you might see
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Yellow arrows indicate footpaths for pedestrian use only |
| Blue arrows indicate bridleways for horse riders, cyclists and pedestrian use only |
| Red arrows indicate Byways Open to All Traffic (BOAT) for horse riders, cyclists and pedestrians and may be legally used by other wheeled vehicles |
| Black arrows indicate Roads Used as Public Paths (RUPP) for horse riders, cyclists and pedestrians and may be legally used by other wheeled vehicles |
Maps
This map is based on Ordnance Survey material with the permission of Ordnance Survey on behalf of the controller of Her Majesty's Stationery Office © Crown copyright. Unauthorised reproduction infringes Crown copyright and may lead to prosecution or civil proceedings. Hertfordshire County Council 100019606 2004.
The Ordnance Survey mapping included within this web-site is provided by Hertfordshire County Council under licence from the Ordnance Survey in order to fulfill its public function to provide information relating to its activities, services and plans. Persons viewing this mapping should contact Ordnance Survey copyright for advice where they wish to license Ordnance survey mapping for their own use.
See the Ordnance Survey site for more information.
This is is one of a series of walks through the Chilterns Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) supported by the Chilterns Conference.
Please be considerate in the countryside - keep to footpaths, especially through crops, and leave farm gates as you find them.
