Lora Aziz
Radical Pilgrimage: The Saffron Trail
7 days, 70 miles, Southend to Saffron Walden
15 – 21 June

Join artist, writer, wild-crafter Lora Aziz as she sets off on a 7-day 70-mile Radical Pilgrimage along The Saffron Trail as part of our series of In My Steps: Radical Walks in Essex.

Starting at Southend Pier, The Saffron Trail hugs The Thames until it reaches Hadleigh Country Park. It then turns inland towards Hockley Woods, before pivoting north towards Danbury, Chelmsford and Great Dunmow, and finally arriving at Saffron Walden, the one-time UK capital of saffron.

How did saffron, an exotic spice with its origins in the Middle East, famous for its healing, dyeing and flavouring properties, land in Essex? Legend has it that a pilgrim smuggled a saffron corm into England in his hollow staff. The corm swiftly took root in Essex. So much so, that by the 1500s the village of Chepyn Walden had metamorphosed into Saffron Walden. The rest is history.

Lora will be running a series of creative contemplative and ecological workshops along The Saffron Trail as part of the pilgrimage, which culminates in a Moroccan Sufi Gnawa concert at Saffron Hall in Saffron Walden.

 

 

The walks

We welcome people to join Lora for these selected legs of the Radical Pilgrimage. There is a separate booking link for each stage of the walk. Suggested donation of £10 per person for each stage of the walk. Places are limited so please book early to avoid disappointment.

 

Stage 1 – Southend to Belfairs / Hadleigh
Thursday 15th June, 2.00pm

Distance: 5 miles
Time: 2 hours approx

Starting point: Chalkwell Park car park, London Road, Westcliff-on-Sea, Essex, SS0 8NB
Finishing point: The entrance to Great Wood, Poors Ln, Hadleigh, Benfleet, SS7 2LA

Find out more about this  and other stages of the walk at visitessex.com

Book your place at: eventbrite.com

 

Stage 2 – Belfairs / Hadleigh to Battlesbridge
Friday 16th June, 9.30am

Distance: 12.5 miles
Time: 5 hours approx

Starting point: The entrance to Great Wood, Poors Ln, Hadleigh, Benfleet, SS7 2LA
Finishing point: Battlesbridge, Hawk Hill, Battlesbridge, Wickford, SS11 7RN

Find out more about this  and other stages of the walk at visitessex.com

Book your place at: eventbrite.com

 

Stage 3 – Battlesbridge to Chelmer Village
Saturday 17th June, 9.30am

Distance: 11.5 miles
Time: 4.5 hours approx

Starting point: Battlesbridge, Hawk Hill, Battlesbridge, Wickford, SS11 7RN
Finishing point: Under A12 bridge, River Chelmer, Chelmer Village. Grid reference: 51.730972, 0.523318. What3Words: ///zebra.hogs.hurls

Find out more about this  and other stages of the walk at visitessex.com

Book your place at: eventbrite.com

 

Stage 5 – Great Waltham to Great Dunmow
Monday 19th June, 11.00am

Distance: 10 miles
Time: 5 hours approx

Starting point: St Mary and St Lawrence Great Waltham Church, Chelmsford Road, Great Waltham, Chelmsford, CM3 1AR
Finishing point: Great Dunmow, River Chelmer

Find out more about this  and other stages of the walk at visitessex.com

Book your place at: eventbrite.com

 

Stage 7 – Henham to Saffron Walden
Wednesday 21st June, 8.30am

Distance: 10 miles
Time: 4 hours approx

Starting point: Henham Church, Church Lane, Henham, CM22 6DP
Finishing point: St Marys Church, Church Path, Saffron Walden CB10 1JP

Find out more about this  and other stages of the walk at visitessex.com

Book your place at: eventbrite.com

 

Please note, Lora will be undertaking stages 4 and 6 and the first part of stage 1 (Southend Pier to Chalkwell Park) of the Radical Pilgrimage by herself. These walks are not available for booking.

 

Things to note about the walks

• These are all linear walks. You will need to arrange your own transport to and from the start and finish points.
• The end time is approximate. The duration of the walk will depend on many things including weather, terrain, and who knows what we will encounter along the way. An adventurous spirit is required.
• You can find out more details about each leg of the walk on the Visit Essex website – search for Saffron Trail. But please note, in true Essex Book Festival style, we are doing the walk backwards – Visit Essex instructions are for those travelling south – we are travelling north.
• Please wear sturdy, comfortable shoes/boots and dress appropriately for the weather. We suggest you bring an umbrella, sun hat and sun cream just in case and bring along a water bottle for refreshment and snacks.

 

The interventions:

Sunday 18th June, 12.00pm
Myself, Others and The Land

For ages 15-22 – part of our Manifesto for Essex programme – a creative platform for young people living in Essex and beyond to express their thoughts and ideas about tackling Climate Change.

In this one day workshop we will be looking at how we can weave old and new ways of gathering to create our own spontaneous community. Creating our own Rites of Passage that connect us to the land, each other and ourselves. Using nature as a framework the day will be filled with positivity, hope and renewal, leading to a new way of looking at the natural world around us and those we share it with.

Venue: Marconi Ponds Nature Reserve, Chelmsford CM1 2RL
Tickets: Free (or donate what you can), booking essential
Box Office: eventbrite.com

           

 

Tuesday 20th June, 11.00am
Saffron Coffee Morning

Join artist, writer, wild-crafter and Radical Pilgrim Lora Aziz, Festival Director Ros Green and storyteller Glenys Newton for a morning of saffron-inspired coffee, cake and discussion.

Venue: Talliston House & Gardens, 51 Newton Green, Great Dunmow, CM6 1DU
Tickets: £10 per person
Book your place at: eventbrite.com

 

Wednesday 21st June, 7.00pm
Mohamed Errebbaa & Gnawa Bristol

Celebration Finale Event of the Radical Pilgrimage: The Saffron Trail. In partnership with Saffron Hall and Essex Cultural Diversity Project

Join us to celebrate the end of our first Radical Pilgrimage: The Saffron Trail with the soaring vocals and bass-heavy grooves of Moroccan Gnawa Master, gimbri (three-string guitar) player, Mohamed Errebbaa & Gnawa Bristol.

Ticket includes food (Chickpea curry and Saffron Cumin rice) kindly supplied by Essex Cultural Diversity Project.

Venue: Saffron Hall Foyer, Audley End Rd, Saffron Walden CB11 4UH
Tickets: £15
Box Office: saffronhall.com/visit-us/booking-info

    

 

 

---

 

Lora Aziz

Lora is an artist whose creative practice reimagines contemporary cross-cultural relationships with land and nature through wildcrafting, community herbalism and earth science. She is co-founder of creative nature based company Wyrd Flora which creates spaces to build ways of collective thinking and learning that promote and protect traditional plant knowledge and environmental equality.

She is the author of Homeland is Presence, which explores the recollections of a diverse group of women connecting cultural heritage and the natural abundance of Essex through a series of short tales, photo stories, original remedies, rituals and recipes.

Her latest project and exhibition Motanafas: A space to connect is a UK – Egypt collaboration forming part of the British Council’s COP27 Creative Commissions that brings together art, science and digital technology as an innovative, interdisciplinary, inclusive response to climate change.