London to Walsingham Camino - The Pilgrimage Guide

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In 1061 a Walsingham noblewoman, Lady Richeldis de Faverches, had a vision in which the Virgin Mary transported her soul to Nazareth and showed her the house where the Holy Family once lived, and in which the Annunciation of Archangel Gabriel, foretelling Jesus’s birth, occurred. St Mary’s, Houghton on the Hill (pilgrim stamp) This church, with its 1,000-year-old wall paintings, will be specially opened for us.

The schedule for the day includes three locations and a walk between them, in part along the ancient pilgrimage route.The London to Walsingham Camino guidebook is part of an attempt to change that: to re-establish a walking route which, while being as true to the original way as possible, takes account of the modern realities on the ground. A pilgrim path that offers a wonderful long-distance route, on footpaths and quiet lanes, across the glorious east of England. A truly pleasurable and uplifting walking experience. I shall be staying with Jim Sollars, a member of the British Pilgrimage Trust, who lives in the village. He has two or three additional spaces. Please let me know if you’d like to stay with Jim. Readers are welcome to attend one or more location, and to join author Andy Bull, who has led the revival of the path, on the walk between them, as you wish. The London to Walsingham Caminoguidebook is part of an attempt to change that: to re-establish a walking route which, while being as true to the original way as possible, takes account of the modern realities on the ground. A pilgrim path that offers a wonderful long-distance route, on footpaths and quiet lanes, across the glorious east of England. A truly pleasurable and uplifting walking experience. The trail leads from London to pass through Waltham Abbey, Ware, Stansted, Mountfitchet, Saffron Walden, Withersfield, Stansfield, Bury St Edmunds, Thetford, Brandon, Great Cressingham, Castle Acre, Fakenham, and it ends in Walsingham. The first section routes east along the Thames heading north at Limehouse in the Lea Valley to reach Waltham Forest and includes much waterside walking.

We became three when Sarah, an Anglican deacon, also signed up for the full slog. We were joined along the way by others, a couple for a week, others for a day or three, and became a generally merry band, even in the face of rain, storm, hail, blisters and creaking knees. This guide follows a newly-resurrected route devised by the author. Divided into 13 easy to moderately-challenging stages, it’s a truly uplifting walking experience, following footpaths and quiet lanes across the glorious east of England. Highlighted holy place: Walsingham Abbey Shrine– There are two modern shrines in the village of Little Walsingham – the Anglican and Catholic shrines. However, in the footprint of the abbey ruins is where the true shrine remains. Here the young noblewoman Richeldis de Faverches had three visions of the Virgin Mary and consequently desired to replicate the Holy House of Nazareth, where Mary herself had had her most famous vision, the annunciation – at the spot in the photo. Construction was difficult but, in the end, it was built miraculously (not by humans). Walsingham eventually became one of the greatest pilgrimage shrines in medieval Europe before it was destroyed by dastardly Henry. The poem Pynson Ballad remains to tell of its greatness.The London to Walsingham Camino guidebook is part of an attempt to change that: to re-establish a walking route which, while being as true to the original way as possible, takes account of the modern realities on the ground. A pilgrim path that offers a wonderful long-distance route, on footpaths and quiet lanes, across the glorious east of England. A truly pleasurable and uplifting walking experience. Something significant occurred in a number of those pubs. Sarah wore her collar at all times. I had wondered how people would react to it, but the reception couldn’t have been friendlier. In several they thought they were meeting the vicar (for the first time, given hardly any of them went to church) and came over to chat. One local asked Sarah if she was a Catholic priest. Another, who was completely unchurched, began in a challenging vein, a sort of ‘what’s it all about then’, but then spoke movingly of his life, his fears and his challenges. You got the sense that he might just pop into a church for the first time in his life, after this. One of the great joys for me, a Catholic, was to discovered the beauty of Anglican Morning and Evening Prayer. They read like meditations, and we started and ended most of our days with them.

The London to Walsingham Camino is a modern re-creation by Andy Bull of what was reputedly the most popular pilgrimage in England from London to the shrine at Walsingham in Norfolk until Henry VIII outlawed pilgrimage and the veneration of saints in 1538. From London's Church of St Magnus the Martyr next to London Bridge, with its shrine to Our Lady of Walsingham, it leads to the Anglican and Catholic shrines at Walsingham in Norfolk, following footpaths and quiet lanes across the countryside east of England while visiting many towns on the way. Walsingham was England's Nazareth, where in 1061 a Walsingham noblewoman, Lady Richeldis de Faverches, claimed a vision in which the Virgin Mary transported her soul to Nazareth and showed her the house where the Holy Family once lived, and in which the Annunciation of Archangel Gabriel, foretelling Jesus's birth, occurred. She was told to build a replica of the house in Walsingham, and it became a shrine attracting pilgrims to Walsingham from Europe including numerous kings. In the Christian world it was eclipsed by just three other places: Jerusalem, Rome, and Santiago de Compostela. Walking the whole route in 13 days (plus a rest-day at Bury St Edmunds, the half-way point) was a revelation. I plan to stay with a pilgrim who lives close to the end point of this stage. They may also have a double room available, let me know if you are interested. The Foundation, at 2 Butcher Row, London E14 8DS, which has been caring for pilgrims and others since 1174, is the London to Walsingham Camino accommodation partner in London. Max has very kindly arranged with his congregation to move their usual evensong to coincide with our time in the village.The whole 177.8 mile pilgrimage could be accomplished by a fit walker in a fortnight or less. But maybe you want to walk for fewer miles each day, or just at weekends, or on odd days when you have the time and energy. This guide caters for multiple approaches. You will note that I have at least one church on the itinerary each day, where possible for either for an Anglican service, Catholic Mass or a simple blessing. Attendance at these is entirely optional.

To remedy that, the Confraternity is working with Andy Bull, author of Pilgrim Pathways, to identify the old route and develop a modern pilgrim path that is as faithful to it as possible, while also giving a fulfilling walking experience.

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St Mary’s, Bartlow (pilgrim stamp) Duncan Ogilvy will be at church with stamp. Loos and kitchen available For 400 years, no pilgrims walked to Walsingham. Since the 1930s, when both Catholic and Anglican shrines were re-established here, Walsingham has undergone a revival. It draws around 300,000 pilgrims each year, but hardly any of them walk much more than the final Holy Mile, and only a few church and other groups trace the full route from London. How to get your pilgrim credencial/pilgrim passport for access to pilgrim accommodation along the routes, and to qualify for the Compostela certificate of completion.