Skip to main content

Burnham-on-Crouch parkrun

Despite deliberately prioritising recovery since Brighton, I found myself still not yet 100% recovered this week, and so I searched for an event that isn't too physically demanding. Fortunately Burnham-on-Crouch seemed to be an ideal candidate!

The area

Burnham-on-Crouch parkrun takes place in Riverside Park. Burnham-on-Crouch is a relatively small but well-developed town with a strong connection to the yachting and sailing industries.

Riverside Park from the promenade

The town hosts a number of cultural events throughout the year, including an Illumination Carnival on the last Saturday of September, and the Burnham Week - which includes competitive yacht and dinghy racing in the last week of August each year, while the town also has a very active yacht and sailing scene throughout the remainder of the year.

People sailing on the Crouch

The course

The course follows two laps of a multi-terrain course, approximately two-thirds on grass, with one-third on gravel and tarmac. The route is mostly within Riverside Park, with a short section along the promenade. The route follows mown paths through meadows, with additional cones to help mark the way, so is very easy to follow. The grass paths are also well maintained, which meant good footing, and short grass. There is a small incline on the grass section - approximately half way around the loop, but it doesn't have a major impact on the overall run.

Several large free car parks are available near the start, as well as public toilets which were already open by the time I arrived. The town's main high street is a short walk from the park, and is home to a number of cafes for after-run refreshments.

The run

It was a humid and windy start to the day today, and with me still being in recovery mode, my plan for the day was a steady, rather than an all-out effort. I realised just how humid it was even before arriving, thanks to the relatively low visibility during the drive, and I really felt it during my warm up.

During the run briefing, runners were told about a new juniors event starting the next day, and without too much hassle, we turned around to the start, and were off! We set off along the grass, which felt quite bouncy compared to the other grass-based events, and while I felt much stronger compared to last week's run, I could feel that I was still recovering - my heart rate was still quite high, and my breathing was more labored than pre-Brighton. Fortunately I found an effort-level that was mostly sustainable, and the hill wasn't too hard on me!

Thanks to all of the volunteers for a great event, and best of luck with the new juniors event!

After the run

After the run, I decided to follow the River Crouch Path trail to get a better taste of the area. Starting in Riverside Park, which also hosts parkrun, the out-and-back trail heads upstream, before returning the the same spot.

The first major landmark is the Yacht Harbour, which is encountered during the parkrun course itself.

Yacht harbour

Several other sailing clubs are located along the river.

Sailing club on opposite bank of the Crouch

The path from Burnham towards Althorne is single track, and so could perhaps be muddy during wetter weather, but the humidity and the wind were the biggest challenges today.

Trail towards Althorne

The area seems to be a hotspot for mansions - a number are encountered along the route, although I decided against taking too many pictures in the interest of privacy.

One of the mansions encountered along the route

Links: Run report | Results | Strava | River Crouch Path via Riverside Park | AllTrails

Popular posts from this blog

Coldham's Common parkrun

As my recovery from injury is still underway, I decided that I would attend a flat course this week to avoid any potential for reaggrevation. Unfortunately this means I will need to pause my completion of the Essex events, as the remaining courses are all somewhat lumpy. Having visited all of the other Cambridge parkruns, including Storeys Field parkrun, Fulbourn Hospital parkrun, and Cambridge parkrun knowing that they are all relatively flat, I decided that this week I would complete the Cambridge set. The area Coldham's Common has a long history, serving as both a hospital during the 17th century smallpox outbreak, and a quarry during the 19th century, as well as a rifle range also during the 19th century. The course The route follows two laps of the perimeter of the common through an hour-glass shape, connecting two fields through a five-bar-gate. The course is all on grass, and is all flat. Limited parking is available nearby, while toilets are available in...

Delamere parkrun

Being the festive season, I decided to pause my exploration of the East of England in favour of visiting events closer to family in Liverpool. While there are a number of events closer to Liverpool, I decided to visit Delamere parkrun, being somewhere I hadn't explored when living in the area previously. The area Delamere forest is all that remains of a much larger forest in the area. The forest spent some time as a Royal hunting forest, before being handed to Forestry England. The course The course follows a single lap of a lollipop route, through forests, and around the Blakemere Moss lake, starting and finishing near the visitor centre. The visitor centre includes paid parking, toilets, and a cafe, while free parking is also available in some of the other forest car parks, though they are further from the start line providing a great opportunity for a warm up! The route is all on a mixture of gravel and trail, and is mostly flat except for one short but steep incl...

Aldenham parkrun

Icey conditions in days leading up to parkrun day meant many events were cancelled this week. While I would have ideally been able to visit another event in Essex, I decided that I valued having options more in the event of cancellation this week, and so I instead headed to the cluster of events surrounding the Watford area. The area Aldenham Country Park is located near Watford, and centres on Aldenham reservoir, with grassland and woodland surrounding the reservoir itself. The reservoir was excavated by French prisoners of war during 1795 as part of the wider management of the Grand Union Canal's water levels, and now serves as a reserve water supply. In addition to the reservoir, the country park also supports the breeding of a number of rare species of farm animals, including cattle, goats, pigs, and sheep. The course The course follows two laps of the reservoir, with the second lap skipping the inner peninsular. The course is flat, and is run mainly on trail pat...