River Chelmer

The trip starts at paper Mill Cafe which is great for home made cakes and cream teas and for proper mugs of tea, so its well worth arriving early and grabbing one of the tables next to the lock to enjoy the boating world pass through the lock. On a sunny day the mill can get quite busy. Car parking is available at paper mill Lock.Paddle from Paper Mill .The River Chelmer is a great river to paddle our Open canoes and kayaks on. The River at Paper mill is particularly unspoilt departing from civilization and houses into pleasant scenery as the river winds its way through the Essex countryside, with ancient trees and vegetation along the river banks towards Rushes lock (distance 2km). Another km Downstream is the delightful church at Ulting built in the 13th Century, although close to the river it has never been flooded, such was the good planning of the local knowledge of the people that built it.

A little further on is Hoe mill which is a great place to pull the boats up for a short rest and perhaps a light picnic.

Here there is a choice of either paddling back towards Chelmsford or extending the trip one way towards Beeleigh Falls as a one way Journey. A decision we will need to make on the Day!

About The River Chelmer

The River Chelmer is Owned and Maintained by the Chelmer and Blackwater Navigation Company originally used to transport goods in lighters from Maldon to Chelmsford. The Chelmer navigation Was built in 1793 and opened to transport goods in 1797.

It was responsible for the boom in growth of Chelmsford up until 1843 and the arrival of the railway to the town which lead to its decline.

The last commercial traffic used the navigation in 1972 and it is now used by pleasure craft which travel up to Chelmsford on this pleasant stretch of river with its rural charm.