UK


A WINDOW INTO THE… ESSEX ISLANDS


MORE THAN 30 ISLANDS SIT OFF THE ESSEX COASTLINE, REVEALING A WILDER, WINDSWEPT SIDE TO THE COUNTY THAN MANY VISITORS EXPECT. HERE ARE FOUR TO EXPLORE


WORDS: JO FERNÁNDE Z


Mersea Island Pastel-painted beach huts line the shore, estuary air carries the scent of salt and seaweed, and fishing boats rock gently in the shallows: Mersea Island, reached via the Strood coastal path and just 15 minutes from Colchester, is one of Essex’s largest and most accessible islands. Its cliff-backed beaches at Cudmore Grove reveal


300,000-year-old fossils and delicate oyster shells etched into the mudflats, while vineyards such as the family-run Mersea Island Vineyard trace their roots back to Roman times. Food here is resolutely local. Flanked by


beachside fishing boats, The Company Shed is low- key yet legendary, drawing elbow-to-elbow diners from across the UK for seafood platters piled high with cockles, salmon and prawns. Others leave clutching brown-paper parcels of freshly caught crab, ready to be seasoned with local Maldon salt — the famous flaky crystals are harvested just a few miles inland. At the heart of the village, the


54 NATIONALGEOGRAPHIC.COM/TRAVEL


renovated, weatherboarded White Hart Inn draws locals on sunny days with estuary-fresh native and rock oysters served on the patio. Inside, there are six Sanderson-clad rooms and a light-filled bar- restaurant painted deep forest green.


Horsey Island Part of the Hamford Water National Nature Reserve, Horsey Island is a 300-acre haven, home to grazing shaggy sheep and avocets wading through the marshland. Around a 15-minute drive from Frinton-on-Sea, it’s defined by quiet pleasures: rural walks, seasonal wildlife and kayaking through narrow creeks. From the Victorian quay at Harwich, Seal


Watching Harwich runs daily boat trips through the reserve, offering close-up views of the island’s most popular residents. Colonies of harbour and grey seals bask on the mudflats, while babies frolic in the shallows, their coats tinged red by iron-rich estuarine silt. You’ll likely hear them before you


From left: Some Essex beach huts sell for more than £100,000, despite having no running water or electricity; the county’s low-lying farmland and wetlands are the ideal habitat for lapwings; Mersea Island is one of the most easterly inhabited places in Britain; the menu at The White Hart Inn is steered by the seasons


IMAGES: GETTY; BEN ANDREW; OLIVER SUCKLING


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