Weir at Broomfield Mill, 2016

Recording in response to a suggestion by a member of the public, Gary Hill, whom I spoke with whilst on location in Finchingfield earlier in the year.

After recording the cricket I took a walk along Mill Lane. Looking at the map beforehand, it looked like it was closed to motor vehicles, which I found to be true after parking up just before the mill. Recently, I have been seeking out roads that have been closed to see how nature reclaims them, and to discover if a route that has been a right of way for perhaps hundreds of years has now been cut off due to a new route being implemented. In this case, pedestrians and bicycles may still use the road to cut through to Little Waltham Road (more on that here).

The lack of traffic means that even though you can still hear the distant A130 in the back ground, you can hear more of the natural sounds in this lovely little spot. I delayed recording on my way through as children were playing in the weir, splashing and larking about in the water of the River Chelmer, so made this recording on the way back, when the children had gone and a man and a microphone were less intrusive.