We walked the most dangerous path in Britain

Welcome to Foulness Island. The name is unfortunate. A few centuries ago it meant "muddy promo" or possibly "bird promo." It is about nine square miles and about 150 people live there. But unless you are one of those people or have business with them, you will not be allowed to enter. Most of the island and,

most

importantly, the road and bridge that takes you to it: are owned by the British Army. and they will reject you. But despite not having any business here, I am on the island, legally. And that's because I didn't use the road or the bridge.

I

walked

a very different

path

to get here. The Broomway has been considered the

most

dangerous

and deadly road in Britain. It dates back at least 600 years. And the only reason I

walked

here safely is because I had a guide. A few kilometers back, before leaving, I asked him some questions. -Historically, there are reported to be between 60 and 100 victims in Broomway. The main thing is the tide. It rotates from the North Sea and would not come, as you would expect, directly from the horizon, but it often spirals towards the coast, so it will cut off your

path

.

It is very easy to get lost on the Broomway, especially in poor visibility conditions, when it is raining or light fog, early in the morning or late at night. Since there are no items or markers to orient yourself from, you can become disoriented very quickly. Very often, people naturally walk further out to sea, rather than returning to land. The Broomway is only open to the public on weekends. The MOD uses this as an active firing range, and has done so since the late 19th century. And then one thing we could see is ammunition remains. They do a good job of cleaning up after themselves, but that doesn't mean we don't see any around.

I've seen shells this big. You just have to keep your distance. Shell craters are also a problem due to exploding munitions, so it's essentially quicksand. And then there will be pockets of sand that are very soft and mushy that your feet will sink into and that we have to be careful with. I only guide walks when the tide is constantly going out. So, we are three hours after high tide. The tide is still going out and we should return here when the tide is changing. - So, obviously, we did it. Thanks tom! The road is called Broomway because before the military built that bridge, when it was the only access to this island, it was marked with "brooms" every 30 meters or so.

Now, for 21st century people, that means broomsticks sticking out of the ground. But no, I looked up a photo from 1922 and the brooms were just little pieces of brush. But over the last century, those brooms stopped receiving maintenance. They were washed away or eroded, and now the path is not marked. But it's still on the map. It is still a legal path. Permanently closing a right of way in Britain is difficult. - In Foulness there are public paths that we can access. They are rarely used. And then if you take them, the security panels will turn on because the Ministry of Defense staff or the locals who live there will inform you because they think you are trespassing.

I wouldn't be guiding this if I wasn't a qualified mountain leader who has map and compass skills, good experience from this guided hike I do. I have first aid qualifications so I know how to deal with and deal with potential emergencies that may occur here. - That 1922 article also named some of the people who died along the way. Several doctors traveling to see patients, young women trying to find a partner, and island residents who got careless or sometimes stayed in mainland pubs too late and then tried to turn back the tide on horseback. galloping. Because the part of Broomway we walked is not just a trail.

Under modern law, it is a "detour open to all traffic," which means that, in theory, you can drive a horse, a tractor, or whatever is permitted through it. It would be a very, very bad idea to drive to the sand, but in theory you could, if we didn't get stuck. Now, a few times a year, the island's village and main road are open to tourism, but not now, not in 2020, which means that right now there is only one way for the average person to get to Foulness Island . . But there are two ways out. We could wander off the rights of way, invade military lands, and shortly thereafter be escorted by soldiers, assuming we weren't arrested.

Or... we can just walk back. Ready when you are! - Come on! - Many thanks to Tom Bennett! He is a qualified mountain leader who tours Britain. I'll put a link to his website in the description. It feels very strange to talk about yourself in the third person when you're there. - Yes. - Yuck!