Enter Hilly Fields Local Nature Reserve, turn sharp left and follow the footpath westwards.

The path starts at a height of approx. 46 metres and from this high ground there are excellent views across the valley of the River Colne to the railway line and High Woods Country Park.

The valley of the river Colne has always been a major communications artery. Two thousand years ago river boats on the Colne brought goods to prehistoric and Roman Colchester from many different parts of the Mediterranean world.

Although this area is now scrubland 2,000 years ago this was a thriving industrial suburb of a Roman city and the site of pottery kilns. Before that it was the site of an Iron Age mint. The slopes now have hawthorn and bramble scrub cover, as well nettles and some more open grassy areas.

Bear right down the slope

The area is rich in insect and bird life, with an abundance of rabbits. From Autumn through to Spring look out for the burrows of the local Minotaur beetle which buries rabbit droppings to feed its young. During World War II this area would have been grassland for grazing cattle and you will pass a lichen and moss covered pillbox to your left on the edge of an open grassy area with a bench.

Continue along the path until it passes through a mature hedge by a large Oak. Bear right down the slope, following the line of the Broom and Oak hedge and continue downhill across the next field.