Admirals Park and Central Park, Chelmsford
We finally visited Admirals Park and Central Park in Chelmsford, enjoying a lovely autumn walk beside the River Can, followed by brunch at the café.
Chelmsford, Essex, CM1 2PL
Our visit
We have lived in this area for over 40 years and, in that time, Mary had only visited once before, with her son Gareth and his nieces, Rebecca and Samantha, then 2 years and 5 months old respectively.
It was memorable because Rebecca ran all the way from the car park to the Central Park Café and back again, just over a mile in total. It was hard work keeping up with her whilst pushing a pram! Until today, Graham had never visited.
We could not believe how we had neglected to visit this beautiful gem in the middle of the city of Chelmsford, the county town of Essex.
Our visit began at Tower Gardens car park. Quite small but plenty of spaces on the day of our visit and free parking, to boot!
We followed the path towards Admirals Park (named after Rear Admiral John Faithful Fortescue who owned the estate which now forms part of the park). In 1920, Chelmsford Council purchased the main open parkland to preserve the green corridor along the River Can.
It was a lovely autumn day, the leaves still on the trees and only beginning to turn despite the record-breaking summer heatwaves. We followed the wide, flat track to the bridge over the River Can as it makes its way to join the River Chelmer shortly downstream. We then followed the path to the left, walking through a lovely avenue of trees, with the Can flowing to the right.
Ahead was the Chelmsford Central Park Viaduct, indicating our entrance into Central Park. The imposing structure is an historic 18-arch brick railway viaduct built around 1842–1843 as part of the Eastern Counties Railway line (London to Norwich) across the River Can through Central Park.
We enjoyed a lovely brunch at the Central Park Café near the lake, walked around the lake and back again under the viaduct into Admirals Park towards the car park, a short walk but very pleasant, easy walk.
Good to know
This is a lovely green haven in the middle of a busy city with easy parking, lovely walks and a river flowing through. We shall certainly return and explore further. We commend Chelmsford City Council for maintaining this gem in the middle of the city.
Getting around
There is disabled parking at Tower Gardens car park and the paths are flat, wide and even. We noticed two toilet blocks, one near the car park and the other at the café.
Photos from our visit
