I’m a bit of a labyrinth freak, so I keep track of things like World Labyrinth Day (first Saturday in May each year) and festivals, like this one:
Saffron Walden Maze Festival, 16-19 August, for which they’ve added several temporary mazes and labyrinths, including a large number of finger post mazes.
Saffron Walden has a hedge maze AND a turf labyrinth. The maze (mid 19th C) is a small one, inside a gate. When I was there nearly 20 years ago, I had to retrieve the key from the tourist office. My daughter and I had the maze to ourselves for a full hour. Bliss! That won’t be the case if you go during the festival, but don’t let that stop you.
The labyrinth (late 17th C) is huge, and will require close to an hour for a full tour to the center and back.
Check em out! And then send me photos of those finger post mazes!
Lizzie Ross 
Surprise, surprise, I used to be very into mazes and labyrinths, and was pleased to have finally seen the Saffron Walden turf maze a few years ago. In Bristol, where I used to live, there’s a fantastic medieval roof boss featuring one in St Mary Redcliffe church, and a modern brick maze based on the roof boss pattern in Victoria Park, designed by an acquaintance. I’ve treaded the famous church labyrinth in Chartres Cathedral and the Victorian one in Ely Cathedral (not far from Saffron Walden), and run my finger along the finger maze on an outside wall of Lucca Cathedral (the same design as the Chartres labyrinth). Whenever we take our grandsons onto a beach locally I mark out one or more Cretan-style mazes for them to copy and race round in.
Sadly, I’m not going to be in Walden this week (it’s a few hundred miles by train from where I am now) but I’m glad to now know this festival exists. Thanks!
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Ho! Twin children of different mothers! It was your photos from Audley End that reminded me of the Saffron Waldon maze/labyrinth. My fave English labyrinth has to be the tiny City of Troy in Yorks, near Dalby.
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Haven’t seen that; it’s years since I went to Yorkshire but maybe next visit!
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