Tourism

Want to know a place to get away from it all not far from Grays?

Most long-term inmates to Grays will have heard of Langdon hills as a countrified get away for warm days. Its host to frequent events listed on this very website. But what few people seem to grasp is that this area is so vast that it has plenty of little quarters that are quite unheard of or visited and yet offer some perfectly tranquil moments of Essex country perfection.
Langdon Lake is such a quarter.
Positioned at the foot of the Langdon hills it has a visitor centre ready equipped with a quaint café and garden to refresh in, but the real experience is to be able to venture out in to its woods and get that "away from it all" experience that is essentially impossible anywhere else in Thurrock. If you venture far enough (actually it's no more than 3 or 4 hundred meters from the visitor centre) you will happen up-on this lake, popular with fisherman and home to many many sizable Carp (you need to be a member to fish here) you can pass a few agreeable minutes feeding ducks and swans, but the park authority have graciously laid out a number of bench –tables so to encourage you to stop and picnic here.
The only drawback is the water of this lake is home to a breed of algae that is toxic so you are cautioned to avoid letting your dogs in the water as it will kill them, and make you very ill should you come into contact. This seems a strange contrast to an otherwise piece of country perfection.
This area would be filed under "simple pleasures" in terms of an itinerary for most but we encourage you to check it out during the warm months as it's a great place to watch a sun set.

Postcode: SS16 6EB
More information: http://www.essexwt.org.uk/reserves/langdon