A lifetime of Islands: Island 208

Northey is small tidal island located a mile to the south east of the town of Maldon in Essex. It is situated in the estuary of the River Blackwater and its highest point is only 4 metres above sea level.. Northey isn't Britain's most scenic island but it has a remote wilderness feel to it and it is very important for wildlife. I spent an enjoyable and peaceful hour walking round it by myself.

Northey is owned by the National Trust and you have to get permission to visit. However this is very easy - all you need to do is telephone the resident warden, who will check the tide times for you. The island is not accessible for about 2 hours either side of high tide. She also gave me the combination number for the padlock on the gate at South House Farm, which enabled me to drive as far as the small car park just before the causeway. You are not allowed to drive on to the island unless you have rented Northey House as holiday accommodation. There is also a contact email address but if my experience is anything to go by I wouldn't bother trying to email them, as I am still waiting for a reply 2 months later! I was asked to call in at the warden's house, as there is an admission charge if you are not a National Trust member and she also sells a useful and informative laminated leaflet/map for a very small fee, which is worth purchasing if you want to get the most out of your visit.

The island is not signposted off the road, so you will need a map of some sort. Alternatively you could park in Maldon and walk down the sea wall until you see the causeway, which is obvious, as it is raised above the level of the surrounding oozy mud and has a post with a yellow triangle marking it. I don't know how deep the mud is on either side of the causeway but knowing how deep marine mud can be I wouldn't recommend trying to access the island at low tide by any other route.

The total area of Northey Island is around 300 acres. However since 1897 when part of the sea wall was breached, only 80 acres are always above sea level. The rest of the island quickly reverted to salt marsh. Northey is an important high tide refuge for wildfowl and waders, as it is the highest salt marsh in the Blackwater Estuary. Many species of birds overwinter in the Blackwater Estuary, including brent geese. The mudflats and saltmarsh are also used by large numbers of grey plovers, shelducks, dunlins, avocets, greenshanks, golden and grey plovers and black tailed godwits. The dry part of the island is mainly used for grazing cattle. Northey is part of the Blackwater Estuary Site of Special Scientific Interest.

There is a metalled lane running up the west coast as far as Northey House. The lane is lined by hedgerows of ash, oak, pine, hawthorn, crab apple, dog rose, lilac, privet, elder and horse chestnut. It is possible to walk around the perimeter of the rest of the dry part of the island on a path that runs on top of the sea wall.

It is thought that the causeway to Northey was first constructed by the Romans. The Battle of Maldon was fought somewhere to the south of the causeway in 991 AD. A Danish raiding party landed on Northey. Byrhtnoth, Earl of Essex raised an army. The Vikings offered to go away if they were paid to do so. Byrhtnoth refused to pay them but allowed them to cross the causeway to fight on equal terms, a critical mistake, as this meant that he lost his advantage. Byrhtnoth and most of his army were killed and the English had to spend the next 70 years paying the Danes and later the Swedes as well to go away. The island was inhabited at the time of the Domesday Book when it was known as Carseia.

In 1923 Northey Island was bought by Sir Norman Angell. He was a writer and politician and he won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1933. He built Northey House next to an earlier farmhouse and constructed turreted walls around the garden. The farmhouse was destroyed by a bomb during the Second World War. Sir Norman owned the island until 1967. In 1978 it was given to the National Trust by Mr & Mrs E.A. Lane.

A new area of saltmarsh was created in the south east corner of the island in 1992 because the process of coastal squeeze was causing the salt marsh at this point to disappear. Coastal squeeze happens when a salt marsh, which would naturally move inland is no longer able to do so because of the presence of a man made sea wall or other barrier and therefore is eroded away. Samphire, thrift, sea lavender and sea asters grow on the salt marsh.