A day out in Constable country

Along the banks of the river Stour, with Essex on one side and Suffolk on the other, England's favourite landscape painter spent half his life finding inspiration for great art.

A perfect day trip from London, Dedham Vale is commonly known as Constable Country and offers walking, cycling, history and art in unspoilt English countryside.

The river meanders, the turquoise sky boils with summer cloud, cattle stand in the water and hopeful swans eye-up picnics.

This is the landscape that influenced Constable's art for the remainder of his life, despite his departure for Hampstead following his marriage to Maria Bicknell.

The intensity of affection with which he held this region of east England is reflected in a letter to a friend in 1821: "I should paint my own places best", he wrote, and "painting is but another word for feeling".

Flatford Mill was owned by Constable's uncle Abram and here, within only a few hundred yards, you will find the scenes that inspired no fewer than six or seven of Constable's great paintings – including the famous the Hay Wain, the Mill Stream and Willy Lott's House.

If you're opting for car-free travel, Flatford Mill is a pleasant couple of miles' walk from Manningtree rail station and Dedham a short stroll along the riverbank from there.

Walking through the countryside, the squat tower of Dedham church is always in view – although not always as it appears in paintings such as Dedham Vale as Constable often changed the height and position of the church to suit his compositions.

The National Trust website has a downloadable guide to this Constable country walk.

The National Trust owns Flatford Mill and runs a museum and information centre in nearby Bridge Cottage, with informative tours of the scenes Constable painted available (£2.50).

The actual mill building is leased to the Field Studies Council who run history, art and technology courses. There is also a pleasant tea garden and what better way to spend a summer's afternoon than by hiring a boat and rowing up the River Stour?

Dedham's 15th-century church of St Mary the Virgin features one of the few Constable paintings on a religious theme - The Ascencion. So unusual is the subject matter that for many years the church did not realise it was a Constable and were in fact on the point of selling it when the identification was made.

On the High Street in Dedham you will find the Essex Rose tea rooms, serving delicious cream teas with Essex's own Tiptree jam. Be sure to try James Bond's favourite "Little Scarlet" variety.

Constable's first studio was in the picturesque village of East Bergholt - on the north side of Dedham Vale. These villages, with their flint and stone churches and country pubs are a great place to escape the city for the day.

The 60-mile Painters Trail cycle route is another great way to experience Constable country in Essex and Suffolk.

For more information and ideas on day trips and holidays in Constable country see the East of England Tourist Board website.

Rail operator National Express offer special packages on rail fares combined with attractions in the east of England. For details of these offers see the National Express website.

Natasha von Geldern