Cromer to Mundesley Beach Walk
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Thursday, 19 December 2019
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An alternative beach walk to the official Norfolk Coast path between Cromer and Mundesley
This beach section of the Norfolk Coast can only be walked when the tide allows as high tide reaches the foot of the cliffs and is impassable at Overstrand. There is frequent erosion all along the route so the scenery changes from year to year. The beach is predominantly sand with numerous groynes that present frequent obstacles to get past - sometimes decaying steps assist getting over the groynes and sometimes, at low tide or with boots and socks off, it is possible to get around the end of some of the groynes. Mostly, it involves clambering as best as you can over these eroded, seaweed covered, mussel encrusted defences but that is half the fun of it!
Walk Statistics
Maps
The following maps and services can assist in navigating this route. There are links to printed maps and links to downloadable GPX route data for importing into navigational software and apps.
- Ordnance Survey Explorer Map
- OS Explorer 251 - Norfolk Coast Central
- GPX Route File
Accommodation
Woodhill Park CampsiteView in OS Map | View in Google Map
- Website
- https://www.woodhill-park.com/
- Description
- Located on the clifftops at East Runton, half way between Sheringham and Cromer, this highly recommended touring site is ideal for exploring North Norfolk with public transport available to many destinations from the entrance to the site.
Transport
Sanders Coaches - bus Service
- Service Details
- 5/5A - Sanders Coaches Service 5/5A Holt Sheringham to Norwich via Mundesley and North Walsham
- Timetable
- Sanders Coaches Website
Walk Notes
This is a fantastic beach walk. One of the best and a favourite over many years. Admittedly in 2018 the beach appeared to have dropped a little after storm surges and there is now an abundance of pebbles but nonetheless there is still plenty of sand at low tide. Acres of it.
It is imperative that one consults the tide times for this walk. Aim for a low tide somewhere around Overstrand to be sure. Do not attempt to cliff the cliffs. They are unstable and certainly the section between Overstrand and Mundesley has some heavy clay at its foot in which there have been occasions of persons getting stuck and needing assistance from the emergency services.
There is a regular bus service between Cromer and Mundesley. Alternatively one can just follow the Coast Path route back along the cliffs.
Directions
A beach walk from Cromer to Mundesley
Head to the beach at Cromer and just keep walking!
Pubs
The Ship Inn, Mundesley View in OS Map | View in Google Map
- Address
- The Ship Inn, Mundesley
- Website
- https://www.mundesley-ship.co.uk/
Set on the cliff top overlooking the North Sea, The Ship is over 200 years old though there is no exact date as to when it was built. Records do show that in 1796 the pub’s lease was sold by the Coltishall Brewery. A stone celebrating Queen Victoria's jubilee in 1887 can be found in the rear wall of the pub. Today the pub is a friendly hostelry offering a selection of local ales and food made from locally sourced ingredients.
A great place to sit in the garden and sup an ale and watch the sea
Red Lion, Cromer View in OS Map | View in Google Map
- Address
- Brook Street, Cromer
- Website
- https://www.redlioncromer.co.uk/
The hotel is situated on the cliff top above the fisherman's beach with views across the sea and the towns Victorian Pier. The Red Lion dates from the 18th century and is one of the oldest pubs in Cromer. The current building dates from 1887 and replaced the original building extending the site with the acquisition of several fisherman's cottages on which the Assembly Rooms were built.
Accommodation, local food including Norfolk Sausages, Venison, Cromer Crab, Morston Mussels and a good ever changing range of local Norfolk ales makes this pub well worth a visit.
Always something to everyone's liking in this place, the selection of ale is excellent with an assotment of Norfolk and Suffolk ales. Love the place, love the atmosphere and always a friendly welcome
Features
Cromer LighthouseView in OS Map | View in Google Map
A lighthouse has occupied the cliff-top site at Foulness, just east of Cromer, since 1669. This was built to replace a light that was placed on top of the parish church. However, the cost of maintaining the lighthouse soon proved to be too great and economics forced the lighthouse to become merely a beacon and as such was marked on charts as 'a lighthouse but no fire kept in it'. Some time prior to 1792 Trinity House took charge of the lighthouse and fitted it with a flashing light after initially employing a permanent coal fire. Foulness, like much of this part of the coast, suffered constant erosion and finally, after many landslips, the lighthouse succumbed to the sea in 1866, prior to which a new lighthouse was already being built.
The present lighthouse, a white octagonal masonry tower, was built half a mile from the cliff edge and 275 feet above sea level and came into operation in 1833. Electricity was installed in 1958 to power the light and in June 1990 the lighthouse was converted to automatic operation which is monitored from the Trinity House Operation Control Centre at Harwich. As a consequence of automation the lighthouse keeper's cottage alongside the tower is now let out as holiday apartment although the property is still owned by Trinity House. The lighthouse tower is not open to the public but the area around the lighthouse is easily accessible.
References
OverstrandView in OS Map | View in Google Map
Overstrand was once a modest fishing station, with part of the fishing station being known as Beck Hythe. Beck Hythe has since been lost to the sea due to the ever continuing coastal erosion, as was a village nicknamed Understrand which also now lies beneath the waves. The area was nicknamed Poppyland in the late nineteenth century after a London journalist and travel writer named Clement Scott came to Overstrand. He dubbed the name of Poppyland in his numerous writings for the Daily Telegraph which aided publicity for the area and assisted in the coming of the railway when Overstrand secured a station on the Norfolk and Suffolk Joint Railway between Cromer and North Walsham which is now closed. The Overstrand biplane bomber was named after the village; being made at the nearby Boulton and Paul aircraft factory in the early 1930s
As with much of this part of Norfolks coast, there are tales of Black Shuck, the ghostly devil dog. At Overstrand the legend states that a Dane, a Saxon and Shuck the dog were inseparable friends who were drowned while fishing together. The Dane washed up at Beeston while his friend the Saxon washed up at Overstrand. Shuck has ever since roamed the coast between the two villages looking for his friends. There have been many local accounts of his sighting over the centuries and further accounts stating that Black Shuck made his home in the abandoned ruin of St. Martin's church, until restoration work began in 1911. Another legend states that Black Shuck rises out of the sea and runs along Shuck Lane, which was said to lead up to Cromer Great Eastern Railway station, in premonition of a foreboding storm
References
MundesleyView in OS Map | View in Google Map
Mundesley has an entry in the Domesday Book of 1085 being recorded by the name of Muleslai. The Mundesley war memorial is dedicated to sailors and volunteers who cleared the North Sea of mines during and after the Second World War. Next to the church is a World War II bomb shelter, which now stands near the edge of the cliff, due to coastal erosion. Mundesley is a popular seaside holiday destination due to its sandy beaches and has a number of holiday chalet and caravan parks and hotels. Just to the south of Mundesley on the road to Paston is a popular windmill, Stow Mill. The village was a popular seaside resort in Victorian times, benefiting from its own railway station which closed in 1964.
References
Image Gallery
Route Validation Cards
Validation Date - 2017-04-01
- Time of Walk: 10:30 to 17:00
- Validators: Griffmonster, Kat
- Weather Conditions: Fine spring say
- Notes: Initial route undertaken
Summary of Document Changes
Last Updated: 2026-01-15
- 2011-09-07 : Initial publication
- 2018-01-04 : General Website updates
- 2019-01-25 : Reconfigured from https://griffmonster-walks.blogspot.com/2011/09/ale-trail-mundesley-to-cromer.html after many revisits to this walk. Old walk archived
- 2019-12-19 : General Website updates
- 2021-03-17 : Update website improvements and removal of ViewRanger reliance
- 2021-12-01 : Removal of ViewRanger links due to its imminent demise
- 2026-01-12 : >Major website update with all walks recast to the new format
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