Tuesday, 20 March 2018
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A 10 mile walk around the Suffolk villages of Eye and Hoxne
Hoxne is said to be where St Edmund was Martyred by the Viking invaders in the 9th century. The village is full of reminders of the gruesome event including the cross which marks the place of the oak tree his assailants tied him to, beat him, fired arrows at and eventually beheaded and the bridge he reputedly hid trying to escape his captors.
Wednesday, 13 February 2019
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A 10 mile walk along the South West Coast Path between Langton Herring and Weymouth
An easy walk following Chesil Beach through to Weymouth. The path follows the contours of the land keeping close to the shore. At Weymouth the eastern coastline spreads out eastwards presenting the next challenge.
This section of the South West Coast Path was set around a base camp at the Bagwell touring site at Langton Herring. This site is close to the road into Weymouth providing easy access to public transport and close to the Coast Path with footpaths leading down to the trail just below Langton Herring village. The path follows the waterline of the Fleet, the enclosed waters that sit between the mainland and Chesil Beach, the large shingle Bank that stretches all the way through to Portland, the island at the southern tip of Weymouth.
The path cuts across a small headland known as Herbury and then past Moonfleet Manor House a large 30 room Georgian building used as a hotel and spa. The house is the central location for the namesake novel by J. Mead Faulkner set in times when piracy and smuggling abounded. The name of the house is derived from Maximillion Mohune who built the house, literally Mohunes of Fleet which was corrupted to Moonfleet.
The walk is easy and relaxed with no real challenges, more like an amble in the park rather than a hike along the South West Coast Path. Given a glorious sunny day such as that when this instance of the walk was undertaken, it really is an utter pleasure to wander.
The path on this section ends at Ferry Bridge, the connecting point between the mainland and Portland where a road leads across to the island via the Ferry Bridge. The Ferry Bridge Inn stood here, in a prominent position with views across to Portland and westwards along the Fleet. One would have thought such a position would deem it to be a busy pub but certainly this was not the case on visiting during this walk when we were the only patrons. The pub has since closed and has subsequently been demolished.
The coast path continues with a circular walk around Portland. That is a section left for another walk day and detailed on Portland Circular Walk. For this walk we continue into Weymouth town, following the route of the former Portland Branch Line. The path diverges from the old trackbed at the Nothe Peninsular where a 19th century fort sits at its head. This peninsular forms a natural harbour on its northern side where the River Wey drains into the sea. One one can walk up to the Town Bridge to cross the river, but it is much more fun to take the ferry and witness the numerous sailing craft moored on either side. A fish eye view of the river. Well a sailors eye view anyway. On this expedition the Pelican sailing ship was moored in the harbour. Built in 1948 this tall ship made its living as an arctic trawler before being restored in 2007 and subsequently used as a sail training ship. A magnificent sight.
The town of Weymouth sits on a sheltered bay at the mouth of the River Wey. It was built as a prominent seaport whose trade dates back to medieval times. In these modern times it thrives on tourism and is an unabashed, unashamed English seaside resort with all the connotations that one expects from such. Kiss me quick hats. Ice Cream. Sandy Beaches where holidaymakers soak up the sun. Not the place for the rural aficionado such as myself but nonetheless it still presents that sense of arrival. After walking the coast path from Exmouth, this is the first major town and such civilisation marks an arrival, a completion of a major section. Because Weymouth and Portland jut out into the English Channel the coast eastwards is always hidden from view when walking from the west. From Weymouth a whole new challenge is presented ahead with the coastline stretching around to Lulworth and Kimmeridge and beyond.
There are buses from Weymouth back to the campsite including the Jurassic Coast service which runs past the site entrance. Later buses run through to Chickerell which is a short one mile walk back to the campsite. On this occasion a later bus was caught which did present the unwitting passenger to the less salubrious side of the town where Feral youths stand in the road purposefully forcing the bus to stop with scowls on their faces and abusive words from their mouths and sign language that did not take someone who was proficient in such skills to interpret. It is a sad fact that such reprobates fail to see the beauty that is around them. This coast is a glory with so much to explore yet they appear to restrict themselves to the concrete urbanisation.
Sunday, 1 August 2010
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A 14 mile walk along the banks of the River Orwell in Suffolk between Ipswich and Shotley Gate
The Stour and Orwell path is an extension to the southern end of the Suffolk Coast Path and follows the coast and heaths along the estuaries of the Orwell and the Stour rivers. This particular walk focuses on the section between Ipswich and Shotley Gate following the river Orwell along the Shotley peninsular.
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Tuesday, 4 May 2021
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A 14 mile walk along the banks of the River Orwell in Suffolk between Ipswich and Shotley Gate
The Stour and Orwell path is an extension to the southern end of the Suffolk Coast Path and follows the coast and heaths along the estuaries of the Orwell and the Stour rivers. This particular walk focuses on the section between Ipswich and Shotley Gate following the river Orwell along the Shotley peninsular.
Saturday, 26 January 2019
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A 12 mile circular walk starting at Eyke and incorporating the UFO Trail in Suffolk's Rendlesham Forest
The Rendlesham UFO trail is a waymarked 3 mile trail around the eastern end of Rendlesham Forest that navigates around the key areas that were involved in the Rendlesham Forest Incident of 1980 in which both civilian and military personnel witnessed unexplained craft land within the forest. Although this can be walked by parking up at the visitor car-park in the forest, a longer alternative is to take the footpaths from Eyke, and make a day of this most wonderful and intriguing part of Suffolk.
Sunday, 6 February 2022
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A 5 mile walk around the countryside that surrounds the east Suffolk village of Peasenhall
The village of Peasenhall is located on the A1120, some 3 miles from Yoxford and the A12. Surrounded by the glorious Suffolk countryside which this walk navigates through, landmarks include the medieval church of St Michael. Refreshments can be obtained at the Sibton White Horse pub.
Sunday, 30 December 2018
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A 15 mile way along the Lancashire Lancashire Coastal Way between Lytham St Annes and Fleetwood
The route goes through one of the principle holiday resort areas in England and the entire distance is walked along concrete promenades with access to the beach when the tide is out. There are numerous points of interest including the famous piers and tower at Blackpool and the constant trams that clank along the seafront.
Wednesday, 18 December 2019
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A 7 mile walk along Norfolk's Paston Way from Cromer to Gunton.
The Paston Way has a few alternative paths that stray from its main route between North Walsham and Cromer, and this walk takes the optional route out to Gunton from where a train can be taken back to Cromer. There are some worthy country pubs along this simple walk so a good old English pub crawl can also be had along with taking in the sights of the impressive churches at Northrepps and Southrepps plus local tales of wartime German conspiracies!
Wednesday, 9 February 2022
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The second walk of a multi day hike along the Ridgeway going East to West
This walk starts from the vilalge of Great Kimble to follow the Ridgway National Trail. This was part 2 of a multiday hike which ended at the Lambert Hotel in Aston Rowant
Saturday, 5 February 2022
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A short but strenuous walk across Hillsborough Hill that separates Ilfracombe and Hele Bay.
Hillsborough is a promontory that sits between the towns of Ilfracombe and Hele Bay to the east. With a height of some 114m, this made an ideal location for an iron age for around 2500 years ago although there is nothing obvious other than information boards to point this out to the untrained eye. There are numerous paths around the hill and this walk roughly follows the South West Coast Path route although veers off to explore Raperee Cove, and to follow the path past the location of the fort.
Sunday, 8 December 2013
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A walk at high tide of the 2013 Storm Surge between Sizewell and Thorpeness
This is a photographic excursion of the 2013 Storm Surge down the Suffolk Coast. With media firmly concentrated on events in South Africa the only real way to find out was happening was to visit this destructive storm surge oneself. Although this part of Suffolk was relatively unscathed it still presented awe-inspiring seas and crashing waves.
Wednesday, 22 July 2020
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Short circular walk around the headland that fronts Pozeath
An awesome wander around Pentire Point from the village of Polzeath. This is a must for anyone who visits this classic piece of Cornish coastline. A few challenges but nothing that an average walker can muster
Sunday, 24 January 2021
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An 11 mile walk linking the Bittern Line stations of North Walsham and Wroxham
A rewarding days walk through the Norfolk countryside that links the railway stations of North Walsham and Wroxham. The route passes across an historic battleground, through woodland, encountering picturesque hamlets and village churches along the way. The end section uses the Bure Valley Railway path that follows the narrow gauge steam railway past Coltishall and down to Wroxham station.
Thursday, 22 November 2018
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A short walk from West Lynn to Kings Lynn including the Lynn Town Trail
A short walk that includes a town trail to view the historic centre of Kings Lynn. There is plenty of history here and the descriptions in this account scratch the surface of what has occurred through the ages. The feature that we concentrate upon in this instance is the legend that surrounds the burning of the witch Margaret Reed in the 16th century.
Tuesday, 17 December 2019
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An 8 mile walk along the South West Coast Path between Bucks Cross to Westward Ho!
A moderate walk along the cliffs to Westward Ho!, the town renowned for being the only place in Britain to have an exclamation mark in its name. This walk presents a good introduction to the South West Coast Path being under 10 miles and with few difficult or strenuous ascents and descents. There are amazing panoramas of the coastline throughout with views to Hartland in the west and Westward Ho! and north Devon to the East and North.
Friday, 28 December 2018
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An alternative route to the official Coast Path using the Zennor Churchway otherwise known as the Coffin Path for a less challenging 13 mile walk between Pendeen and St Ives
This alternative route leads away from the coast path at Porthmeor to take the Zennor Churchway which follows an ancient track across a flat ridge of land that joins the cliff top to the hills. From Zennor the route is known as the Coffin Path on account of it being the route used to take coffins to Zennor church during the middle ages. This route provides an alternative for when bad weather sets in on the coast path when it can become hazardous or simply as a less strenuous and less time consuming route.
Tuesday, 18 December 2018
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A 9 mile walk following the Cleveland Way between Saltburn and Staithes
This walk passes over the highest point on the east coast of England, a 670 foot high cliff at Boulby. The entire route bears the marks of numerous quarrying operations from over the centuries. The village of Skinningrove is roughly half way, and it is this place that holds a legend of a merman being captured and held in one of its cottages.
Thursday, 15 December 2022
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A 7 mile walk around coastal North Devon from Hele Bay to Berrynarbor
This walk takes inland footpaths and tracks to navigate from the village of Hele Bay through to Berrynarbor, which, with its whitewashed stone walls takes on the guise of a Mediterranean village. The village plays host to numerous flower pot men in comical poses which makes an intriguing spectacle as one wanders through the streets. Return is along the South West Coast Path
Wednesday, 11 February 2026
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The northern most section of the Fen Rivers Way long distance path
This 12.5 mile linear walk linking Kings Lynn and Downham Market following the River Ouse. The landscape is flat with the broad unwavering river leading the way. There are churches and even a ruined church to provide interest. An easy, straightforward walk.
Wednesday, 18 December 2019
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A 4 mile beach walk to witness the damage caused by the 2013 Storm Surge along the shingle bank between Cley and Salthouse
The December 2013 Storm Surge caused widespread flooding of the marshes and sea defences along the North Norfolk Coast, resulting in the closure of the Coast path between Blakeney and Cley. It is still possible to walk out to the beach from Cley village via the road where a walk along the shingle will astound those who have walked this section prior to the December storm. The shingle ridge has been levelled, with the excess cast across the marshes.
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.
Details of public transport that is required for the walk
The intention of the days outing was to visit some key areas that had suffered under the December Storm Surge. The intention of this walk was to include Blakeney, Cley and Salthouse, however the path from Blakeney to Cley is closed due to multiple breaches of the sea defences as a result of the surge. The defences from Cley up to the beach have also been breached resulting in the closure of this section of coast path. At least there is a viable alternative at Cley using the beach road, whereas the alternative between Blakeney to Cley is the main Coast Road which is not a recommended walk due to the lack of pavement and the busy nature of this well used coastal route. There is one other alternative route via Wiveton Downs and Glandford. Although this offers some spectacular views it is not really a coast path - this route will be covered in a posting on this site in the near future. Therefore on this particular day of heavy showers and gale force westerly winds Blakeney was reached using the Coasthopper service.
So, in cardinal order of west to east, here is a description of the damage encountered. Firstly Blakeney where the Norfolk Coast Partnership lists the storm surge damage as:
Blakeney Freshes was totally inundated with seawater (c. 157 ha, to a depth of 1 - 2+ metres). There are numerous breaches in the sea wall (total c. 500 metres), some of which are at saltmarsh level so that monthly high water spring tides will put more water onto this area. Water is being evacuated from the Freshes through the one functioning sluice, so the water level has dropped a little in 5 days.
At the time of the surge the media was full of pictures displaying a boat marooned on top of the quay after the floods had receded. This has now been removed and appears to be the same cruiser which languishes in a forlorn state against the sea defence adjacent to the first breach. The rusting hull has several notices taped to it, these are orders for removal. Obviously no-one has claimed the boat. There is no indication of where it came from and it may well have been torn from its mooring and been brought in on the flood tide leaving the owners lost as to its current whereabouts.
A little closer to the harbour is a Wayfarer dinghy sitting atop of the defences and blocking the coast path. This was obviously deposited here by the tide. Not that there is any point to continuing along the coast path with the breach by the cruiser being a full 20 yards in length and beyond that a fence denying access further along the path. Reports from the Environment Agency and Norfolk Council website attest to there being multiple breaches along this path through to Cley. The EA are currently assessing the damage and they have stated that the repair would be both costly and challenging. Therefore the agency is consulting environmental bodies and the people of Blakeney on the future of protecting the Freshes marsh and hence the reinstatement of the coast path. It would be a very sad loss to have this section of coast path permanently closed as it is an excellent example of the landscape that is typical of the Norfolk Coast Path and one which I have personally walked on many occasions and found a real pleasure in doing so.
I do get the impression that the abandonment of the marsh to the sea is something which the residents are firmly against. The marshes and the coast path are the reason for visitors coming to the village. As the landlord of the Kings Head in Blakeney was heard to say whilst we dropped in for a pint, "if there is no coast path or marsh then why would anyone want to visit". It was interesting to listen to this man who experienced the flood first hand. Although he was not specifically speaking with us, he was nonetheless relating the stories to another couple. He depicted the level of the water in the bar then emphasized that the level dropped a full ten inches when the waters first breached the defences and flooded into the marsh.
Moving onto Cley, once again the Norfolk Coast Partnership has listed the details of the damage:
- Two major breaches in the shingle bank, at Salthouse (400m west of Little Eye) and Pope’s Marsh (east end of Sea Pool).
- Extensive wash-back of shingle, up to 100m onto marshes.
- Beach car park covered in shingle, other car parks extensive debris.
- North Hide washed away, other hides damaged or inaccessible due to boardwalk damage.
- Extensive stretches of boardwalk damaged.
- Extensive areas of fencing lost, damaged or buried under shingle.
- Several bridges damaged or washed away.
Despite starting out on the coast path past Cley windmill, progress is soon hampered by a fence blocking the way with a typed notice to declare the path closed due to breaches caused by the storm surge. In reality much of this has already been repaired and some walkers were seen to have clambered up the defence bank beside the beach road to walk along it. Hopefully this will be officially reopened in the near future as, although the road is not particularly busy, it is nonetheless single track and one has to constantly make way for passing vehicles.
Cley beach gave a sample of the damage along this section of coast. The shingle that typifies this length of the coast path has shifted to such an extent that it was unrecognisable. The Cley beach car park was covered in deep shingle. The square shelter where I have taken rests on its seats on previous occasions was half buried in shingle. The old WWII pillbox is nearly underneath the shingle. Shingle has been swept across the marsh. The shingle ridge that defended the marshes is now flattened all the way through to Salthouse car park. This really has changed drastically since our last visit. There was even a section of coastline on the beach side where the shingle had eroded to the sandy structures that lie beneath, with assorted debris strewn across the beach at this point. Sections of brick wall. Large stones and chunks of concrete which gave a moonscape appearance. Further along, and throughout the distance to Salthouse were numerous metal rails sticking vertically out of the shingle. Eroded with rust. Encrusted in stony crustaceans. They line in regular procession along what used to be the height of the ridge. At a guess these are probably old WWII defences but this needs verifying.
It was along this stretch of shingle that the USAF Helicopter crashed in January 2014. There are no reminders left of this tragic accident other than some of the metal defences cut down into a pile of debris which may have been done to gain access to the area it came down.
There are a couple of areas where major breaches left a flow of water between sea and marsh. These are evident from the banks that have formed either side of where the water flowed. Although the natural tide action has now sealed these breaches no doubt future breaches will be seen at these points. Local media has recently stated that this is part of a natural healing process with the sea rebuilding the shingle ridge. I personally think this is rather optimistic as the same process occurs along the Suffolk broads at Easton, Covehithe and Benacre. Storms regularly breach across the beach forming channels of water and then calmer weather results in the tide repairing the breach but there is never a build up of a ridge to provide a lasting seal.
The beach car park at Salthouse is unrecognisable. The only give away that it was the car park is the post that contained the emergency telephone. This eight feet high post had a yellow emergency telephone at chest level and was topped with a clear notice. All that is now visible of this is the sign at the top with the rest buried beneath the shingle, giving a clear indication of the depth of the shingle that has swept across the car park.
Coasthopper Bus Service
One last point on a different subject is the changes to the Coasthopper bus service. This has been a successful, well used service for both locals and visitors to North Norfolk, providing an easy method to navigate to the various destinations along the coast path for sectional walkers. The service provides a link between Cromer, Hunstanton and Kings Lynn, half hourly in summer and hourly in winter and has a dedicated crew of drivers who are friendly, helpful and at times entertaining, providing local information and even poetry recitals. The buses can be flagged down at any point and the driver will stop if safe to do so. It has always been one of the reasons for returning to the Norfolk Coast Path in my humble opinion.
However, the service has been running at a substantial loss and Norfolk Council are cutting back on providing the shortfall. As stated, the service is successful in the number of passengers it caters for but the major problem has been that the majority of these passengers are bus pass holders and, certainly during summer months, are taking advantage with lengthy journeys for which the company are only reimbursed with the standard flat fare. Whether a bus pass passenger travels one mile or sixty, the bus company only receives a sum of, I believe, a little over one pound. This is where the loss is being made as on most journeys the fare paying passenger is very much in the minority. One driver stated that they are legally obliged to take bus pass users and the only way around this is to make the service into a pre-booked service which would totally defeat its purpose.
In the winter of 2014 Stagecoach took over Norfolk Green who has been providing the Coasthopper service for many years and there has already been a noticeable change in the service and its costs. It has always been a series of three separate services, namely CH1, Kings Lynn to Hunstanton, CH2, Hunstanton to Wells and CH3, Wells to Cromer, although effectively the buses using the route would just change their service number as they went along resulting in a continuous and seamless journey with no connections to be met.
The service now appears to have fragmented so one now needs to change buses at Wells in order to continue the journey. I suspect this has been implemented so that bus pass passengers then need to obtain a second ticket for their onward journey and the company then gets a reimbursement for both parts of the journey. Normal through tickets are still available for fare paying passengers but there are no guaranteed connections. I cant blame the company for adopting this policy when they are effectively giving free rides, as they cannot run at a loss forever. However, I do feel that the whole idea of offering free bus passes has not been thought through properly and the Government really needs to either address the abuse of the system or provide the appropriate funding to compensate the companies that are having to provide the service. There have been petitions against this, notably from Norfolk Council who has to provide the refunds but the Government has turned a deaf ear to these objections. There is also a petition to save the coasthopper which I would ask for all who are concerned to sign
There has also been a large increase in the fares to help fund the bus pass passengers. I don't resent those with bus passes from taking advantage but I do resent the mess that the bus pass policy has resulted in. Even so, a day pass now costs £9.00 and gives access to all the Coasthopper services along the route. That isn't bad for a day out.
Whilst writing this article Stagecoach managing director, Andrew Dyer, was quoted as saying that he was confident the summer timetable would run, but that the position was not definite for the winter season. I just hope this service continues to operate as it has always done. It would be a very sad loss if it is discontinued and I am sure a lot of businesses along the route will suffer from the lack of visitors.
The service was subsequently passed on to two companies, Sanders and Lynx. Its future is uncertain
Beach walk between Cley and Salthouse
The Coast Path is currently closed between Blakeney and Cley.
The Coast Path follows the defence banks out of Cley village and down to the beach. This has currently been closed due to breaches in the bank which involves a diversion to the beach road. Follow the shingle beach through to Sathouse beach car park where a track leads back to the eastern side of the village. The car park is currently under several feet of shingle and is unusable.
The Salthouse and Cley marshes have been bordered by a shingle beach for centuries although this has been slowly moving landwards over that time. It has been estimated that a quarter of a mile of marsh has been lost to the constant erosion since the 1500's. There used to be a navigable channel that linked Salthouse to Blakeney harbour, whose course went around the north side of the Cley enclosure but this was sealed by the shingle during a violent storm in 1845.
During the early 1850's a Clay defence bank was constructed along the edge of the marsh and behind the shingle ridge to prevent the marshes being inundated of the sea. It location was not well thought through with water being trapped between the bank and the shingle resulting in frequent breaches and eventually resulting in the sea reclaiming the marsh by 1861. Despite a new cut being built to drain the marsh this silted up and another flood in 1921 resulted in the area becoming an inland sea dotted with small islands which was locally known as the Salthouse Broads.
In modern times the shingle ridge has been maintained as a sea defence, with breaches being repaired. This has been an expensive exercise and has more recently given way to a managed retreat under the assumption of the marsh itself becoming the defence in much the same way as exists along other areas of the North Norfolk Coast. The area is managed as a nature reserve by the Norfolk Wildlife Trust and is of international importance for its wildlife, particularly birds.
Below are a selection of images taken from from the photo album for this walk. Feel free to browse through these or click on an image to view a larger version in the Gallery.
Last Updated: 2021-12-07
A 9 mile circular walk along the North Norfolk Coast between Holkham and Wells-next-the-sea An alternative to the North Norfolk Coast Path, ...
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A 9 mile walk following the Cleveland Way between Saltburn and Staithes This walk passes over the highest point on the east coast of England...
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An easy 8 mile Norfolk coastal walk along beach and clifftops between Sheringham and Cromer The Norfolk Coast Path was rerouted in 2014 as ...
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A simple 3.5 mile walk along side the North Yorkshire Moors Railway Amazing scenery with the sounds of steam engines chugging up the gradien...
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Short waymarked trail around the heathland of the North Warren Nature Reserve This short 1 mile waymarked trail guides the visitor around ...
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A 6 mile walk along the original route of the Norfolk Coast Path between Cromer and Sheringham Up until December 2014 the official route of ...
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An overview of the Suffolk Coast Path, a 60 mile long distance path following the coast of Suffolk A 60 mile long distance footpath from Fe...
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An exhilarating 12 mile coastal walk along the Suffolk Coast. The Suffolk Coast Path runs between Lowestoft and Southwold but due to coas...
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Riverside walk to the Geldeston Locks pub A scenic riverside walk linking Beccles with the historic Geldeston Locks pub, this route offers m...
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An 8 mile walk around Suffolk's Alton Water Reservoir Located on the Shotley peninsular, the Alton Water Reservoir provides an easy walk...
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