Wells-next-the-Sea to Stiffkey (Stage 4 Norfolk Coastal Path)

It has taken us quite a while to get back to the Norfolk Coastal Path, well where we left off anyway. We have been back and walked along sections we've done before but hadn't managed to do any new parts until today.

Wells-next-the-Sea Harbour

We parked up in Wells with the intention of walking at least to Stiffkey. It's only a short section but having been for a longer walk the day before we thought we could either continue on, turn around and walk back or catch the bus depending how we felt. The walk isn't the most exciting sadly. Once out of Wells you can't see the sea at all, just miles of endless salt marshes. There were a few birds around but mostly egrets so generally it wasn't our favourite section and this probably contributed to me feeling tired so I was quite glad to reach Stiffkey after about 3.6 miles. 

Salt marshes

Oyster catcher & Curlew

Egret

We walked up to the village but couldn't see anywhere immediately to grab a drink, although the signpost mentioned a pub but we were too early anyway, so we decided to catch the bus back to Wells and spend a couple of hours there.

There aren't really and directions to this walk, if starting in Wells then follow the quayside east and away from the town, taking the little pathway as directed behind the fishing huts. Then just follow the well-trodden track firstly along the flood bank and then as it goes down to the edge of the marshes. There are a few pathways off going out onto the flats but unless you know the area and the tides it can be very easy to get cut off!

Stiffkey marshes

Once at Stiffkey car park take the road on your right up into the village if catching the bus back.

Our walk was 3.73 miles

See the route on mapometer

Terrain: Mostly flat grass or sandy stone. Tarmac at either end.

Habitat: Coastal, salt marshes.

Facilities: Parking, toilets, shops at Wells. Parking and pub at Stiffkey

Croyde and Baggy Point Circular (3 miles)

Croyde is a small village in North Devon, popular in the summer with holiday makers and surfers. The bay is overlooked to the west by Baggy Point peninsular (owned by the National Trust) The route on the map starts at Ruda holiday park because we were staying there but there is a National Trust Car Park in Moor Lane. The NT link above also has the route in reverse.

The route uses some NT paths and some of the South West Coast Path with the first mile being a moderate incline.

1.     If coming from the village or beach walk up Moor Lane along the footpath on the left hand side. Cross over where the footpath ends to the stile opposite. If you have parked at the NT car park the go left out of the car park away from the peninsular, past the NT café until you come to a stile.

2.     Go over the stile and follow the track up the hill.

3.     You have two options through the small copse, either will bring you out at a convenient bench to sit and admire the view and catch your breath.

Croyde Beach

4.     Follow the track diagonally left to the corner of the next field and then along the stone wall (which should be on your right).

5.     Continue straight on into the next field and follow the path as it turns left.

6.     Turn right at the next field and again follow the edge until you reach a stile looking out over the sea.

The end of the NT pathway

7.     Go over the stile and down towards the South West Coast Path. The beach of Putsborough is immediately right sweeping to Woolacombe sands and Mortehoe peninsular. On a clear day the Welsh coast is visible.

Woolacombe Sands and Morthoe Point

8.     Take the South West Coast Path to the left and follow this as it goes around the headland.

9.     Go past the coastguard climbing mast and go right following the path down towards the end of Baggy Point. Lundy Island should be visible.

Baggy Point

10. Return back from the point and this time take the path to your right.

11. Follow the SWCP as it hugs the cliffs with Croyde beach ahead of you, continuing until you reach your start point.

Croyde Beach

Our route was 3.2 miles

See route on mapometer

Terrain: Moderate incline. Stiles. Grass tracks. Loose stoned paths.

Habitats: Coastal, farmland, heathland.

Facilities: Toilets at Croyde beach. Cafes and toilets at start/end of route and at Ruda. Further facilities in Croyde village.

Burnham Overy Staithe to Wells-next-the-Sea (Stage 3 Norfolk Coast Path) (7 miles)

The weather was grey and misty when we arrived in Burnham Overy Staithe  for stage 3 of our Norfolk Coast Path walk.  Apparently Nelson learned to row here and once we turned down the harbour road it was clear the tide was right in.  There is parking here at the harbour but do not leave your car without checking the tides!  Having recently taken delivery of a new car we were reluctant to see it floating out to sea so went to plan B.  We drove on to Wells-next-the-Sea and parked up in the car park before catching the first Coasthopper bus of the day (Sunday – 9.40am but do check the timetables) back to Burnham O.S.

Burnham Overy Staithe

Once we were off the bus at The Hero pub we took the road opposite down to the harbour and turned right.  This part of the walk is along a bank which winds its way towards the sea.  The air was still with not a hint of breeze this morning but you are quite exposed and I imagine, like our previous walk, it could be cold on a blowy winter's day.

Burnham Overy Staithe

Despite the restrictive parking, it was nice to see the tide in for a change.  On our previous two walks (Stage 1 & Stage 2) we had been surrounded by mud and all the boats were stranded in the marshes.  

I’ve never really seen Small Egrets until I walked this path and today there were lots making the most of the food bought in on the tide.  There were a few serious photographers out too, long lenses balancing on monopods pointing towards a group of what I thought were Egrets as they fished in the lagoons. (I later zoomed in close to the photo I took - they were a long way away so it's not clear enough to post up - and have decided they were actually Spoonbills, another first for us)

Dunes leading onto the beach

After about 1 ½ miles the bank became a boardwalk and we headed into the dunes.  After a short climb over the top we stopped to take in the view - a spectacularly beautiful sandy beach.  The official coastal path goes through the dunes but we went down onto the sand.  The tide by now was just starting to go out and we turned right walking along the edge of the shore for a few miles as the sun started to burn through.  It truly is a stunning unspoilt stretch of beach.  We crunched over millions of shells, especially razor fish shells which litter in drifts along the high tide mark.  This beach, and many of the North Norfolk beaches were badly damaged by the storm surges in December 2013 but you can see the dunes starting to re-establish themselves already.

Razor fish shells on Holkham beach

We followed the line of the dunes for a while in the now warm sunshine.  We actually started to find walking on the sand got tougher as it dried out and, knowing we had quite a way to go, we took a path on the right, cutting through the dunes slightly early, and walked along the inside edge of the pine woods coming out in the nature reserve near the bird hide.  The hide was full with people watching large noisy flocks of geese out on the marshes.  The official route goes a bit further along the sand/dunes coming out at Holkham Gap.  Either way you will eventually come out at the top of Lady Anne's Drive in Holkham.  Again you have a choice, you can walk through the pine woods or as we did cross the road and follow the bike trail along the outside edge.  You could also just keep to the sand and walk right to Wells if your calves will take it, although again do watch the tide times as there are many sandbanks and strong currents along here.

Holkham beach

We had done this part of the walk before, albeit in the opposite direction.  As it is close to the car park at Holkham and to Wells holiday park it was busier than the first part.  As well as walkers, we passed dog walkers and cyclists, all enjoying surely one of the last warm summery Sundays of the year.  We stopped for a while on a bench and watched a pair of buzzards circling over head.

Buzzard at Holkham/Wells

Eventually the trail bends round to the left, passing some holiday chalets and then at the signposted junction we took a right towards a car park. We stopped briefly here for the toilets but decided to carry on to the town for something to eat, although the café near the car park is good.  We climbed the steps onto the pathway that runs alongside the harbour and Beach Road and followed it towards the town just as the clouds began to gather again.  (There is a little train that runs up and down here too sometimes)

The walk to Wells-next-the-Sea town

The car park we started at is just to the right at the end of the road but we stopped to pick up our lunch in the excellent Wells Deli opposite and ate it on the harbour wall before heading home.

Route:
1.              From The Hero pub in Burnham Overy Staithe follow the road opposite to the harbour. 
2.              Take a right and follow the path along the top of the bank.
3.              At the dunes either follow the path on the right along the top of the dunes or go down onto the beach and turn right.
4.              Follow for a few miles until you reach Holkham Gap on your right (not signposted)
5.              Follow the boardwalk away from the beach and either go through the woods or along the marked path on the outside of the woods.
6.              Follow the pathway until you reach a junction.
7.              Take a right and go through the gateway into the car park.
8.              Walk between the café and the toilets and take the steps up onto the pathway.
9.              Follow the pathway into Wells town.
10.          At the main road turn right to get back to the car park.

Our route was 6.96 miles.

See the route on mapometer

Terrain: Grass paths and boardwalks from Burnham O.S. flat and easy although small climb into the sand dunes, beach is mixture of wet and soft sand, through the nature reserve and along the edge of the pine woods the paths are wide and sandy and easy going.  Flat tarmac path to the town. 

Habitat: Marshes, coastal, pine woods, nature reserve, ponds, harbour, urban

Facilities: Toilets at car park in Wells, Coasthopper bus stop near car park.  No toilets that I could see at Burnham O.S. although there is the The Hero pub.  Toilets and café at the beach end car park of Wells.  Numerous shops, cafes, fish and chips in Wells town.

You can see my photos from the other stages of our Norfolk Coast Path walk on my Flickr album

Brancaster to Burnham Overy Staithe (Stage 2 Norfolk Coast Path) (6 miles)

Although we finished stage 1 of our Norfolk Coast Path walk in Thornham, the next part of the path is inland so we decided to pick it up again at Brancaster.  We were originally aiming for Burnham Deepdale but this wasn’t as far as we had anticipated so decided to carry on to Burnham Overy Staithe.  Unfortunately in the hope of finding a pub or café we took a wrong turning and ended up in Burnham Norton and, as we couldn’t find pub, café or bus stop, we decided to walk on via the roadway to Burnham Market rather than double back.  So we didn’t actually make it to Burnham Overy Staithe, despite seeing it quite clearly in front of us!!  Not really knowing Burnham Market very well and coming out up one end, again with no pub in sight, we caught the bus back to Brancaster for lunch.  Burnham Market turned out to be a lovely looking place and as we went through on the brilliant Coasthopper bus we were quite sad we hadn’t explored it a bit further.  Another day perhaps.  

Brancaster Staithe

Back in Brancaster we popped over the road from the church to The Ship Hotel for lunch. The scampi and chips and warm bread rolls were lovely but unfortunately they lost our order from the bar to the kitchen somewhere so we ended up waiting for over an hour.  They did take the food off our bill, in the end, but a family with young children next to us also had to enquire about their food.  It was a lovely homely bar and the food was good so it's a shame the service let them down. 

The directions are for as far as we got before the wrong turn and then as they are on the map.  It should perhaps be noted that although this is the coastal path you are not in sight of the beach or the sea!

We parked just by the church in Brancaster.  There is a car park down at the beach and if you park here you will need to walk back up the road towards the village until you reach the signpost for the coastal path to Brancaster Staithe.  This area is all part of the National Trust's Brancaster Estate

Once on the coastal path follow it to Brancaster Staithe harbour.  You will have the back gardens of some rather lovely houses on your right and the marsh to your left.  Most of this part of the walk is on boardwalk.  You will pass a sign on your right for the Roman Fort of Branodunum although this is just earthworks now so not much to look at sadly.

When you reach the harbour go slightly right and around towards the harbour entrance.  There is a lobster shack on the left and the coast path continues opposite. 

Brancaster Staithe

After a short distance the path crosses a roadway and runs between two old buildings before coming out in the marshes again.  Follow this path again with gardens on your right and the marshes on the left.  The garden of The White Horse pub is along here if you need a break, although not very well marked.

Eventually you will come to a signpost.  If you want to finish in Barnham Deepdale follow the sign to the shop and café.  If not cross over and continue up some steps onwards to Bunham Overy Staithe (another 3 ¾ miles).

The path from here onwards is along a bank.  We walked this on a very blustery day, post ex-hurricane Bertha.  Although the wind was coming from the shore and not cold we were quite exposed and it was difficult to walk at times, and hold the camera still! I’m not sure I’d want to walk it in a cold winter wind!!  We were rewarded though by large flocks of geese flying over us.

Geese over Burnham Overy Marshes

Eventually the bank swings right and Burnham Overy Staithe is in front of you to the left, however, the bank then turns right again to go around the marshes so you are going back on yourself.  This is where we made the wrong decision. (Note to self: get a map!)  You will come to a T junction with a signpost to carry on on the coastal path or take a public footpath.  Because we were tired from battling with the wind we decided to head to the nearby village we could see on the footpath.  This was a bad move as Burnham Norton didn’t appear to have any facilities, nor a Coasthopper bus stop, so we then ended up walking another grumpy mile to Burnham Market instead.

Burnham Overy Staithe

However, if you continue on the coastal path to the left with the windmill in front of you then left again you will arrive in Burnham Overy Staithe. 

Our route was 7 miles (would have been 6 if we hadn’t detoured)

See the proper route on mapometer

Terrain: Easy, mostly flat, boardwalk, grass, could get muddy/flooded, stile, kissing gate

Habitat: Marsh, reedbeds, estuary, harbour

Facilities: (not sure what is available in Burnham Overy Staithe) Parking, toilets and kiosk at Brancaster beach. The Ship Hotel in Brancaster. The Jolly Sailor and The White Horse on route. Burnham Deepdale has shops and café.

You can see other photos from this walk and previous walks on the Norfolk Coast Path in my Flickr album

Hunstanton to Thornham (Stage 1 Norfolk Coast Path) (5.3 miles)

This walk is part of the Norfolk Coastal Path which runs from Hunstanton to Cromer.  We intend to walk the length of it (in stages - its about 42 miles!) and have indeed visited many of the towns on route before but where better to start than the beginning! 

The Norfolk Coast Path starts from the gardens in Hunstanton town but we parked up in Old Hunstanton opposite the old lighthouse. The official path takes you along to Holme-next-the-Sea via a path through the dunes behind the beach huts and along the golf course but, as the tide had just started to go out, we walked the first couple of miles along the beach and these are the directions I’ve given. Do check the tides though - if it is coming in and it is a high tide you may not have enough beach to walk on!  This end of Hunstanton could not be more different to the town end.  Although it was only just after 9.00am it was the first full week of the summer holidays but, once we had walked a hundred metres or so along the beach and passed a couple of dog walkers, we were alone right until Holme.  Fabulously peaceful!

Beach walk Old Hunstanton

It should be mentioned that the cliffs along this part of the coast are very crumbly so stay away from both the edges up the top and the base below on the beach.  Further along the walk you come to salt marshes and lagoons and although they are not fenced off you must be aware of the tides if you decide to walk on them.  The tide comes in very fast and getting cut off is a very real danger.  Stick to the coast path through this area to be sure of staying safe!

The walk will take you through the Holmes Dunes Reserve with breathtaking views of its glorious beach and on into Thornham via it's old harbour - now mostly mud, water and wading birds.

Once at Thornham we stopped for lunch at The Chequers pub.  The food was nice, if a little pricey, and there are plenty of tables. There is also The Orange Tree, The Lifeboat Inn and on the road out of Thornham (back towards Holme) there is The Deli andCafé.

One big advantage of walking this part of the coast is the Coasthopper bus service. It runs along the same route as the path and in the summer it runs every half hour. This makes the return journey back to the car, or onwards to your next walk extremely easy.

Directions:

1. At the old lighthouse as you look out to the sea take the path to the right along the cliffs until you get to a small wooded area with a sandy path.  If you are following the exact coastal path take the path marked up into the dunes.  If going along the beach as we did go left.  Once on the beach as you look at the sea go right.  Follow the beach about 2 miles past wide expanses of lagoons and sand banks full of birds, to the start of the salt marshes.  The beach will narrow between the marshes and the dunes but continue on through the wooden posts until you come to a natural pathway through the dunes on your right.

2. Once through the dunes follow the pathway with the golf course on your right.  You will come to a signpost showing you have now rejoined the coast path. This is also where the Peddars Way path joins.  Take the path diagonally in front of you marked to Cromer. The coast path along here ranges from sandy shingle to boardwalk.  It is fairly easy to walk on but may get muddy in bad weather.

Peddars Way joins Norfolk Coast Path

3. Follow the pathway past more salt marshes and on into the Holme Dunes Reserve.  Once into the dunes you can once again see the sea and the large expanse of beach at Holme.

Holme-next-the-Sea beach

4. Continue on the path until you reach an area of pine forest.  The Holme Reserve visitor centre is now on a path to your right.

5. Continue straight on through the pine forest until you come to some steps on your right.  Go up the steps and then follow the path to the left.  Continue on the path which will eventually take a sharp left before going along the marshes. Follow the path as it turns right at the old harbour.  You should see dead trees sticking out of the mud (if the tide is out!) and maybe a boat or two here.  Follow the path through the gateway ahead and onto a wider roadway.  

Thornham harbour

6. Cross diagonally and take the pathway marked on the left.  Follow the pathway through with reed beds on your left and a pond on your right.  You will eventually come out over a small bridge.  Turn right and continue until you reach the roadway.  Turn right and follow the roadway into the village.  You will come to a war memorial with The Orange Tree restaurant on your right.

The official coastal path continues over the road and inland a little here, although I’m not sure why and I’m pretty sure you could bypass it and go through Thornham, anyhow this time we did turn left and stopped for lunch at The Chequers before catching the Coasthopper bus back to Hunstanton.

Our route was 5.3 miles

See the route on Mapometer

Terrain: Mostly flat and easy although a slight climb into the dunes reserve. Coastal path is mostly compacted stones, boardwalk or compacted sand.  Beach is fine sand.

Habitats: Coastal cliffs, beach, sea and dunes. Salt and mud flats. Bird reserve.

Facilities: Toilets and refreshments (check opening) at Hunstanton cliff car park.  Toilets and refreshments (check opening, toilets accessible with token) at Holme Reserve Visitors Centre. Pubs and café in Thornham.  Coasthopper bus stop (back to Hunstanton) opposite The Orange Tree.

You can see the rest of my photos from the Norfolk Coast Path in my Flickr album

Holkham & Wells Circular, Norfolk (4.6 miles)

Holkham is a village on the north Norfolk coast and has a magnificent beach stretching for miles.  This walk takes in the beach east to Wells-next-the-Sea and returns back through pine woods.  The walk is part of the Norfolk Coastal Path which stretches from Hunstanton to Cromer.  The walk can be undertaken in many stages and is shadowed by the Coasthopper bus service so you can always walk and bus back if you want to go further.

Holkam is also home to Holkham Hall and Estate which we also visited briefly.  If you pay for the day when parking near the beach this can be used in the park also.  Check website for opening times and other prices.

We were lucky when we visited the beach as the tide was low.  Having seen the tide line I would recommend checking the tide times and walking at low tide to appreciate the beach at its best.

Parking is available in Lady Anne’s Drive, opposite The Victoria, in Holkham.

Holkham beach

After parking go through the gates and follow the pathway in front to the beach viewing area.  Take the boardwalk to the right until you reach a bench.  Go down the boardwalk onto the beach basin.

Walk straight ahead and turn right in front of the sand dunes.  The sand on Holkham beach is beautifully soft but for ease of walking we prefer to go right down to the shore line - obviously how far this will be will depend on the tide.

Follow the beach for about 2 miles until you see the beach huts of Wells on your right.  If the tide allows, walk in front of the small dunes headland and then turn up the beach following the boat channel which will then be on your left.  

Beach huts at Wells-next-the-Sea

At the top of the beach head for the boardwalk under the lifeguard and go up the sloped roadway.  Once at the top of the slope you will see Wells harbour and the long straight pathway that runs alongside and heads to the town in the distance.  

If you aren’t detouring to visit the town, take a right down the steps, stopping at The Beach Cafe for refreshments if you wish (toilets are opposite the cafe).  For the return journey take the path that runs alongside the righthand side of the car park.  Go through the gateway and take the left track into the nature reserve.

Follow the wide sandy track along the edge of the pinewoods for about a mile and a half until you reach Lady Anne’s Drive again.

Wells harbour looking towards the town

Our route was: 4.55 miles
See the route on mapometer.com
Terrain: mostly flat, sand, sandy paths,
Habitat: beach, dunes, pine woods
Facilities: Toilets and beach cafe at Wells.  Further toilets and Stables cafe at Holkham Estate (parking charges apply if not included in your beach parking).  Note:  Good to see gluten free options available in both cafes

Southwold to Walberswick, Suffolk (6.3 miles)

Although we have been to Southwold many times we’ve never been to Walberswick so we thought we’d do one of the popular walks in this area.  I had found various versions of it online and thought I had it all planned out but we did get lost - twice at least!  The map shows the version we ended up doing - we went wrong somewhere in the Walberswick nature reserve and never did walk through the reed beds as I had anticipated!  As we weren’t sure where we were, or how far we would have to go to eventually get back to the village, you’ll see we ended up doubling back while we could still see the church.  We stopped for lunch in The Anchor - a bit of a shame they don’t just do sandwiches but the fishcake and chips were lovely.  We both really liked pretty Walberswick, a contrast to the madness of Southwold at this time of year, so we will go back to get lost some more!

Although there is parking in various places around Southwold, we parked in a free car park on Ferry Road and because we needed a toilet stop and had just past one we went left towards Southwold first.  We then cut down a footpath that runs along side the road and comes out at the Harbour.  If you don’t need a toilet detour (and don’t worry we later found some at the Harbour - near the caravan site - anyway!) then take a right out of the car park and walk up to the end of Ferry Road.  

The ferry crossing from Southwold to Walberswick

Turn right down the harbour wall.  Here you will find the ferry if you wish to cross this way (the ferry operates in the summer only and closes for lunch). However, we walked alongside the River Blythe with its boats and fish shacks, passing The Harbour Inn, until we reached a metal bridge to cross over to Walberswick.  

Once over the bridge we carried straight on up a well-trodden track.  This will eventually become a tarmac surface.  We followed this until we came to the village.  Here instead of going into the village we followed the bridle way and then a pathway to the right going into the nature reserve.  It was around here, an open access area, we became unsure of which direction we were heading and how far it was going to be.  We followed a path through some heathland until we came to a bench in the corner on the left where we took stock and seeing that it was nearly lunch time decided to return back to the village. 

Once back on the road we followed Church Lane past St Andrew’s church and ruins turning left onto The Street.  We walked right down this road (no footpath) until we reached The Anchor on the right hand side where we stopped for lunch.

St Andrew's Church and ruins, Walberswick

After refreshments, we crossed the road and turned left past a few shops and the green and walked down Ferry Road.  At the car park we went left across the grass to get back to the ferry.  As this was closed for lunch we went left along the bank of the river until we reached the bridge.  Rather than walking down along the river again we took the bridle way on the right.  It runs alongside the harbour roadway and joins up with the Suffolk Coastal path we took in the morning.  We however, rejoined the harbour roadway at The Harbour Inn, and walked back to the car along the Ferry Road.

Our route was: 6.33 miles
See the route on mapometer.com 
Terrain: Flat
Habitat: Marshland, Heathland, Reed beds, Coastal, Harbour, River, Estuary, Village
Facilities: Toilets along Ferry Road and at the caravan park in Southwold, various shops, cafes, pubs in town.  The Harbour Inn Southwold side of the river.  The Anchor and The Bell in Walberswick village along with various cafes, tea rooms and shops.  Ferry crossing (summer months only, check opening hours)

Why not have a look at the rest of my photos from this walk, and also from previous visits to Southwold.