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Directions
Stout walking shoes are advisable, a pair of binoculars would also
be useful.
Some of this walk includes country roads. Please be careful of traffic
when walking on roads.
Leave the station following the signs for the Bure Valley
Railway, over the footbridge towards the narrow gauge railway station.
Follow this route along the Bure Valley Walk, following the narrow gauge
railway, climbing slightly out of the village before levelling off to
give uninterrupted views across the surrounding countryside. Stay on
this route, crossing a road at a keeper's cottage, then you will go
under a red brick railway bridge. Turn up the steps on the left and you
come to a road. Turn right onto the road, leaving the bridge behind you.
Walk down this country lane. At a small, wooded green, fork right
towards a large, white house. Where the road bends sharp to the right,
go left onto the bridleway and immediately left onto a footpath. This
path is flanked by hedges on both sides and comes out in Coltishall
village opposite the village shop. Cross the road and turn left past the
King's Head pub. Turn right into the pub car park, passing the Rising
Sun car park over a small footbridge on the left beside the river,
taking you onto Coltishall Lower Common, a popular mooring point for
Broads cruisers.
At the end of the common, take the small road running parallel with the
river heading towards a brick and flint wall, past the Old Rectory
House, and a Dead End sign. This is Anchor Street, once famous for its
boat building. At the end of this street, climb over the stile into the
field, and at the second gate and stile you come to, take the right
waymarked path. Stay on this, through some riverside meadows, crossing
another stile into a small loke, which passes between a converted barn
on the left and a brick and flint house on the right. Fork right through
the kissing gate across a small field, and then out over the field over
another stile, joining a small road which turns right towards the church
and buildings of Belaugh.
Climb the hill towards St Peter's Church until you reach a t-junction.
Turn left and follow this road until it joins the B1354. Turn right
towards Wroxham and Hoveton down this country lane, keeping a watchful
eye on the traffic. You will pass a house on the right called The
Gables. About 50 metres on the left after this is a public footpath sigh
pointing through the hedge. This path follows the line of a hedgerow
bisecting two fields. At the end of the field cut through the gap and
turn right, following the edge of the next field. At the top of the
field, turn left and head towards the railway embankment. Climb the
wooden steps and you are back on the Bure Valley Walk. Turn right and
walk the short distance back to Hoveton and Wroxham station.
Points of Interest
1. Bure Valley Walk
This walk follows the route of the former Great Eastern Railway line
running between Wroxham and Aylsham, a distance of about nine miles.
There are halts on the route at Coltishall, Buxton and Brampton,
allowing walkers to let the train take the strain for part of the route.
The Bure Valley Walk is one of the Broadland Country Walks series,
published by Broadland District Council with assistance from the Bure
Valley Railway Company. The leaflet is available from local TIC's and
Broadland District Council.
The original railway had a relatively short working life as a passenger
line. Work started in 1878, the contract being awarded at a price of
£43,971. Contractor William Waddell employed 187 men, 22 horses and 46
wagons, and despite bad weather and a shortage of manpower, the line was
finished ten days before the promised completion date.
It opened for freight and passengers on January 1st 1880, but was
destined to failure in the 1880's, typical trains had anything between 4
and 25 passengers on board. Saturdays were slightly better - sometimes
as many as 47 passengers - coming back from market at Norwich.
Buses proved the next nail in the coffin. The first 'boneshaker' bus
started to run from Norwich to Aylsham and Cromer in 1881 and was soon
found to be more efficient than the trains. Despite a little flurry of
activity during the war when RAF stations generated more custom, there
was a rapid decline, and the line closed for passengers in 1952.
The closure did not go without local political comment. At Buxton
station the flag flew at half mast and in Aylsham the station was
decorated with black and white crepe and Chopin's Funeral March was
played.
When the last train stopped, detonators were exploded and the driver and
fireman were presented with cigars and bottled beer. A dahlia wreath was
hung on the engine and the card read: "To the memory of another limb of
private enterprise which was amputated during the scourge of
nationalisation 1881 - 1952".
How life comes full circle!
2. Wherries
No walk in the broads would be complete without pausing for a moment to
reflect on the most majestic craft of the rivers - the wherries. These
black sailed trading craft are inextricably linked with the Broads
navigational history. It takes something of a leap of imagination to
recall that these waterways were once a vital network for communication.
In an underdeveloped landscape - marshy, boggy and with unbridged rivers
- they were essential arteries of trade.
Commercial traffic was at its height in the 19 century with as many as
300 trading wherries carrying everything from ice, to cement, reeds for
thatching, timber, coal, food, produce, hay and litter, and even sand to
cover the floors of Norwich pubs.
3. Allens Yard
Coltishall is reputed to have been the birthplace of the wherry which
were once the main cargo - carrying craft on the Broads.
John Allen bought a boatyard in Anchor Street for £400, and in the
second half of the 19th century it emerged as a major wherry building
centre.
After the first world war the yard maintained the wherries which still
sailed the waterways, and later built and hired out Broads cruisers. The
end came in 1974 when the yard was sold, the boat sheds demolished to
make way for a residential development
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Directions
Stout walking shoes are advisable, a pair of binoculars would also
be useful.
Some of this walk includes country roads. Please be careful of traffic
when walking on roads.
Head for the road and turn left under the railway bridge.
Continue along this road until you reach Howlett's Loke on the left.
Turn down this lane. It opens out with fields on the right and the
station to the left. Where there is a stile when the footpath crosses
the railway line, your route takes you to the right, not along the
private drive, but along the clearly defined footpath, overarched with
trees, and passing Redwings Farm on the left.
At the end of this section the path is waymarked Norfolk County Council
Circular Walk. It curls to the left, passing a bank of woodland on the
left. At the end of the wood (Hagg Wood), the walking is exposed,
bisecting two huge fields. At the end of the fields, cross the main road
and take the track to the right of Salhouse church which turns into a
footpath. Continue until the path joins the road. Turn right and head
towards the village houses, bearing left as you pass the duck pond. The
road dips and at the junction, where there is a small village green,
turn left and walk about 50 metres towards a small car park for Salhouse
Broad, passing a thatcher's on the left just before the car park. The
walk leading from the car park to Salhouse Broad takes about ten minutes
and is well worth it, since this is one of the best access points for
the Broads from the land. (In the summer there are often trips from the
edge of the broad to Hoveton Great Broad Nature Reserve).
Retrace your steps to the car park and turn right towards the village.
Continue straight past the village green, along Lower Street. At the
t-junction cross straight over the track, marked as a public footpath to
Salhouse station. When it joins a road again, turn right, under the
railway bridge and then turn right into the station.
Points of Interest
Norfolk Reed
The Broads are home to Norfolk reed (Phragmites communis), which is
known as the 'Prince of Thatch'. It is thought to be the best money can
buy, lasting at least 70 years. Reed harvesting takes place in the
cruellest months - December to March. Marshmen used to cut it by hand,
often up to their knees in ice cold water. Today machinery does much of
the work. Demand for good quality reed and sedge for thatching remains
strong. Around 150,000 bundles from the Broads are harvested and sold
each year.
Discovery of the Broads
It was not until the 1960s that the true origins of the Broads were
discovered. Dr Joyce Lambert, a local scientist, published the findings
of her research which showed that the huge shallow lakes, known as
broads, were the result of peat digging over a period of about 300
years. Her research was greeted with a degree of scepticism. How could
these huge broads have been dug by hand by people, without the benefit
of sophisticated engineering techniques and machinery? The evidence of
records was irrefutable, but even today you may find locals who claim to
know better.
The peat was dug for about three centuries for fuel. Then in the 14th
century the sea level gradually began to rise and over the centuries the
diggings flooded and were abandoned and forgotten. From what must have
been pretty unsightly scars on the landscape, there evolved an
invaluable wetland habitat shaped and moulded by the patterns of human
existence.
Swallowtail Butterfly
The Swallowtail Butterfly with its distinctive black and yellow
colouring has become a symbol of restoration of the Broads. It is now,
finally, making something of a recovery in the Broads. These butterflies
were once prolific in several parts of the country, in particular at
Wicken Fen in Cambridgeshire and in Suffolk, but their decline was
linked with changes in landscape and habitat. The swallowtail
caterpillar needs milk parsley which grows on traditionally managed fen,
a habitat which has come under huge pressure in the Broads as changing
patterns of working led to many hundreds of acres disappearing into
worthless scrub.
Careful restoration of fens in the Broads - pulling our scrub,
maintaining water quality - have created the right conditions for the
return of the butterfly. On a hot sunny day you may be lucky enough to
catch a glimpse - just leave your net at home.
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Norwich's Hidden Wildlife
People do not usually go to a city to search for wildlife but without
having to look too hard it soon becomes apparent that all sorts of
plants and animals can be found. The river corridor provides a green
link through the heart of the city with abundant wildlife, immediately
obvious in the form of the resident wild fowl exploiting people for
their free hand outs! Away from the river, green spaces include parks,
cemeteries, woodland and many once developed sites slowly being
recolonised by both native and introduced wildlife.
Directions
Stout walking shoes are advisable, a pair binoculars would also be
useful.
Please note that the sections of this walk along the Riverside and
through the Rosary Cemetery are closed after dusk.
Directions
Stout walking shoes are advisable, a pair of binoculars would also
be useful.
Some of this walk includes country roads. Please be careful of traffic
when walking on roads.
Turn left out of the station heading towards the town down West
Street, turning right into Hall Road on the corner of which stands the
Methodist church. A recreation ground is on the left at the end of which
the Weavers' Way long distance footpath is signposted. Like our route it
follows the road, passing belts of trees and a large flint house on the
right (Cromer Hall).
Just past a pair of cottages on the right is a Weavers' Way sign into a
field. Take this, keeping to the left edge of the field and then
crossing the field towards the right. The waymarking then points you to
the right, passing to the left of a small copse. At the corner of this
copse, continue diagonally towards the railway bridge at the corner of
the field.
Cross over the red brick railway bridge and continue into the next field
following the left edge. Keep to this field edge until it winds its way
to the top left hand corner of the field, and an opening through a
hedge. Walk down the few steps onto a road which is dwarfed by huge
trees. Turn right and then after about 20 metres turn left along a
narrow path, signposted for the Weavers' Way. The path starts off
enclosed but then the countryside opens out, until it narrows again
close to a cottage and barn and turns into a concrete road. This joins
the main B1436. Turn right until you reach the tiny Felbrigg village
green and war memorial.
Take the track to the left of this, leaving the main road, still
following the Weavers' Way signs. The track ends at a gate just past
some classic flint cottages. Go through the gate and follow the Weavers'
Way sign which goes straight across the field towards the left of a bank
of trees. Turn left when you join the road which then sweeps round to
Felbrigg Hall.
It is worth taking time to explore some of the magnificent walks of
Felbrigg which are listed on a noticeboard just before you reach the
front of the hall.
Having finished exploring, do not retrace your steps the way you came in
but follow the way out signs to the road. Turn right here and the road
passes through 'the Lions Mouth', so called because of its shape. When
this road rises level with the main A148 (Cromer to Holt Road) cross
over the verge and this road. Take a narrow road which is visible to
your left, signed to West Runton. This is also lined by trees and woods.
Follow this road, which bends to the right, and then is joined by
another road. Keep right until it reaches the centre to the National
Trust Roman Camp and Beeston Regis Heath.
Turn off the road to the right and then take the first path which forks
to the left. It is marked low down on a post with a yellow arrow and
long distance path symbol. This takes you down into a gravel gully. The
track turns into a path, passes a campsite, then at the junction of
paths continue straight to the right of a large hillock. Go through a
kissing gate and over a plank bridge. Cross a small patch of scrub and
the path joins a track. Turn left, and immediately right up a track
signposted Cromer on the coast path sign. The track quickly turns to a
path, becomes enclosed, curls to the left and then joins a track on a
bend. Bear left, passing some farm buildings, cross straight over the
road and go under a brick railway arch and continue up the track between
Stone Hill and Roundabout Hill, ignoring all tracks to the right and
left. Ahead lies the church tower of Cromer. As you near the railway
line, the track joins an Anglian Water access road. Cross straight over
this onto an old tarmac road, and bear right, passing a railway bridge.
The road comes out amid modern houses on the outskirts of Cromer. This
joins the main road, turn left for the railway station.
Points of Interest
1. Felbrigg Hall
Felbrigg is a magnificent Jacobean mansion set in acres of
landscaped gardens. The house, which now belongs to the National Trust,
has originally been built by the Wyndham family who had established
their seat there in the 15th century. In 1863 the estate was sold to
John Ketton, a successful Norwich merchant who had made his fortune out
of oil-cake and cattle feed. His purchase of the hall, lock, stock and
barrel was something of a talking point at the time. But it was through
this purchase that the estate gained a worthy final owner. Robert
Wyndham Ketton-Cremer, a bachelor, inherited the hall from his parents
in 1932. Affectionately known as the 'Squire' he continued the updating
of the house and grounds which his parents had begun, installing
electricity in 1954 and finally central heating in 1967 - but only in
the modest flat which he adopted as winter quarters.
2. Woodlands of Felbrigg
As well as hosting a beautiful Jacobean mansion, the Felbrigg estate
has a richness and diversity of historic woodland which goes back to the
very earliest days of woodland management. When one of the Wyndham
family, William Wyndham 1, began planting in the 1680's, he was
pioneering and leading the way in creating tree plantations.
The last owner Robert William Ketton-Cremer, was also passionate about
the woodland and is thought to have planted as many as 200,000 trees
over 40 years, many of them in Victory Wood. With its two great rides
forming a v-shape, it was conceived as a memorial to Victory in Europe
Day. The Scots pines used to support a dense population of red
squirrels, but these have now all but disappeared as grey squirrels have
taken over.
3. Roman Camp
Do not be fooled, this was never actually a Roman settlement or camp of
any kind. The heathland area around the camp is dotted with shallow
circular iron-working pits dating from about 850 to 1100 AD. Beacon Hill
is a more fitting name for this area, since it is known that it was used
as a look-out point from which to keep watch for invasion from the sea.
4. Holiday Trade
Until the railway opened in 1877 Cromer was a select watering hole
patronised mainly by the gentry. G Christopher Davies, a prominent local
travel writer, in about 1873 wrote: "In the months of August and
September Cromer is full of the better class of seaside visitors. In
these months it is as nearly perfect as a watering place can be."
The railway put Cromer in the reach of many more day trippers, and the
town soon responded with the opening of boarding houses and hotels to
cater for the every whim of visitors. Some fishermen gave up their old
cottages to let them to visitors and others turned their hands to the
new fangled bathing machines.
Leaving Norwich Station cross Foundry Bridge on Prince of Wales Road and
turn immediately right into the pub garden to begin the riverside walk.
The walk continues to Bishopgate where it resumes by the car park at the
rear of the Red Lion Pub. Continue to Whitefriars Bridge, turn left here
towards the cathedral and turn almost immediately left by the Church of
St Martin at Palace. Follow Bishopgate over the Wensum and cross
Riverside Road, turn left and at the roundabout turn right to ascend
Ketts Hill. Half way up Ketts Hill on the right is the entrance to Ketts
Heights. On leaving Ketts Heights continue up the hill then turn right
into Quebec Road, then by the Quebec Pub turn left into Wolfe Road.
At the cross-roads adjacent to Thorpe Hamlet Middle School turn right,
Lion wood is straight ahead. Two paths are visible in the wood, take the
higher one to the left and continue until a flight of wooden steps is
reached. Halfway down these steps take the path to the right which leads
to an open grassy area which should be crossed and the path up into the
wood on the other side followed. Follow the trim trail apparatus until
Telegraph Lane East is reached, cross the lane and enter Rosary Cemetery
by the unmarked gate in the fence on the other side. Follow the middle
path down hill through the cemetery and on reaching the far side turn
right to find the exit in the corner of the cemetery. Turn left onto
Rosary Road then right onto Thorpe Road to return to the station.
Points of Interest
1. Riverside Walk
Follow the bank of the River Wensum keeping your eyes and ears open for
the iridescent blur or high pitched call of the Kingfisher which breed
in drainage pipes in the river walls and can occasionally be seen
perched on an overhanging riverside branch. Near neighbours are the
colourful Grey Wagtails, more common on faster flowing rivers, which
feed on small insects and larvae. Great Crested Grebes nest on floating
rafts of sticks along some of the overgrown banks and can sometimes be
seen carrying chicks on their backs. Plant life along the path includes
Oxford Ragwort (which can be found on the walls close to the Law
Courts).
Originally recorded in the Oxford University Botanic garden in the
1770's, it has spread along the railways to most urban areas in England
and Wales! Other exotic escapes to look out for are Giant Hogweed
(growing next to the first wooden footbridge) and Japanese Knotweed
(growing next to the Law Courts) described as the most pernicious weed
in Britain! Both were popular Victorian garden plants and have spread
along the waterways of Britain. The riverside walls have been colonised
by Ivy-Leaved Toadflax and Hairy Willow Herb more commonly found on
rocky outcrops. The vigorous Buddleia attracts many butterflies during
the summer.
2. Ketts Hill
Well worth the climb for the fine views of the city. Centred on the
ruins of St Michael's Chapel, the abandoned garden has been turned into
a wildlife area by volunteers. Many common wild flowers nave been
introduced to complement Columbine and Canadian Golden-rod (another
popular Victorian garden plant!).
Alexanders is plentiful here, first recorded in Norwich in 1780,
introduced in Britain as a 'pot herb', a celery scented plant with shiny
leaves and yellow/green flowers. Scrub birds such as Willow Warbler and
Blackcap can be seen or heard. Butterflies such as Peacock, small
Tortoiseshell, Meadow Brown and Small Skipper are attracted by the wild
flowers.
3. Lion Wood
A remaining fragment of the wood recorded in the Doomsday Book which
covered most of north east Norwich. A mixture of large old Beech and
Oak, Holly and Hornbeam, with Norway Maple, Horse Chestnut and Sycamore
in the adjacent Telegraph plantation. Where it is not too shady
Bluebells, Red Campion, Climbing Corydalis, Wood Avens and Wood Sorrel
can be found.
Woodland birds include Blackcap, Willow Warbler and Chiffchaf. Dead
trees are used by Woodpeckers and Nuthatch and breeding bats.
4. Rosary Corner
The oldest non-denominational cemetery in the country. Founded in 1821
by Thomas Drummond (a retired Presbyterian minister) on land which had
been a market garden. Today it is managed to allow wild flowers to grow
amongst the headstones, including Snowdrops, Primrose, Oxeye Daisy and
Wild Strawberry. Sheltered by bramble are Foxglove, Wood Sorrel, Red
Campion and Violets and exploiting the headstones are Ivy-leaved
Toadflax, Biting and Reflexed Stonecrops. Amongst the native Oak, Beech,
Birch and Holly are exotic trees such as Himalayan Cypress and Golden
Sawara Cypress providing an ideal habitat for Tawny Owl, Great Spotted
Woodpecker and Jay.
Stay in the Norfolk Broads at a beautiful
holiday cottage right by the River Bure, Wroxham:
http://bit.ly/QdTjnu
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