I want to walk around the coast in a clockwise direction, although my first few walks aren’t in this sequence. I spent a lot of childhood weekends and holidays in or near boats on the Norfolk and Suffolk coast and want to revisit the coast a few decades later as a walker, at a leisurely pace. My first recent walk was at Hunstanton, where my father used to sail a Mirror dinghy he glued together inside our house, and where I used to walk my collie on the sandy beach.When I was a child my father had a bilge keel boat, Layon, at Wells-next-the Sea. The two keels allowed it to stand upright in the sand or mud at low tide, and we’d float out to sea at high tide. I was always embarassed by the name of the boat, but it was named after a quote from Shakespeare’s Macbeth, “Layon Macduff”. The boat was traded in for a slightly larger and wider boat, with a single keel which was moored in deeper water, between Cleopatra’s Disco and the Royal Norfolk and Suffolk Yacht Club in Lowestoft. This was called Grouch, which most people called “grouch”, and was allegedly the first name of Lady Macbeth.
I missed the mudflats and pine forest of Wells-next-the-sea and it was difficult to sleep with the noise of the disco next to my father’s next boat when it was moored in Lowestoft! In my late teens I started to complain about having to spend yet another weekend sailing at the seaside, but years later miss sailing, being at the coast and my father. I have made friends with some amazing walkers, three beautiful, strong and very kind women and several men who scramble up rocks like mountain goats. Although I will mainly be walking around the coast on my own, I hope they will join me on some of my walks.
Saturday 20th of January 2017, Old Hunstanton to Brancaster
Saturday 28th of January, Old Hunstanton to Brancaster again, with 2 people and a dog!
A forgotten walk in 2017 from Brancaster to Holkham
Cromer to Overstand on cliff tops and back on beach, 4th March 2017
10 Norfolk coastline surprises
Sheringham to Overstrand 11th March 2017
Walking around Cromer Sunday 12th of March 2017
Overstrand to Bacton, Sunday 19th March
Bacton to Winterton-on-sea, Monday 20th March 2017
Winterton-on-sea to Caister-on-sea, Tuesday 21st March 2017
Caister-on-sea to Gorleston-on-sea, Wednesday 22nd March 2017
Final Norfolk walk over the border to Lowestoft in Suffolk, Thursday 30th March 2017
Lowestoft to Southwold, Saturday the 1st of April 2017
Aldeburgh to Thorpness and back, Sunday 2nd April 2017
Collapsing cliffs, Norfolk and Suffolk
Memories of last summer, Cromer to Weybourne walk on the cliff tops
Southwold to Dunwich via a rowing boat 15th April 2017
Two repeated walks from Dunwich 22nd and 23rd April 2017
Inland detour, Stumpshore Fen, Norfolk, 28th April 2017
Suffolk Coastal Path, inland detour, Snape Maltings to Boyton, 30th April 2017
Felixstowe, the wrong kind of adventure, May the 1st 2017, but good news on the 10th of June!
Another inland detour from the Suffolk Coastal Path, in search of Saxons, Saturday 6th May.
Harwich, 7th May 2017, defeated by the cold weather
Mersea Island, one of several islands I love, 11th May 2017
A week’s sailing around the Hebrides. Journey to Mallaig and losing my cheese and pickle sandwich!
Mallaig Harbour to Soay by boat and on to South Uist, 20th and 21st of May 2017, my bucket list.
South to North Uist by boat, 21st and 22nd of May 2017
Sailing from the Shiant Isles to Loch Torridon, Knoydart peninsular walk, May 2017
18th August 2017 Wells-next-the-sea, Norfolk, short walk to avoid storm, YHA to the beach and back
Shotley peninsular walk to Pin Mill, Saturday 30th September 2017
Lowestoft to Southwold on the beach, Tuesday 31st October 2017
Seals again, south Norfolk beach! 9th December 2017
Puffins, seals, friends and glamping, the best bits of 2017
2018
2018 New Year’s Day, Circular walk around Dunwich, Suffolk
Beautiful big boats, with wooden masts and sails
The longest pleasure pier in the world, Southend-on-sea, Saturday 27th January 2018
Walking above water, a few piers of Norfolk, Suffolk and Essex
Sheringham Scira Viking Festival, 17th February 2018
The strangest beach in Suffolk, remembering two walks from Lowestoft to Southwold in 2017.
Twisted trees, Suffolk and Essex coastline
Two Tree Island and Leigh on sea, Essex, third time lucky, Sunday 25th March 2018
Snowy Sidmouth to Brandy Head and back without a hat, Devon, Saturday 28th April 2018
Dengie Peninsular, near Burnham on Crouch to St Peter Ad Murum, Thursday 19th April 2018
Short 5 mile walk, return to Suffolk, Snape to Iken Church and back, Friday 20th April 2018
Back to Dunwich, Walberswick and Southwold circular walk, Sunday 22nd April 2018
Dogs I’ve met on my seaside walks
Circular bike ride from Burnham-on-Crouch, Essex, Saturday 16th June 2018, about 21 km.
A barefoot walk, a mackerel sky and nearly moving to the coast, Saturday 23rd June 2018
Dorset in a heatwave, Saturday 7th of July
England in the World Cup or an easy walk to the Old Harry Rocks? July 2018
Horses I’ve met on the East Anglian coast
A broken Viking shoe on the Saxon shore, Sunday 2nd September, Gillingham and Chatham
Ramsgate royal harbour to Margate station walk, Tuesday 4th September 2018
Leaving East Anglian wide skies
My favourite seaside art seen on my coastal walks
My Five Favourite Coastal Ruins
Happiness is a day on Holkham beach Saturday 29th September 2018
Two poems with a coastal theme I’ll be reading on National Poetry day, 4th October 2018.
Remembering seal pups born in the winter of 2017, Norfolk
Halloween walk to a vanished town, 31st October 2018
Towers I’ve enjoyed visiting on the Eastern side of the English coast.
I sailed from France to Dorset on an old wooden boat, a couple of years ago
A walk to see seals, starting with a fish pie in a Norfolk beach cafe, Friday 16th November 2018
Another 10 mile walk to visit seal pups, 1st December 2018
2018 Hopscotch of Coastal Walks in Six Counties
A friend challenged me to walk 1,000 miles in 2018
New Year’s Eve 2018, a return to Pin Mill on the River Orwell, Suffolk
2019
Slight inland detour to Canterbury cathedral, Saturday 12th January 2019
The walk with two big mistakes, Deal towards Dover, January 13th 2019
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