Norfolk Coast Explorer 2025

explorer Norfolk Coast 2025

Blickling Estate

Horsey Windpump

Blakeney Point

Oxburgh Estate

Sheringham Park

Felbrigg Hall, Gardens & Estate

Do more than pass through. Experience the natural world: find solace and notice what is supporting you, and give something back. The Norfolk Coast Explorer is here to show you how.

The Norfolk Coast is a rare oasis in a world where nature is collapsing.

A refuge for wild creatures, it is protected by nationally and internationally designated landscapes, the Norfolk Coast National Landscape and the Broads National Park.

It is also a place which provides essential lifelines to humans.

From flood defence through its miles of wetlands, to carbon lock up in its saltmarshes, to food from farms and the sea,

Breathing space

to a beautiful shared space to let off steam and stay healthy – the area is a vital resource.

And our relationship with it is two way –we protect the area, and it looks after us –and inspires us, hopefully, to extend this approach beyond its boundaries.

These dynamic landscapes exist because they are protected in law, and because generations of people and conservation organisations have worked hard for them.

The report which established the UK’s national parks and landscapes – which exist across the rest of the country in a family to this day – specified that they were “for people – and especially young people – of every class and kind, and from every part of the country, indeed the world … not for any privileged or otherwise restricted section of the population, but for all those who care to refresh their minds and spirits and to exercise their bodies in a peaceful setting of natural beauty.”

Follow the Countryside Code while you explore, and you’ll go further

Respect everyone

• be considerate to those living in, working in and enjoying the countryside

• leave gates and property as you find them

• do not block access to gateways or driveways when parking

• be nice, say hello, share the space

• follow local signs and keep to marked paths unless wider access is available

Protect the environment

• take your litter homeleave no trace of your visit

• do not light fires and only have BBQs where signs say you can

• always keep dogs under control and in sight

• dog poo - bag it and bin it in any public waste bin or take it home

• care for nature - do not cause damage or disturbance

Enjoy the outdoors

• check your route and local conditions

The words are as important today as they were when they were published in 1945. But today, we need to step up our actions, and we understand better how much we are part of nature.

In this edition of the Norfolk Coast Explorer you will find many ways you can be part of this relationship and read about how you can get from, and give back to the area. Just a few are listed below.

Allow the magic of the area to work on you. Respect it and protect it, take it away in your heart and grow the richness of nature in your life and other places.

The Norfolk Coast Explorer is published by Countrywide Publications.

Why not...

Marvel at the peace – visit a protected nature reserve and spot a decades old tussock sedge, colourful orchids and scented meadowsweet

Go with the flow – walk by one of the area’s beautiful chalk rivers, the restored Bure (p6)

Admire the view – from sweeping vista across freshwater grazing marshes and salt marshes to up close in the acid grassland, which can support 25 species per square metre (p7)

Get your hands dirty

Get your hands dirty – volunteer to help nature conservation efforts (p9)

Relax aboard – see wildlife up close from a non-polluting, clean and quiet electric boat (p9)

Understand how nature heals – and how we can all benefit from increased access (p11)

Connect and protect with stars, seals and toads

– they all need your help (p12)

Care for chicks – keep your dog on a lead on beaches, and be very careful where you walk and run (p15)

Learn about the past – and see how young people are transforming it (p16)

Get active – explore without a car: see how many ways you can get about on our map (p20,21) and guide (p30)

Slow down and notice what is around you –use all your senses to experience how nature connects (p23)

Enjoy the dark and dusk – it has healing benefits and special creatures (p23)

Immerse yourself – and come alive with a restorative sauna on the beach (p24)

Deepen your understanding – experience exciting new artists asking questions (p26)

Treat yourself to delicious local flavours (p28)

• plan your adventure - know what to expect and what you can do

• enjoy your visit, have fun, make a memory

The Countryside and Coastal code can both been found at gov.uk

Called ‘Sharing Space’, our cover features people as well as a kittiwake, spoonbill and heron. The art is by Trish, whose bold, playful and emotive work celebrates identity, community and the everyday. They said: “A queer multi-disciplinary creative of mixed cultural heritage, my practice is informed by experiences and interactions with the world around me.” Instagram: /trish.fried.rice/ Website: www.trishfriedrice.com

Nature heals: sunset at Brancaster p23.

Swampy adventures at Ranworth Broad p4.

New artists asking questions p26.

This year, why not make memories and let nature entertain your family, says Norfolk Wildlife Trust Reserves Officer Robert Morgan.

During the holidays there is a sudden increase in the number of people who want to stay for a weekend with my wife and me, particularly friends with children. We offer visits to Holkham beach and shopping expeditions into Norwich, and a trip to the North Norfolk Coast to enjoy its beautiful scenery, wide open landscape and wonderful wildlife, is always a favourite.

Although bustling with holidaymakers in summer, there are still some quiet corners to be found. NWT’s Cley and Salthouse Marshes nature reserve is such a place. The popular visitor centre on the coast road at Cley-next-the-Sea village can be busy with people during the height of the season, as there is lots on offer, including stunning elevated views of the marshes.

However, once on the reserve it is amazing how peaceful it can become. This place is internationally famous for its conservation history and its wide range of bird species; in late summer the air is alive with butterflies and dragonflies.

Where to go wild this summer

Another common request is to see the Broads. But how does one impress guests (and entertain their children) with all the wonder and beauty of the Norfolk Broads in a single day? The answer is quite simple, and it involves a trip to Norfolk Wildlife Trust’s Ranworth Broad or NWT Hickling Broad and Marshes – both of which have wonderful visitor centres.

But how does one impress guests (and entertain

The Broads Wildlife Centre at NWT Ranworth Broad and Marshes can be reached by a ferry service from Ranworth village staithe or a pleasant ten-minute walk along Broad Road to the entrance of the reserve – either has its own appeal. A centuries-old oak stands sentinel at the beginning of the route to the reserve along an accessible wooden path. It ambles through a swampy wood (referred to as alder carr) before opening into reedbed and ending at the floating thatched visitor centre.

Those with a deeper interest in the natural world will be surprised just how much can be seen in such a short walk. The wood contains an

Pond discovery near visitor centre, Hickling Broad.

Always a warm welcome: Hickling Broad NWT visitor centre.

Photo credit: Jimmy King

Photo credit: Nick Appleton

Habitats for nature

The coast has a range of incredible natural habitats supporting myriad species.

array of flora, including an impressive royal fern. Marsh tit and Cetti’s warbler breed here, as do reed bunting and sedge warbler. On either side of the boardwalk bisecting the reedbed, colourful orchids can be seen. In late summer there are wonderful stands of meadowsweet and purple loosestrife. The seven-foot-tall marsh sow thistle is here as well as decades-old tussock sedges. Along with a warm welcome from staff and volunteers, the first impression you’ll have on entering the floating visitor centre is the large panel windows, giving unrestricted views of the broad. The centre has a viewing gallery with binoculars available, lots of activities for children and interactive information on the wildlife and history of the area. The well-stocked shop has books, gifts and snacks, including ice cream. From here the guided wildlife boat tours operate, offering popular trips around Ranworth Broad.

Once on the reserve it is amazing how peaceful it can become “

If your family, or visitors, enjoy a longer, more bracing walk, as well as wide open spaces, then NWT Hickling Broad and Marshes is the place to visit this summer. The staff and volunteers in the visitor centre can help on the best route around the network of paths and give advice on places to see the stunning wildlife. Marsh harriers are commonly seen, as well as crane, egrets and the recently re-established spoonbill. There are wonderful vistas across the county’s largest broad, and a boat tour stops at several hidden hides and a tall viewing tower.

All Norfolk Wildlife Trust visitor centres make a particular effort to engage with children. Many

child development experts speak extensively about the ‘extinction of experience’ particularly relating to the natural world. Studies show that children who spend time in green spaces often view nature as magical and they develop a protective attitude to the environment. It has also been shown that children who lacked stimulation through contact with nature grow to see it as irrelevant in adulthood, even viewing wild places as hostile.

Norfolk Wildlife Trust organises events and activities throughout the year that provide the chance for all the family to explore Norfolk’s amazing countryside and the wildlife that lives alongside us, and works hard to encourage young people to enjoy and value wildlife. Four visitor centres across the county provide easy access, information, books, gifts, snacks and most importantly a gateway to wide open space.

Robert Morgan is Norfolk Wildlife Trust reserves officer

Grazing marsh and freshwater wetlands 37% of freshwater invertebrates species have been recorded in the area; 151 rare. Seven rivers feed into the coastal plain, most chalk streams or chalk fed. Dune, heath and dry grasslands 40% of all species in England of those that use these habitats including 143 rare have been recorded in the area.

Sandy beaches support 26 localised species, and 6 with conservation status. Saltmarsh and brackish areas with around 3,900 ha of saltmarsh, the Norfolk coast has significantly more species that other such sites around the country.

Bog and mire small areas of acidic wetland conditions are important microhabitats.

Find out more

A fresh start – North Norfolk Coastal Group (nncg) is an umbrella organisation comprising farmers, landowners, trusts working with government agencies and local authorities who are involved in managing the land and waterways Nncg.org.uk

Farmers funded – 57 projects have received £896,089 from the Farming in Protected Landscapes programme, administered by the Norfolk Coast National Landscape norfolkcoast.org

Sand dunes at Burnham Overy Staithe.

Drama in the sky: Marsh Harrier and inset, left. Spoonbill at Cley.

Photo credit: Jon Bunting

Photo credit: Jimmy King

Swampy adventures at Ranworth Broad.

Morston salt marshes.

Aproject to revive a stretch of precious chalk stream that inspired poets including Sir John Betjeman and painters such as John Constable marks the culmination of six years of work led by the National Trust.

Trace back from the North Sea into Norfolk, and you’ll find winding waterways that form vital corridors for nature and an immense source of human wellbeing and creativity.

Chalk streams are one of the world’s rarest freshwater habitats, with only 220 known examples, the vast majority of which are in England. Their clear waters spring from underground chalk reservoirs, making them a haven for fish such as brown trout and plants like water crowfoot, which bursts into an abundance of white flowers each spring. For centuries, they

A clearer future for a rare river

Currently only 14% of England’s rivers are in good health. Olivia Ivens explains how the River Bure, a rare chalk stream, is being restored.

such as dragonfly and mayfly larvae. The wood also helps reduce flood risk by slowing the flow of the river during high rainfall events.

Many of these habitats have been affected by pollution, artificial river straightening, and abstraction for drinking water, including the Upper Bure – a source of the Norfolk Broads, Britain’s largest protected wetland.

Many of these habitats have been affected

The National Trust’s Riverlands project worked to bring back its clear waters, improve prospects for wildlife and reconnect people with the river.

including to bring back its clear waters, improve prospects for wildlife and that flow through the historic estates of

Approximately ten kilometres of the Upper Bure (pictured above right at dawn, and below left) have been carefully restored, including parts that flow through the historic estates of Blickling and Felbrigg. In recent years, both sites have felt the impacts of a changing climate, with heavier rainfall resulting in more frequent flooding incidents, but also prolonged dry spells causing drought.

incidents, but also prolonged dry spells causing has helped narrow parts of the river and creates different speeds and directions in the flow, helping to oxygenate the water and clean the gravel and pebbles on the riverbed that provide a nursery ground for juvenile fish and invertebrates,

To help adapt the river to these increasingly frequent extremes, fallen trees and large branches were used on the Blickling estate to return the over-straightened and widened channel to a more natural course. The wood has helped narrow parts of the river and creates different speeds and directions in the flow, helping to oxygenate the water and clean the gravel and pebbles on the riverbed that provide a nursery ground for juvenile fish and invertebrates,

Further north on the Trust’s Felbrigg Estate, a series of ponds and scrapes (pictured above left, with grey heron) were created alongside the river, and a section of riverbed was raised to benefit wading birds, dragonflies, damselflies and water voles. Better access to the river and its tributaries has also been enabled by improving existing paths and creating new ones.

creating new ones.

To meander along the waters of Blickling and Felbrigg will do more than soothe the soul –every visit to these places helps to generate funds that go back into their conservation. So, whether it be through a membership, car-parking payment or cups of tea purchased, the generosity of visitors directly supports efforts such as the Riverlands project, safeguarding these waterscapes and the wildlife they support so that future generations can enjoy them in a changing climate.

project, safeguarding these waterscapes and the Trust, Garfield Weston Foundation, and UKRI Trust,

The Riverlands project was funded by The Environment Agency, the People’s Postcode Trust, Garfield Weston Foundation, and UKRI (UK Research and Innovation). Partners include Norfolk Rivers Trust, Natural England, The Environment Agency, Norfolk Ponds Project and Norfolk Rivers Internal Drainage Board.

A further £250,000 grant from the National Lottery Heritage Fund means the National Trust

A further £250,000 grant from the National Lottery Heritage Fund means the National Trust can continue restoration efforts on the Bure.

Olivia Ivens is National Trust senior communications

Photo credit below, right and far right: Rob Coleman/NT

“ The lap lapping of the weedy Bure, A whispering and watery Norfolk sound / Telling of all the moonlit reeds around.

Try out the Blickling, Calthorpe and Great Wood walk: this 7.5 mile circular walk around Blickling takes in the villages of Calthorpe and Erpingham and the estate’s Great Wood. Along the way, look out for striking architecture including Blickling Mill, the Tower, the Mausoleum and the ‘Chinese’ bridge (see picture above).

There’s also a new riverside walk at Blickling – at 3km/1.9m it is the first formal route connecting the precious River Bure to the estate to the south. Starting at the Great Wood, the walk takes you through the rural countryside and arable fields for a view of the river valley and connecting floodplain meadows before reaching the banks of the Bure at Blickling Mill. There are records of a mill at Blickling prior to 1559 as part of Norfolk’s industrial heritage and ties into Blickling’s close relationship with water which can be seen on several other routes including The Lake Walk and Silvergate-Brady’s Walk. The new John’s Water Walk was designed, and access created by the National Trust Water Environment Worker Apprentice, supported by the Countryside Team.

From wildflowers to time travel: experience the coast

Views and wildflowers at Friary Hills

Best known for its spectacular views over the freshwater grazing marshes and saltmarshes beyond the village of Blakeney, Friary Hills (pictured above) is the focus of a National Trust conservation project to rejuvenate acid grassland habitat and increase biodiversity on the 4.5 hectares site.

Since the 1940s, traditionally managed, wildflower rich grasslands have declined nationally by 97%, contributing to the drastic decline of many species including bumblebees, farmland birds and wildflowers.

In Britain, under 30,000 hectares of lowland acid grassland remain. It is considered a nationally important habitat. 271 Sites of Special Scientific Interest have been notified with acid grassland as a principal reason for the designation.

A healthy acid grassland habitat is rich in fine grasses, lichens and mosses, as well as small rosette-forming species such as cat’s ear and mouse ear hawkweed, low-growing herbs such as sheep’s sorrel and bird’s foot trefoil, and tiny annuals such as common stork’s-bill (pictured inset, above left), changing forget-me-not, and parsley piert.

The National Trust has stepped up its work to increase the overall amount of acid grassland on Friary Hills, and to enhance its condition, whilst

maintaining the balance of a mosaic of habitats on offer for wildlife and people.

It’s hoped that it will become home to a diverse array of plant species, with some examples around the country containing as many as 25 plant species per square metre. Wildflowers including harebells and common stork’s-bill could become more commonplace, alongside butterflies such as green hairstreak and small copper (see picture inset left).

Roman past at Brancaster

The ever-popular archaeology programme Time Team will be carrying out new investigations at the site of Branodunum Roman Fort, Brancaster, which is looked after by the National Trust.

Experts from the show will be visiting the site this summer, when they will be using specialist Ground Penetrating Radar equipment to ascertain what new archaeological secrets the site may contain.

Sir Tony Robinson and a team of Time Team volunteers first came to Branodunum in 2012. Following a geophysical survey of parts of the site, an archaeological dig with five trenches was carried out.

The dig revealed several previously unknown buildings inside the fort, including huge granaries, barrack blocks for soldiers, and a possible bath house.

Various artefacts pre-dating circa 225-250 AD were recovered, including pieces of pottery and glass, and some Roman coins.

It is hoped that this summer’s geophysical survey, focusing on parts of the site that were not surveyed in 2012, will reveal important new features.

Visit nationaltrust.org.uk/norfolk for the latest

Norfolk, Sir John Betjeman, 1954 Photo

Time Team filming at Brancaster in 2012, with Phil Harding leading a dig.

Coast meets wetland meets seascapes in the protected areas of the east. Jess Tunstall explains how everything is interlinked.

Landscapes know no boundaries, they blend into each other. And nowhere more so than at Horsey, where the Broads National Park overlaps the Norfolk Coast National Landscape – the only place in the country where two such protected areas share a space.

The national park is looked after by the Broads Authority, also the navigation authority for this very special wetland – and it welcomes many visitors each year.

Water is a constant reminder of how the Coast and Broads are linked. The national park has seven rivers and 63 broads (shallow lakes) and other areas of open water, the remains of medieval peat diggings, which flooded with rising water levels. Peat was dug to use as fuel for

heating and cooking, in what was then a densely populated area.

The different waterways are home to many species – a quarter of the UK’s rarest wildlife lives in the Broads. The national park is affected by water quantity and water quality in waterways way beyond the park boundary and by the sea beyond.

The Broads has other coastal links too.

Adjacent to Horsey you’ll find Winterton Dunes

Welcome to the

National Nature Reserve, spectacular acidic dunes and heaths, which are internationally important for the rare groups of plants and animals that they support. Remember to watch out for adders, particularly on cool days when they may be slow to get out of the way. Both Horsey and Winterton offer a variety of walks to see how the coast and its adjacent areas are linked.

Further down the coast the Broads rivers flow dunes and heaths, which are internationally

waterlands

Land and water combine in the Broads: the view from Ranworth Church.

Photo credit: Tom Barrett Horsey, where water and wind rule and national park meets national landscape.

Swallowtail butterfly.

Photo credit: Jackie Dent

out to sea from the estuary at Breydon Water, part of an RSPB nature reserve, which brings together wet grassland, intertidal mud and saltmarsh –ideal places for waterfowl and wading birds to shelter, feed and rest.

Access to the Broads from the sea is also available via Mutford Lock, between Lake Lothing and the third largest broad – Oulton Broad, close to Lowestoft. It’s the only lock in the Broads and dates back to 1828, when it was constructed as part of a scheme to provide Lowestoft with a direct route to Norwich, avoiding the high tolls charged by Great Yarmouth at the time.

Jess Tunstall is communications officer for the Broads Authority

FIND OUT MORE

For all you need to know about the Broads National Park, go to VisitTheBroads.co.uk, where you’ll also find lots of ideas for where to stay. Look out for Broadcaster, another free visitor magazine, stocked by many outlets in North Norfolk as well as the Broads. It’s also available online on the Visit the Broads website. Broads Authority information centres and yacht stations at Norwich, Reedham and Great Yarmouth, will all be pleased to help you too. To book Broads Authority events go to eventbrite.com/o/ broads-authority-29218269141

To find out more about how the Broads Authority manages the national park, including in the face of climate change and sea level rise, with participation in projects such as the Broadland Futures Initiative, go to broadsauthority.gov.uk. You can also find boating information and safety advice, including ‘Boating Essentials’ safety videos. Always wear a life jacket when mooring up, moving around or getting on or off your boat.

Take a wildlife boat trip on the Broads

The Broads Authority offers small and friendly wildlife boat trips from three information centres at Hoveton, Ranworth and How Hill, near Ludham.

Solar-powered Ra is based at Hoveton and is accessible to wheelchair users. You’ll find yourself drifting into another world, transported along a beautiful and tranquil stretch of the River Bure, going to Caen Meadow on a short trip or into Bridge Broad and along to Belaugh on a long trip. Listen to the birdsong and relax in a green world, with meadows and wet woodlands on either side that can’t be explored by land.

Bookings: 01603 756097

Liana, an Edwardian-style launch, with electric engine, operates from Ranworth. There are wonderful views of St Helen’s Church, known as the cathedral of the Broads, and the chance for a glimpse of an otter or two as you pass along Ranworth Dam. Bookings: 01603 756094

More information nationaltrust.org.uk/visit/ norfolk/horsey-windpump visitgreatyarmouth.co.uk/ explore/seaside-towns-andvillages/winterton-on-sea rspb.org.uk/days-out/ reserves/berneymarshes-and-breydon-water oultonbroadpc.info/visitingoulton-broad norfolkwildlifetrust.org.uk/ BartonBroad whitlinghamcountrypark.com • nancyoldfield.org.uk

At How Hill National Nature Reserve you can visit Toad Hole Cottage, once the home of an eel catcher, enjoy the wildlife walking trail and even visit a wherry – pleasure wherry Hathor is moored at the Staithe for much of the summer. The reserve is one of the best places to see swallowtail butterflies, Norfolk hawker dragonflies, marsh harriers and other rare Broads wildlife. The Electric Eel boat trip is based here and will take you into a tranquil, secret world, where reeds and flowers fringe the narrow dykes.

Bookings: 01603 756096

VisitTheBroads.co.uk/boat-trips VisitTheBroads.co.uk/information-centres

Something for everyone

One way to help these special areas is through visiting, which allows us to gain something from these landscapes, but also to give something back. One way many people ‘give back’ is through volunteering – many projects just wouldn’t be possible without the work of volunteers, whether it’s helping to construct a boardwalk or working with groups with special educational needs.

Finding ways for different visitors to encounter the area when they have varying access needs, including education groups, is an important part of regenerative visiting. This includes making the area accessible to those with little or no experience of national parks and landscapes, or other countryside areas.

One of the recent projects has been work on Hoveton Broads Information Centre. The interior of the centre has been refurbished and redecorated for

2025, to bring to its interior a sense of the national park and all that it has to offer. There are new display panels on local visitor activities, the national parks context, the work of the Broads Authority and two inspirational Broads figures, Joyce Lambert and Ted Ellis. The panels include links for audio versions of the texts and there are additional audio recordings from staff on the importance of Broads peat and solar-powered boating. The adjacent Hoveton Riverside Park has also been refurbished, increasing accessibility.

Barton Broad Boardwalk (near Hoveton and Wroxham) and Whitlingham Country Park (on the southern edge of Norwich) are both good places for accessible visits. For boating activities, the Nancy Oldfield Trust has a new electric boat for trips, based at Stalham in North Norfolk. (See pages 11-12 for more details on accessible visiting.)

Winterton: circular walk through dune and heath.

Wonderful wetland sights: wigeon.

A space for everyone

all of us in ways sometimes we might not even realise.

It’s the warm sun on my skin and the smell of wild grasses the really chills me out and re-energises my soul.

Even just a short stroll to my local allotments relaxes me - and often puts a smile on my face after chatting with someone working on their patch or even nicking a juicy raspberry.

Here in Norfolk, we are blessed with many beautiful spaces, to get out and take a moment in; that said, getting out to somewhere like that isn’t always easy for me as a wheelchair user.

There are several factors to consider before I even get out of the door: is there accessible parking, or is the place on a bus route? What are the gates like? What are the paths like? And is there a loo nearby? – just to mention a few.

The research clearly shows spending time in nature is good for us, but our environment needs us too – conservation of nature in Norfolk is extremely important.

Having a disability makes it even more important for me to get access to enjoy the beautiful surroundings and these benefits impact

Extensive research has been done on how being in nature is ‘healing’. What that means in reality, at least as I see it, happens on several

fatigue, managing carers for my personal care, trying to live some semblance of an ordinary social and professional life and of course coping with the current climate of welfare cuts. All of these things add up and life can get really hard to cope with. Those are the times when I really need a way to unwind, relax and change perspective; being able to go for a wander around Whitlingham Broad, or a stroll along Gorleston beach seems to really make me feel everything is ok again. Some more of my favourite accessible spaces are the pier at Cromer, the bird hide at Holkham, Ranworth broad and to watch the sunset at Hunstanton near the beautiful cliffs.

“ Norfolk really can and does heal

On another level, because I feel emotionally better after some time in nature, I usually also feel physically more well – and again, there’s science to back this up.

That means I’m less likely to need to see a doctor and more able to work. That means nature isn’t just fixing me, but it’s helping the NHS and the economy. This healing effect, goes further in the sense that it helps reduce poverty and thus lowers crime. This has been shown numerous times with young offenders being exposed to the magic of nature through various rehabilitative programs. So right from the personal all the way to our very social fabric the beautiful outdoors of Norfolk really can and does

However, in the case of people with a disability, there’s a catch. Accessibility. Without the much needed access to the Broads, the lovely coastline and serene rivers many people across Norfolk miss out on these vital healing benefits, not to mention the simple joy of things like seeing a Kingfisher dive or hearing the waves on the shore and feeling the sea breeze.

Dave Shraga on the healing power of nature – and how to share it.

Photo credit: Bill Smith/Broads Authority

Wellbeing wanders: Dave Shraga with some of the wildlife at Whitlingham.

Photo credit: Bill Smith/Broads Authority

Strolling together: it’s important to have paths which are wide enough to allow wheelchair users to share the scenery.

12 Wellbeing

continued from p11

The consequences of not having access to nature are undoubtedly negative for our mental, physical and social health, all things which are much more challenging when you have a disability.

Further than that, is the problem of feeling ‘ownership’. If people with a disability do not have access to the stunning wilds of Norfolk, then it is hardly possible for us to feel a sense of ownership; by which I mean a sense of this is a space for me to experience, enjoy and thrive in.

Without that important feeling, people are unlikely to care about the wildlife, about the pollution in the rivers, about fly tipping, about preserving the coastline and the numerous other challenges that threaten the nature on our doorstep which we are so privileged to have. Therefore, it’s absolutely vital that the 30% of people in Norfolk who have a disability are also included and have access to these spaces, so we can care, feel like it’s our space to and help to protect it.

But what does it mean to have an ‘inclusive’ space? Who decides? How do we get this issue right?

It’s clearly important if we consider that as a minimum a third of our population needs accessibility and for many more reasons than the few mentioned above.

However, the age old argument comes up that it costs money, and things that are accessible for some are not good for others and so on. Yet, there are many examples in Norfolk where these issues have not been issues at all. As mentioned earlier, Whitlingham is a wonderfully accessible, beautiful space with great facilities including blue badge parking, a changing places loo and staff that are friendly and helpful. Another brilliant example is Sweet Briar Marsh, which has easy open gates, wide, level paths, lots of benches and again fantastic staff from Norfolk Wildlife Trust.

So what makes a space ‘inclusive’? All of these things, but mostly, it comes down to the question of how we get it right and that starts with the right attitude: a culture of acceptance and including everyone around us in the decision making process about how we want to design our spaces and how we all want to live.

Access for all: more information

• Information on best practice and current initiatives, and how to get involved: inclusivenorwich.org.uk

• Accessibility guide including car parks and attractions: visitnorthnorfolk.com

• Accessible beaches: visitnorthnorfolk. com/beaches/accessible-beaches

• DRAGONs (Disability Real Action Group of Norfolk) project to enhance the accessibility of venues across King’s Lynn & West Norfolk: activenorfolk.org/2025/03/dotm-alive-westnorfolk/

• Accessible walks including Norfolk Coast: accessiblecountryside.org.uk/norfolk

I feel Norfolk Willdlife Trust really got it right with Sweet Briar Marsh in Norwich; they worked closely with numerous stakeholders and genuinely took onboard peoples’ thoughts – they did not do the all-too familiar tokenistic consultation and then ignore the data.

NWT went above and beyond, working with organisations such as Inclusive Norwich right from the very start of the project, to ensure that the design process factored in the needs of disabled people. The result is that because all the ‘inclusive’ needs were built in, there was very little ‘extra’ cost, in fact, those funds are a small investment in the short term which will have a far greater return going forward, as the design of Sweet Briar Marsh will encourage more people to go and enjoy nature.

More people will get the natural healing benefits, this will have a significantly positive impact on the local social fabric, the economy and increase the number of people who love and want to conserve nature. And for me, I have an amazing space just on the border of Norwich city, to go to, to heal, to easily enjoy with friends and family and ultimately thrive, because I’ve been included too.

Dave Shraga is chair of Inclusive Norwich, a user-led charity, which campaigns to improve disability access and inclusion, in and around Norwich.

Stars, seals and toads: connect and protect

Dark

matters

The Norfolk Coast has some of the darkest skies in the country, and this darkness plays a key role in creating tranquillity, protecting nature and keeping us healthy.

Many species need the dark to rest, breed, hunt and live. There are even plants that flower at night – like white campion, with scented nocturnal nectar for moths to feed on.

How you can help

• Enjoy the stars by visiting a Dark Sky Discovery Site

• Avoid lighting up your garden at night if possible.

• Go on a dusk or night walk. Find out more

Darkskydiscovery.org.uk

Cprenorfolk.org.uk

See the seals

There are many places along the coast where you can spot grey seals and common seals. They spend a lot of time at sea but come ashore to breed. Seals are rare globally, and easily disturbed, so it’s important to keep them safe.

How you can help

including biannual wine selections, complimentary tasting tours, invitations to our annual summer party, and more.

• Leave your dog at home –they can do harm to seals.

• If you see a baby seal alone, don’t panic – they are often left alone.

Find out more

If a seal has a visible injury then please contact British Divers Marine Life Rescue (BDMLR) on 01825 765536

Toad safety

Frogs, toads and newts are all threatened by loss of habitat. Toads are more particular than frogs about where they breed and spend the winter further away from their breeding sites. Many toads are killed when they cross roads returning to their breeding pond in spring. This year in Norfolk, 18,940 toads were saved, and 2054 lost. In general, the numbers of toads breeding is falling. How you can help

• Support Toadwatch, unique to Norfolk, where volunteers help toads safely cross roads.

• Support Froglife’s Tuppence a Toad appeal, which helps local toad patrols. Find out more toadwatch.org froglife.org

• Give seals space – stay a long way away, use binoculars and always stick to footpaths.

Hope and haven for beach birds

Beach-nesting birds and their chicks are uniquely vulnerable. explains how each year staff and volunteers leap into action to ensure the breeding season goes without a hitch – and how you can help.

From the muddy sands of The Wash, eastwards along the sand and shingle beaches, the Norfolk coast is home to some our most beloved beachnesting birds. Species such as Little Terns, Ringed Plovers, Oystercatchers and the symbol of the RSPB, the iconic Avocet.

At Snettisham and Heacham, the RSPB, alongside local residents, has been working to protect a much-loved beach-dwelling birdRinged Plover, which return every year to breed.

The beaches aren’t just popular with visitors, they are also the preferred nesting site for this Red-listed species, which is under significant environmental pressure. The sand and shingle provide the ideal ground on which to build their shallow nests (called ‘scrapes’) and the rich mudflats of The Wash provide the perfect feeding ground for growing chicks. The birds lay their eggs among the sand and pebbles and become immediately camouflaged.

Suitable nesting places like this are sadly becoming lost as coastal habitats are threatened by rising sea levels, extreme

weather, erosion and development. The importance of Norfolk’s coastline, which forms part of the East Coast Wetlands, has recently been recognised by the government and put forward on its long-term list for special international status, alongside Stonehenge and the Great Barrier Reef, as a UNESCO World Heritage site (see inset box).

The East Atlantic Flyway, a migratory bird route over western parts of Europe including Yorkshire, Lincolnshire, Norfolk,

Suffolk, Essex and Kent, is on the UK government’s list of potential UNESCO World Heritage Sites, in recognition of its vital importance to bird

populations and wildlife. The area sees huge transient bird populations pass through every year as the seasons change and is an essential

refuge for 155 bird species, as well as being a good example of how climate change impacts coastlines, and how they can be managed for nature and people.

The Plovers in Peril project working alongside partners at Wild Ken Hill and the Borough Council work, provides much-needed protection for these vulnerable birds throughout the nesting season.

sensitive nesting areas and engage with visitors to promote beach-nesting-bird-friendly behaviour.

Last year, with the kind support of bird-friendly beach goers, volunteers and the local community,

the number of chicks fledged in 2021 when the Plovers in Peril project first launched.

Wynona Legg, RSPB Plovers in Peril project officer, said: “Nesting on the ground comes with many challenges, so these birds need a little help from beachgoers to help their chicks make

it to their first flights. If we do that, we can enjoy seeing and hearing these iconic birds on our coast for years to come.”

Ringed Plovers aren’t the only beach nesting bird flocking to Norfolk’s beaches in spring. Another equally important species also “terns” up to nest at a few different places.

Little Terns first arrived at North Denes in

With increasing visitor numbers to the coast, protecting them has never been so important. The North Sea pollution incident in March along this stretch of coastline shows just how vulnerable these habitats are, and highlights the need to safeguard them.

1986, peaking at over 300 pairs, until 2010 when

the habitat at that site became unsuitable for breeding and nesting. Little Terns need a large open mixed sand and shingle beach, and at North Denes the vegetation became too dense, reducing the overall area of suitable habitat.

On the Red List: a fully grown Ringed Plover amongst razorshells. Photo credit: Tom Marshall,

between two main sites in East NorfolkWinterton-on-Sea and Eccles-on-Sea – where 121 chicks successfully fledged. A further site in North Suffolk, Kessingland had at least two Little Tern fledglings in 2024.

Little Terns are extremely vulnerable to disturbance from human activity, such as dogs not kept on leads. Like the Ringed Plover, Little Tern nests, eggs and chicks are extremely well camouflaged so as to blend in with the shingle, a natural defence from predators, but this comes at the risk of nests being accidentally trampled. Unfortunately, the timing of the breeding season

How to keep chicks safe

Visitors to Norfolk’s beaches can help by following a few simple rules:

Plan ahead. Check reliable websites such as The Barking Bugle before your visit where nesting site locations and off-lead zones for dogs have been identified.

Keep dogs on short leads at all times. Never let a dog chase birds or stray inside fenced off areas. Remember, flightless chicks will roam outside of fences to feed on the shoreline at low tide, so keep your dog on lead even on

the lower shore. Give nesting birds and their chicks some space. Keep your distance and stay away from fenced areas. Getting too close can stress parent birds and their chicks. Use binoculars to view if you have them or ask to borrow a volunteer’s. It may not be obvious that birds are nesting but if there are fences up, they are still vulnerable. Follow guidance on signs. Check for signs as soon as you arrive and follow any guidance given during your visit.

between May and August is also the peak period for beach visitors who can easily stumble over a nest site without even realising.

There are special protections to keep these birds safe: they are categorised as Schedule 1, meaning they are treated as an utmost priority.

The RSPB beach nesting bird team, made up of staff and volunteers, install fences and warden the colonies around the clock. From the moment the first nests appear, until the last birds leave with their fledged youngsters, this dedicated team are ever-supportive.

In 2024 teams of more than 120 volunteers dedicated over 4,000 hours to help protect Little

Terns and other beach nesting species including this still only amounted to 35 percent of available

Ringed Plovers, Oystercatchers and Avocet, but volunteer shifts being covered, and there is always more work to be done.

volunteers and you can apply by visiting the RSPB area and how you can make a difference for these

The project is always looking for new website. Just search for volunteer opportunities and see what opportunities are available in your special birds.

Aran Burton is RSPB England communications officer

Vulnerable: Little Tern chicks sitting with parent on nest, Winterton Dunes.

Photo credit: Kevin Simmonds, RSPB-images.com

Photo credit: Ben Andrew, RSPB-images.com

Camouflaged: Little Tern Sternula albifrons, newly hatched chick and unhatched egg in nest Winterton on Sea.

Youngsters dust off the past

Escape rooms, zines, action groups: from King’s Lynn to Great Yarmouth, Tricia Hall explains how the history of the coast is being brought alive by a new generation.

From family-friendly activities in King’s Lynn, to a huge patchwork about mental health in Great Yarmouth, young people in Norfolk are helping to make your ways to find out about history more inviting – and relevant to today.

New life is being breathed into Norfolk Museums by ‘Kick the Dust’ – a scheme which puts young people’s voices at the heart of the area’s fascinating history – and allows them to lead the way.

And as part of this, it develops creative skills, confidence, mental health and wellbeing.

Kick the Dust isn’t a one-off project, but a way of working that helps young people make the most of the opportunities museums offer, which has also brought huge benefits to the museums, and their visitors.

Initially funded through The National Lottery Heritage Fund and now through Arts Council England and Norfolk County Council Public Health, Kick the Dust has so far worked with almost 6,000 young people on a huge variety of projects.

Across all these projects, young people work alongside professionals to develop transferable work-related and creative skills, through the co-production of activity and events, volunteering and work experience.

All Kick the Dust activities are free and open to everyone. Participants have access to all ten Norfolk Museums sites and can visit with a friend or family member for free during their engagement for that year, using a free pass.

Currently the museum service is partnering with Norfolk Library & Information Service (NLIS) and YMCA to deliver the programme of activity using Kick the Dust’s three-stage ‘Player-ShaperLeader’ progression model. This approach offers young people a pathway which builds their cultural engagement in a sustained way – from light touch engagements at the ‘Player’ level such as projects, work placements and taster activities, through ‘Shaper’ activities like developing exhibition

All above: Breath of fresh air: young people get stuck in to sharing Norfolk’s history.

projects and participation in consultation groups right through to ‘Leader’ activities which offer longterm, deeper engagements with museums which might include becoming a Young Ambassador or member of the Youth Board.

All around the county Kick the Dust groups meet regularly and have evolved over time to meet local need. Groups are often given real briefs to work on and produce material that is relevant to an upcoming exhibition or event.

For example, Heritage Collectives meet in Great Yarmouth, Norwich, Kings Lynn and Thetford to explore the history of the local area. The groups agree the projects they want to work on and coproduce work in collaboration with colleagues in local libraries and museums. Turning Heads: A Youth Perspective on Classical Landscapes was a free zine created by the Heritage Collective in response to the JMW Turner & Changing Visions of Landscapes exhibition at Norwich Castle.

As participant Erin-Lucy Bird said: “The Turning Heads zine was a great opportunity to express my creative abilities. Being a part of its production gave me the chance to observe a new perspective on the landscapes around me. I have always lived on the coast and these surroundings provide beautiful inspiration for my art.”

Young people wherever they are can join an Online Work Experience programme to meet museum professionals and learn about their

Digging deep:

“ Lively local museums for all

Azaria Close with the exhibition.

Roots for renewal

Kick the Dust has established long term partnerships with colleges in East Norfolk and regularly collaborates to deliver opportunities such as a brand-new environmental focus group for Norfolk Museums.

The Youth Climate Action group based at East Norfolk Sixth Form College created a display for International Earth Day at Gressenhall Farm and Workhouse.

The group chose regenerative agriculture as their theme because the exhibition happened on a working farm. The students worked alongside curator Rachel Kidd and Environment Hub Officer Ben Earle to find out about exhibition design and interpretation and studied historic farming practices as well as contemporary

sustainable methods. They met weekly since November to plan, research, illustrate and design an exhibition which they named Roots for Renewal.

Azaria Close, Youth Climate Action Group member, said: ‘It’s important for us young people to engage with environmental work so that we can learn why it’s important to help our environment and how to protect it because it’s amazing.’

The group even compiled their own funding bid and submitted it to a ‘Dragons Den’ style Kick the Dust delegated budget to pay for exhibition materials. The exhibition has been designed as a pop up touring exhibition that can travel to other venues across Norfolk such as libraries, conferences and festivals.

t: 01485 532688 | The Green, Hunstanton PE36 6BQ e: info@thegoldenlionhunstanton.co.uk thegoldenlionhunstanton.co.uk

Take to the water – boat trips, canoeing, paddleboarding, sailing, electric day boats. Explore the countryside on foot and by bike – fens, grazing marshes, mysterious woodlands. Discover the wildlife – swallowtail butterflies, Norfolk hawker dragonflies, water lilies. www.VisitTheBroads.co.uk

continued from p16

careers. This summer the group will carry out a project at the American Library at the Forum in Norwich, looking at the impact of American soldiers in Norfolk in WWII. The next programme will run from 29th April – 24th June 2025.

In West Norfolk Time Turners have decided to plan and host an event on July 2nd to celebrate King’s Lynn’s 20th anniversary year since joining the Hanseatic League. They are planning to have a rotation of family-friendly activities including a child-friendly introduction to the Hanseatic League, a game using the big Hanse map in Stories of Lynn.

THC Youth Group meets every Friday at Ancient House Museum in Thetford to explore history. They are currently engaged in an Escape Room Project to share the contested and complicated story of Maharajah Duleep Singh’s role in the British Empire and his faith journey. They are working with new original research and with support from academics.

institution. This summer NSC at Time and Tide will be taking part in History in the Making (see A stitch in time, right). Saturday Clubs are open to 13-16year-olds of all abilities.

Wherever Kick the Dust projects have run, they’ve had a positive impact on the young people involved, whether by improving their mental health, developing their confidence or providing a stepping stone into the world of work.

“Young people work alongside professionals to develop transferable work-related and creative skills

Jazz Mickleburgh became a Youth Ambassador with the project, a role for 17-25-year-olds who are tasked with overseeing the Kick the Dust programme. They guide the Project Steering Group in areas that are important to young people. The ‘Youth Board’ acts as the bridge between the Project Steering Group and the Kick the Dust young people. This offers a real development opportunity in a major organisation and helps shape the future direction of Norfolk Museums Service and Norfolk Library and Information Service keeping ‘youth voice’ at its heart.

been offered a place on an access course to help me realise my dream of going to university next year.’’

She is not alone: another former YMCA young person and Kick the Dust trainee has secured a full-time permanent position in the Norwich Visitor Services team. Both young people cite ‘Kick the Dust’ for giving them the confidence to take these steps.

Millie Smith former trainee and now NMS staff member said: “Through KTD and what I’ve learnt along the way since, the opportunity massively helped with my self-confidence, self-worth, enjoyment in my day to day life and also in my professional development.”

With two years left to run on the Kick the Dust programme, there’s plenty of time to get involved – whether you’ve always loved museums or have never set foot in one before, whether you use your local library or not. Come and join one of our groups to make new friends, gain confidence, flex your creativity, develop work-related skills, and make a real difference in your local museum and library.

In Great Yarmouth, the Time and Tide Museum hosts National Saturday Club, part of a national initiative whereby young people across the country spend Saturday mornings at their local university, college or museum discovering subjects they love. Throughout the year there are opportunities for workshops, trips, gallery visits, and a masterclass delivered by a leading contemporary artist or

Jazz credits her experience as a Youth Ambassador with giving her the confidence to take the next step towards her goal of going to university. She said: ‘‘Kick the Dust has played such a key part in my life and helped me secure employment when most doors were closed to me, giving me the skills and confidence to move forward. It is like being part of a family. I have now

ESCAPE TO NATURE

For more information or to express your interest in joining one of our groups, email kickthedust@ norfolk.gov.uk. Tell us what you would like to be involved in, the area you live in and why you want to be part of that group.

Tricia Hall is youth engagement officer, Norfolk Museums Service

COASTAL BREAKS

stitch in A time

Young people from Great Yarmouth have been working on the theme of mental health linked to the museum collections, particularly a sampler by Lorina Bulwer.

Bulwer (1838-1912) lived in Great Yarmouth until 1897 when, after her mother’s death, she entered Great Yarmouth Workhouse and was resident on the Female Lunatic Ward until she passed away in 1912. During her years in the Workhouse Bulwer made a series of extraordinary, stitched testimonies. The surviving examples in the NMS collections span 6.6 linear metres with over 7,000 words of text.

The groups got to know Lorina’s remarkable story through sessions with Ruth Battersby, senior curator of textiles, while through visits to the Norfolk Record Office they learnt more about the treatment of patients at the Great Yarmouth Workhouse.

Young people also got a lot out of seeing the connections with real life, as one said: ‘What I enjoyed was that we got to go on a walk out and about to find connections about Lorina Bulwer. She spoke about George Manby and we found Manby Road which I thought was quite fascinating.’

Since these visits, Make Yarmouth and the Great Yarmouth Heritage Collective

have been participating in positive activities that have a focus on improving wellbeing and providing a range of tools for selfexpression including freewriting, journalling, songwriting, graffiti and embroidery and a walking tour, all inspired by the Lorina Bulwer embroideries.

All participants will be asked to contribute to a contemporary patchwork quilt which will be part of a touring exhibition, and which will be archived in the museum collection after the project ends. This exhibition will be used to highlight the issues they identify around mental health and encourage the public to respond or think about their own mental health and attitude to mental health as a result. The participants will also create a plaque to commemorate Lorina Bulwer. It will be displayed in Great Yarmouth to ensure her legacy is preserved.

The exhibition will be displayed at Primeyarc in Market Gates, Great Yarmouth in August and the Red Herring Gallery at the Time and Tide Museum in September for the public to view.

The project is funded by a grant from Historic England’s ‘History in the Making’ fund which supports underrepresented young people (aged 13-25) to discover, engage, and connect with their local stories and ensure the history that matters to them is not forgotten. Extraordinary

20 Norfolk Coast and Broads Explorer Map

Discover Norfolk’s wildlife

beautiful bedrooms, sunny walled garden, top notch beers

which to explore glorious North Norfolk.

Nature heals

The boardwalk hovers over the marsh – making it possible to access a place that would normally be out of reach.

I am walking on it with a handful of people, and we are experiencing the amazing nature of the coast in a new way.

As dusk falls, we take our time walking through this beautiful space at Brancaster, as part of the Norfolk Coast Dark Skies festival – celebrating one of the Norfolk coast’s very special features.

The slowness feels odd at first – but we stay with it.

Together, we give each other permission to slow down.

We are here to offer something a bit different – an event which gives space for reflection and connection with nature, slowing down in and connecting to the natural spaces that are so important.

This mindful stroll in late spring on Brancaster Boardwalk, lasting one and a half hours, was a powerful check in. Amongst the reeds as the sun set, we walked and took short stops at the seating areas along the way.

Each stop we linked in with a different one of our senses. Sight, smell, sound, sensation –then the taste of hot tea at the end as the dusk gathered.

Each time we stopped and tuned in, and noticed everything changing as we walked into the marsh. Our senses were linked to the dark as it gathered, noticing the impacts of it: like hearing the birds come down to roost (they were really noisy!)

The shared silence was profound.

We started with an invitation to disconnect, then reconnect in a slow and considered way: to tune in and fully listen.

We noticed our feet on the ground, sun on our skin, external sensations.

We heard redshank, and the goldfinches behind the marsh. We saw the vast sky – and how on the boardwalk you felt in and amongst the marsh. Doing this collectively it felt a real wonder to be part of all the creatures settling down to roost at dusk.

And part of this slowing down helped us to acknowledge what we can hear, and what can hear us; what we can see, and what can see us –that we are part of the network.

Stopping for long enough, we could really imagine ourselves part of it.

Another reason to do this together, is that many people wouldn’t do this on their own as they don’t feel safe stopping and standing or walking slowly. We need to have ‘permission to hover’ and to slow down.

It is the opposite to superficial, to truly immerse. To allow ourselves to understand the importance and significance of the natural world – not just pass through, but to find solace and notice what is around us and supporting us.

Research shows that just two hours in nature a week improves health. It also helps nature, as people who know and

How to connect

1

2

3

4

Let your body guide you – tune into your sensations and feelings as you walk, lean, sit or stand.

If you feel drawn to something, look at it, and explore with your senses.

Go with your curiosity –what is calling for your attention?

Go back to the same spot, notice the changes at different times of day. Notice the living beings – how is this place supporting them?

Be comfortable –find comfort in being there in your own way.

understand nature will want it to thrive, and will have a stronger relationship with their place. My work has been to support people to build a relationship with nature. The cost of dislocation from nature is so high for us as humans, in physical and mental health terms –reintroducing people to nature is well worth it.

Take the time to connect, slowly, with the coast – and let it connect with you. You won’t regret it.

Lucy Allen is a trained Forest Bathing Practitioner and Nature Connect Project Co Ordinator for Norfolk and Waveney Mind

Lucy Allen on how noticing nature lifts us into another place of possibility.

Photo credit: Norfolk and Waveney Mind

Photo credit: shutterstock/PhilDyer

Serene: sunset at Brancaster across the salt marshes.

24 Wellbeing

and Heat heart

There’s something about the North Sea air. It’s wild, crisp, and honest; much like the landscape itself. Out here on the Norfolk Coast, we’re reminded of how small we are, how much we belong, and how much we need nature. And sometimes, we need a little help opening ourselves up to that.

That’s where saunas come in.

At their core, saunas are about connection. Connection to yourself, to nature, and to community. It slows us down, warms us up, and encourages us to feel everything more deeply.

Step out of the heat and into the cold - a dip in the sea, a barefoot walk on the sand, or simply standing under a wide, starry sky on a full moon – and suddenly you’re alive again. It’s primal, simple, and restorative. Saunas aren’t an escape from nature, they’re an invitation into it.

In that moment, when you step outside and feel the chill of the air on your skin after the heat of the sauna, you’re reminded of the cycles that govern all life. The heat and cold, the rush and the calm, the tension and the release.

Nature does not need to be conquered or avoided; it is a force we exist alongside. Saunas bring us into that balance, connecting us not just with the earth, but with the rhythms of our own bodies. They invite us to be present, to listen, and to be fully immersed in the natural world, not as passive observers, but as active participants in its ever-changing beauty.

Sauna Box was born from my passion for nature and wellbeing. After years in the corporate world and seeking a deeper connection, I decided

Tom Sutton on the wild calm of the coast and how sauna can help let nature in.

to bring the sauna experience to Norfolk. Starting with a mobile horse box sauna, I was able to bring people together to experience the wild calm of the coast in a new way.

That first pop-up sauna sparked something bigger. The more I shared this experience with others, the more I saw the potential to build something that truly connected people to the land, and to each other.

These days, we run one permanent community sauna in Sheringham, right on the seafront. Normally, in a town (even a coastal town), it’s easy to feel disconnected from nature; but our sauna, with its big windows offering a view of the sea, makes it possible to experience that connection, without needing to be in the middle of nowhere.

We also build outdoor saunas for homes and businesses in wild locations across the UK (keep your eyes peeled for the new sauna we’ve built launching at the incredible I Am The Storm Yoga & Fitness Studio, based at a beautiful historic working watermill just outside of Holt).

It’s not just about heat; it’s about heart. It’s

Kayak Hire at Burnham Overy Staithe

Explore the Creek and the surrounding salt marshes. Visit the stunning beach at Scolt Head island. Single kayak – £40.00 per day. Double kayak – £48.00 per day. Buoyancy aids and dry tops available – £6 per day. For more information and to book please visit our website: www.burnhamoveryboathouse.co.uk

Out of the heat and into the cold: sauna at Sheringham.

Tom Sutton is founder of Sauna Box, a company dedicated to bringing the transformative power of sauna to communities, homes, and wild spaces across the UK.

Sheringham Sauna Bookinghttps://www.saunabox.co.uk/sheringham Sauna Builds - https://www.saunabox.co.uk/builds

Let the heat meet the cold, and the wild meet the calm.

Photo credit: Cole Eddison

Risby at Eddison

“High

“Professional,

From Plant Power to Fluid Earth, GroundWork Gallery has a year of deep exhibitions, says Veronica Sekules

Grownearth from the

For the first half of the year at GroundWork Gallery we have been exhibiting Plant Power – originally proposed as a painting exhibition to be called ‘Beyond the Botanical’. But, in thinking more about how it could have a stronger and less specialised-sounding impact, both as an experience and in terms of its environmental impact, it evolved. And actually its title has caused several of the artists to raise their game, not only producing work that literally has more power, as in the case of the late Judith Tucker’s two-metre high ‘Viper’s Bugloss’ portrait, but also to find subject matter which needs greater attention.

So we have shown wild plants, vulnerable plants, plants which are suffering consequences of neglect, or being overpowered by human littering. A whole body of work by bio-artist Anna Dumitriu focussed on her comprehensive research, historical, mythological and scientific on the Faba bean. It carries a gene which can be poisonous, causing the body to produce too many red blood cells. In documenting its discovery and the ways it is being treated, hers is truly a work of art, science and environment, demonstrating how to make visible, beautiful and instructive, the

programme for artists. As with everything the gallery does, it has an environmental purpose and emphasis. From an open submission, published on various websites and social media platforms, we select very carefully from an increasingly large – and global – submission pool. This year we had over 150 excellent applicants, from the UK but also from the United States, Canada, Australia, Germany, Netherlands, China, India and for some reason this year, about 15 from Iran. From these, with great difficulty, we selected 16, of whom half are local. The visiting artists are housed in one of three residency locations: King’s Lynn itself as the urban one and two rural ones at The Grange Priojects, Great Cressingham and a wetland site at Broomhill, Reepham.

As each year, our programme has got bigger and more ambitious, we have gradually formalised an induction process. We begin the residency season with an intensive period of research and study. With the help of many local experts and specialists, we begin with an intensive week, all of us together. The purpose is to enable them to be sufficiently familiar with the local environment to enable them to make work in response, towards an exhibition at the end of the year. So we look at geology, at land-management and regenerative farming, at coastal landscapes, at rivers, healthy

Trust, Middleton Aggregates, Norfolk Geological Partnership, HM Coastguard, Wild Ken Hill, Tyndall Centre for Climate Change, West Norfolk Borough Council, and more.

Fluid Earth

Our theme this year is Fluid Earth, which sits beneath an overall master-theme of Extraction. This we arrived at originally in 2020 in collaboration with a pan-American activist project: Extraction: Art on the Edge of the Abyss (finished now, but ironically needed more than ever), and locally with the Norfolk Coast Partnership who

Above and right: Works by Latvian artist Olya Anima who lives in King’s Lynn and is teaching workshops at GroundWork.

grant-aided our first two years. Also to date, we have had a close relationship with the Sedgwick Museum of Earth Sciences in Cambridge. Right from the outset we determined that our job as art-environmental practitioners and activists, was to concentrate on our own locality, where we could develop the deepest understanding and have most impact. Initially we concentrated on the local industries’ extraction of aggregates and sand. Now in our fifth year, the focus has broadened, largely through our own evaluation and the responses of the artists, to consider the wider impact of the whole human practices of extractivism on the coastal landscape.

Extraction is about the removal of resources from the earth, whether natural or otherwise. The overall concept of extractivism describes an overarching human attitude which legitimises removal as a default, as opposed to replenishing resources or thinking in terms of regeneration. The drive to extract has long lain at the root of much of our industry and is often overwhelming.

For example, the mineral extraction in the form of aggregates is the most widespread quarrying industry in Norfolk. In fact it is relatively well regulated in this country and there are laws in place to protect the environment overall as much as possible. Nevertheless, as we were told by our expert informant, every house built typically has 250 tons of aggregates in its foundations and structure. This means, as every spoil heap we

Above: Film, Creta by Kelly Hill and Sophy King’s Installation, 2023.

“saw at the quarries contained ancient fossils –we are effectively re-burying ancient geological material as building waste. Apparently to change this practice is uneconomic as developers will not pay to explore alternatives. In the meantime, East Anglia is now almost at the end of the viability of this industry.

We pose the question: how can artists, art works and artful events stimulate greater public awareness and empathy with environmental issues.

In responding to this single example of extractive practice, our residency artists have made a number of thoughtful works. In our first year, Kaitlin Ferguson made a number of forays into 3D printing, innovating new artefacts with extraction waste. She also produced an artist’s book ‘Geologic Glitches’. Anthony Powis from University of the Arts, London, wrote a pamphlet responding to and mapping coastal change and extraction, having discovered that aggregates were being locally dredged at sea and sold to the Dutch. And the most striking exhibit was produced in 2023 by Sophy King from Manchester, an installation and animation, full of wit, highlighting together the contradictions between the Museum’s urge to preserve and classify and the quarry’s practice to excavate, sort and disperse. Her work touched on big questions, linking the colonialist, academic and industrial backgrounds to the various practices, drawing attention to wider contexts.

Gradually the extraction focus has widened as we have looked more intensely, not just at industry, but at land management and ecology. For the summer of 2025 with Ground Water, we are still exhibiting the results of our last years’ worth of residency projects. It takes us into the coming Fluid Earth theme, showing that as we are increasingly concerned about sea-level rise and the potential encroachment of water, artists are starting to explore watery environments more and more. Photographer, and soon to be King’s Lynn resident, Myka Baum, has, for example, made short films looking at some of the beach nourishment programmes along the north coast, exploring ways we are attempting to block the water and protect the cliffs, in contrast to allowing the water to seep into the salt marshes.

We pose the question: how can artists, art works and artful events stimulate greater public awareness and empathy with environmental issues as a research question for the artists who apply to the residency.

It alludes to the heart of our purpose as a gallery and as a place for artful encounters. Obviously bringing great artists to work with us in Norfolk is important, and encouraging them to produce their best work spontaneously in response to the environment is crucial. And for the artists to form a collaborative cohort is a bonus. But there is a bigger imperative, which is to do with bringing new perspectives to our environment as a whole. But also to use art to ask new questions, and to challenge and question prevailing attitudes so that we can better understand the environmental changes that we face. Our big aim is for art to play its part in engaging all of us, practitioners and viewers alike in greater engagement with our fluid earth in all its senses, and all that it entails.

Veronica Sekules is director of the GroundWork Gallery

FIND OUT MORE

GroundWork Gallery, 17 Purfleet St, King’s Lynn PE30 1ER

01553 340714

Groundworkgallery.com

mail@groundworkgallery.com

Instagram: Groundworkgallery

As a chef, my primary aim is to create food that customers are going love and want to come back for. I have found after 10 years of working in this industry that this really comes down to three things: excellent produce; respectful preparation and great service - from our coffee to our seasonal specials.

So I feel that much of my work is done for me if I choose the very best produce in the first instance.

As a Bistro, The Glaven Bistro is a really unique place. Carron and I have always built our businesses with our own vision and never tried to replicate another model. The Glaven Bistro is somewhere where everyone is welcome and can experience not only great locally sourced food and drink but enjoy local artists, listen to great live music and feel part of a unique experience that our staff work so hard to provide. It is passion led and a way of life for us.

The Glaven Bistro is named and somewhat designed around the River Glaven that runs just down the lane from the Bistro. The natural world is a constant inspiration and as a seasonal chef the changing seasons and elements that come with them are in the forefront of my thinking about food and drink and what opportunities exist within the season’s bounty.

North Norfolk is an area of incredible beauty and unique appeal. The Bayfield Estate where we reside in Glandford is some of the finest countryside around here. From the world famous Cromer crab, we also have fantastic asparagus and mustard leaves from surrounding fields as well as samphire and sea herbs. At the moment we are developing dishes with alexanders which grow in abundance on the Bayfield Estate and have a superb ‘carrot top’ flavour.

As a food business/bistro cafe we look to bring people together. Popular parts of the UK that derive their economy from tourism can sometimes be vulnerable to disassociation in the shoulder seasons with some businesses choosing to close through lack of traffic.

In our opinion, the local community are the answer to staying open. People want places to go and enjoy throughout the year, somewhere they feel they can rely on and always be welcome. Food and drink businesses have historically been this and should continue to be.

Local tastes best

We opened in December 2023 after relocating to be closer to family from North Wales where we ran ‘the little tea rooms’, an award winning beach cafe in Abersoch on the Llŷn Peninsula. We served gourmet beach food with a focus on the best of local Welsh Produce.

Wild Garlic Pesto

Great for a foraging walk and a very delicious sauce for local Asparagus, or Alexanders. Made even nicer by substituting the traditional Parmesan with Local Norfolk Dapple Cheese

1 large bunch Wild garlic washed

1 large bunch curly parsley

washed

60g of toasted pine nuts or walnuts are also very nice

60g of Norfolk Dapple Cheese

grated

150ml of Extra Virgin Rapeseed Oil

Juice of 1 lemon salt & black pepper

Method

Place all the ingredients into a food processor apart from the olive oil and Norfolk Dapple. Blitz for a minute or two then grate Dapple into the mix and drizzle the Rapeseed oil until blended.

James and Carron Noon have opened a bistro with local food and live music in the Glaven Valley. Here James shares their inspiration.

Our focus within the food industry has always been about supporting and promoting great local produce by showcasing products and locally sourced foods on our menus. At The Glaven Bistro we continue this ethos combined with a seasonal approach, aiming to create menus that show local produce at its best and most sustainable. We aim to run our business through good practice in reducing food miles and preserving the ecology and security of the UK food chain.

We are open 9am - 4pm Monday - Sunday with special Live Music Events (Jazz Club and Folk Nights) twice a month combined with dinner and local Norfolk Wine flights.

In spring, my favourite ingredients are alexanders, wild garlic, asparagus and new season Crab. There are also edible blossoms everywhere in spring that make for great garnishes or additions to salad: like gorse (tastes like pea pods), rosemary blossom, and hawthorn.

www.theglavenbistro.com

kitchen@theglavenbistro.com

Instagram @theglavenbistro

Some of the delicious local ingredients on offer at the Glaven Bistro.

Crab Bisque

Popular on the spring menu at The Glaven Bistro

2 shallots, or 1 medium onion, finely chopped 1/2 large fennel bulb, chopped

2 carrots, chopped

2 bay leaves

2 garlic cloves, crushed

2 tbsp of tomato purée

2 tbsp of brandy

1l shellfish or fish stock

2 tbsp of olive oil

150g of brown crab meat

White crab meat to garnish

Maldon sea salt

Double cream

Freshly ground black pepper

Lemon juice, freshly squeezed

Method

Heat the oil in a large saucepan.

Add the shallots/onion, fennel, carrot and bay leaves with a good pinch of salt and cook over a low heat until the vegetables are soft.

Add the crushed garlic, tomato purée and brandy. Stir for 2 minutes.

Add the stock and cover the saucepan with a lid and simmer gently for 20 minutes over a low heat.

Remove from heat, remove the bay leaves and add brown crab meat then liquidise the soup until smooth.

You can pass the soup through a fine sieve; however I prefer to leave all the fine cooked vegetables within the soup after blending. This somewhat goes against the traditional bisque method of thickening with crab shells or rice but shallot, carrot and fennel are delicious and will act as a perfect way to thicken without having to add any extra stage.

To finish garnish with the white meat, a squeeze of lemon juice to taste, a drizzle of double cream for extra luxury and a good crack of black pepper.

Carron’s Cake (Carrot Cake)

100g self raising flour

1 tsp bicarbonate of soda

2tsp mixed spice

zest 1 orange

200g grated carrots

100g walnuts

50g pumpkin seeds

50g sunflower seeds

150ml sunflower oil

2 eggs

For filling

500g icing sugar

80g butter (salted)

125g cream cheese

1tsp vanilla bean paste or essence

Method

Heat oven to 180C/fan 160C/ gas mark 5, grease a deep 8 inch sandwich tin or a traybake tin and line with baking paper.

Mix all the dry ingredients together (sugar, flours, bicarbonate of soda, mixed spice and

This is simply the best Carrot Cake I have ever come across. I’ve had my fair share I can tell you and it’s not just because she is my wife either. Its genuinely fantastic and a yummy treat.

For cake 175g light brown muscovado sugar 100g wholemeal flour

WIn a separate bowl whisk together the oil and eggs then mix into the dry ingredients.

In a separate bowl whisk together the oil and eggs then mix into the dry ingredients.

Add the grated carrots, nuts and seeds in and mix with a spoon.

Your seasonal shopping list

ith its long coastline and rich agricultural heritage, the Norfolk Coast has lots of food producers, independent delis and micro-breweries where you can buy local ingredients and food.

Pick up freshly caught mussels from stalls and fish mongers, visit micro-breweries for locally produced beers and pop along to the numerous delis selling freshly made food created from local ingredients. Visit markets to sample and buy preserves, pies, seasonal fruit and vegetables and other local creations. At one special occasion, each year the North Norfolk Food and Drink Festival brings together stall holders so they can celebrate and offer their products for sale including fresh meat and game, vegetables, cakes, artisan beer, bread, tarts, juices, cakes and bakes, chocolates and much more.

North Norfolk Food and Drink Festival 30 and 31 August

More information: www.visitnorthnorfolk.com

Put the mixture into the tins and bake for 40 minutes or until firm.

Put the mixture into the tins and bake for 40 minutes or until firm.

Turn out onto the cooling tray and leave to cool.

In a large bowl mix all the ingredients for the filling and mix together on medium speed for

together on medium speed for 5 -7mins.

Decorate cake and then serve or freeze.

Mussels and crabs

Look out for fresh and tasty local seafood

Soft fruits, apples and plums

Freshly picked raspberries, or local apples like Norfolk Beefings

Malting barley and beers

With Stella Maris barley and locally brewed

Fresh vegetables

Look out for fresh peas, carrots and salads

Freshly baked

Make some Norfolk dumplings, Norfolk Vinegar Cake, and Norfolk shortcakes (also known as nobs) – check out tried and trusted WI

norfolk.thewi.org.uk/about-us/traditional-recipes norfolk-recipes

30 Travel tips

Getting about

To truly experience the coast, leave your car behind. Try the magic of foot, pedal, rail, bus or take to the water. Here are some links and tips for a healthy, clean and non-polluting journey that helps the area as much as it helps you.

WALKING

There’s a national trail all the way from King’s Lynn to Great Yarmouth now that parts longinaccessible have recently opened. It is brilliantly varied, and along much of it there are bus routes nearby so with a bit of planning you can make a bus/walk circuit.

Tips: Take water, a phone and plan your day ahead. Stick to the paths, and watch out for tides on beaches.

Find out more

norfolkra.org.uk – local publications ramblers.org.uk – advice on groups and walks norfolk.gov.uk – Norfolk Trails map and updates

CYCLING

National Cycle Network route 1 runs from the Highlands of Scotland down to Dover. In North Norfolk it runs between Ringstead and Wells-nextthe-Sea, linking King’s Lynn with Suffolk. A previous regional route followed the coastline between Wells-next-the-Sea and Great Yarmouth. Much of this route has unfortunately been

removed from the network due to car traffic volumes and speeds being deemed unsafe for those cycling and walking. The good news is that Sustrans has long-term aspirations to create a safe and accessible route along the entire Norfolk coastline.

Tips: Plan your route and wear hi vis clothing.

Find out more sustrans.org.uk/national-cycle-network explore.osmaps.com - maps cyclinguk.org – Rebellion Way maps and info

BY RAIL

More on discovering the coast on our beautiful illustrated map on p20-21

The Bittern Line runs from Sheringham to Norwich, with onward travel south and east in the Broads on the Wherry Lines. The Poppy Line (North Norfolk Railway) and Wells and Walsingham Light Railway are two of the other heritage railways of Norfolk which offer memorable trips back in time as well as journeys in the area.

Tips: Look out for group save and rover discount tickets when you book.

OPEN DAILY 10AM-4PM (9AM-4PM SCHOOL HOLIDAYS)

MAGICAL DEER SAFARI (BOOK ONLINE)

PONY RIDES/TREKS (SCHOOL HOLIDAYS) FRIENDLY FARM ANIMALS

SEASONAL ACTIVITIES: DEER CALVING BOTTLE

Find out more bitternline.com wherrylines.com norfolk.gov.uk/article/42975/Railway-Rambles salhousebroad.org.uk hovetongreatbroad.org.uk bvrw.co.uk burevalleycyclehire.co.uk

norfolkbroadscycling.co.uk www.nnrailway.co.uk www.wwlr.co.uk

BY BUS

When you travel by bus, the journey is all part of the day out. Enjoy the view over the hedges and the villages along the way. Without a car, you’re free to do a linear walk, enjoy a local tipple or to snooze on the way home.

Tips: Take the Coastliner out and walk back. Buses connect with trains in some cases, so you can get along the coast and then hop on a train. Find out more

goodjourney.org.uk – car free days out travelnorfolk.co.uk – a one stop shop for all your local travel needs

AFLOAT

There are all sorts of ways to travel by water here, from swimming and kayaking, surfing and stand up paddle boarding to sailing and day trips, and lots of small providers and trips along the coast to discover. Try an electric or solar powered boat on the Broads, a stunning Norfolk sailing wherry, or a traditional trip out to see the seals.

Tips: Swimming and paddling are part of the pleasure of the coast. But always treat the water with respect. Follow the beach safety tips from HM Coastguard: choose a lifeguarded beach, check local signs and flags for risk, know your location, and look after each other – keep a close eye on children and never let them swim alone. If you get into trouble call 999 and ask for the Coastguard. Find out more

glidesurfschool.co.uk

coastalexplorationcompany.co.uk hunstantonkayaks.co.uk beansboattrips.co.uk wherryyachtcharter.org rnli.org hmcoastguard.uk

HEACHAM

32 Events

THINGS TO DO AND SEE AROUND THE COAST

A selection of the many events happening throughout the year to whet your appetite... Discover more about the Dragonflies and Damselflies of Norfolk in July.

MAY

Birds of the Reedbed 6, 15, 20 & 29 May

RSPB Titchwell Marsh

Early morning is prime time to explore Titchwell’s reedbed habitats. Bearded Tits and Reedbed Warblers join the final strains of the dawn chorus. Listen out for the soulful boom of a Bittern. Keep eyes peeled for courting Marsh Harriers and maybe a lone otter moving through the reeds.

RSPB Adult £13 | Non RSPB Adult £16 events.rspb.org.uk

Butterflies of Norfolk, Now and in the Future

15 May

NWT Cley Marshes

Wildlife tour guide Carl Chapman talks us through the butterflies that occur in Norfolk, where and when to see them, and what we can expect for their future.

norfolkwildlifetrust.org.uk/WhatsOn.

Jacob & Drinkwater - Live Music Gig

17 May

East Anglia Gansey Group 18 May

Sheringham Museum

Off site at Rescue Wooden Boats, Stiff key All day 10-4.30pm. sheringhammuseum.co.uk

Wildlife Photorgraphy Workshop 18 May

This workshop incorporates time spent reviewing/learning basic photography skills including exposure, metering and focus followed by time on the reserve taking images with our expert by your side to help with camera settings and photography technique.

RSPB Adult £40 | Non RSPB Adult £50 events.rspb.org.uk

contrasting historic trains as our 50th Anniversary celebrations continue this Bank Holiday Weekend. nnrailway.co.uk

Needle Felting Workshop 25 May

RSPB Titchwell Marsh

The workshop is suitable for all abilities and requires no previous experience at all. You will learn the basics of needle felting, including creating a core shape and adding colour and definition to your finished make. We will be making a model owl – colour, design and type totally up to you! You will leave with a needle too so that you can continue your felting journey when you get home.

RSPB Adult £35 | Non RSPB Adult £43 events.rspb.org.uk

May Half Term Family Fun

26-31 May

RSPB Titchwell Marsh

Pond Dipping – 30-minute kit hire at the pond platform. Adventure Backpacks – All-day kit hire. All activities £4 each events.rspb.org.uk

Half Term S.T.E.A.M

27-30 May

Sense & Sensibility –Theatre in the Barn 22 May

Deepdale Camping

Deepdale Camping

The return of one of the most requested Festival acts, as part of their UK tour. South-west based duo Jacob & Drinkwater have been called “stand out new folk” by BBC6 Music Deepdale Camping & Rooms, Main Road, Burnham Deepdale, Norfolk, PE31 8DD. Tel: 01485 210256

The Pantaloons return for their 1st visit of the Summer, with their irreverent take on this Jane Austin classic. A show for all the family, a brilliant evening of comedy theatre. deepdalemusic.co.uk

Adventure Cinema 23, 24 & 25 May

Holkham Hall

Steam back in time this May half term and enjoy unlimited hop on hop off travel on two historic trains each day! Plus, jump off at Holt station for Half Term S.T.E.A.M to enjoy hands on crafts and shows from Mad Science. You can also spend some time in our brand-new play coach or getting hands with signalling on at Reedham Junction Signal box. nnrailway.co.uk

May Half Term Family Fun

29 May

RSPB Titchwell Marsh

Head to Holkham’s Walled Garden this May for an outdoor cinema showing of five fab flicks! Bring your friends and a picnic or buy food. Holkham.co.uk

Beginner’s Guide to Norfolk Birds –Spring Migration

Drop in activity sessions: Either in our welcome hub or outside (weather depending), have a go at nature crafting and take home some cool crafts - £4 per child events.rspb.org.uk

Brilliant Birds

30 May

NWT Cley Marshes

Learn about our brilliant birds! At this family event, we will show you how to use binoculars and then spend time spotting some of the special birds on the reserve. norfolkwildlifetrust.org.uk/ WhatsOn.

This workshop will cover the birds you can hope to meet during spring migration, where they might occur, and how to recognise them norfolkwildlifetrust.org.uk/WhatsOn Springtime Celebrations

Textile Study Day

30 May

Sheringham Museum

North Norfolk Railway

With behind the scenes look at John Craske’s works and Ganseys too. Drop in 10.30-12 & 2-3.30pm Bookable event- spaces limited on tour.

Don’t miss the chance for unlimited travel on three

sheringhammuseum.co.uk

Photo credit: David J Martin/shutterstock.com

JUN

Free Family Fun Day

1 June

NWT Cley Marshes

Enjoy fun, hands-on activities and free entry to the NWT Cley Marshes nature reserve and visitor centre for every child and their accompanying adult, all day! norfolkwildlifetrust.org.uk/WhatsOn

The Archaeology of Anglo-Saxon East Anglia

5 June

NWT Cley Marshes

Archaeologist and historian

David Robertson explores more than 600 years of Norfolk and Suffolk archaeology, from the departure of the Roman army around AD 410 to the Norman Conquest of 1066 norfolkwildlifetrust.org.uk/WhatsOn.

Cromer Pier’s Vintage Festival

7 June

Cromer Pier

Expect a full day of vintage fun for free on Cromer Pier, including live music, memorabilia, vintage trading stalls, and lots more.

Box Office 01263 512495 cromerpier.co.uk

Sketching Mammals

7 June

NWT Cley Marshes

Artist Martin Gibbons leads a workshop exploring techniques for sketching mammals, looking at artists from the past and the techniques developed to attain correct proportions and posture norfolkwildlifetrust.org.uk/WhatsOn.

Spring Bird Song Walks

13 June

NWT Cley Marshes

Enjoy a world of bird sounds on a walk around NWT Cley Marshes: discover how to tell a singing reed warbler from a sedge warbler and listen to the wild voices of lapwings and redshanks.

norfolkwildlifetrust.org.uk/WhatsOn.

Rails & Ales

13 - 15 June

Rails and Ales is an on-track celebration of both steam and diesel power coupled with a showcase of Norfolk’s brewing traditions that will give visitors the opportunity to see and ride behind steam engines, diesel locomotives, diesel railcars and choose from local ales and ciders to enjoy! Hop on and off and travel on a wide variety of trains and discover a different range of Norfolk tipples at each of the stations. nnrailway.co.uk

Raptors of Norfolk

14 June

NWT Cley Marshes

Raptors, or ‘birds of prey’ are one of the most charismatic and exciting groups of birds. This workshop takes a close look at these birds, where they may be seen, and how to identify them norfolkwildlifetrust.org.uk/WhatsOn

Local artist John Hurst returns with a series of exhibitions throughout the year in support of local charities, including the Norfolk Wildlife Trust, North Norfolk District Council’s Coastwise Awareness Project and All Saints Church in Beeston Regis. Renowned for his detailed and atmospheric watercolours of the Norfolk coast, John will be actively involved with his exbitions, enaging with visitors and patrons. Some exhibition dates include 3-5 May: Solo exhibition at All Saints Church, Beeston Regis, 24-26 May: Exhibit at Cley Village Hall, The Fairstead and 5-7 September: Showing at Salthouse Village Hall. Additionally, John’s artwork will be featured in Cley and Salthouse Marshes: Life Changing, a new book by David North benefiting the Norfolk Wildlife Trust. This will coincide with an exhibition from building, Cley Marshes Visitors’ Centre, showcasing works by leading wildlife artists.

World Knitting in Public Day

14 June, 10:30 - 4pm

Sheringham Museum

Drop in and meet our Gansey knitters sheringhammuseum.co.uk

Summer Garden and Outdoor Living Fair

15 June

Holkham Walled Garden

A wide range of stallholders will bring plants galore, crafts and other gardening goodies to help you create that ideal outdoor space and get your garden looking gorgeous.

Booking: Holkham.co.uk

Needle Felting Workshop

17 June

RSPB Titchwell Marsh

For details see 25 May

RSPB Adult £35 | Non RSPB Adult

Peat, Peewits and Putty Chalk: Restoring High Fen

20 June

NWT Cley Marshes

Nick Acheson joins Matthew Hay, Head of Natural Capital at Nattergal (a nature restoration company) to discuss the restoration of High Fen Wildland, a degraded peatland site in the Norfolk fens.

norfolkwildlifetrust.org.uk/WhatsOn

Iona Lane - Live Music Gig

21 June

Deepdale Camping

This Glasgow based folk singer returns to the Brick Barn for an evening of wonderful live music,

celebrating the natural landscape. 01485 210256 deepdalemusic.co.uk

The Restless Coast with Roger Morgan-Grenville

26 June

NWT Cley Marshes

Author Roger Morgan-Grenville discusses his new book, The Restless Coast: A journey around the Edge of Britain – an account of Britain’s 10,000 miles of coastline. norfolkwildlifetrust.org.uk/WhatsOn

TALK - Now and Then

27 June

Sheringham Museum

A visual history of Sheringham in Postcards – with Lynne Hurst. 12pm, running time 60 minutes. sheringhammuseum.co.uk

Cromer Pier Show 2025

28th June - 20th September

Sandringham Estate

The award-winning Cromer Pier Show returns with West End production values, thrilling acts, powerful vocals, hilarious comedy, and seaside fun. Box Office 01263 512495 cromerpier.co.uk

JUL

Family History Day

5 July, 10.30 - 12 & 2-3.30pm drop in Sherringham Museum sheringhammuseum.co.uk

Archaeological Excavations at Sedgeford

6 July - 1st August

Sedgeford, Boneyard Field

Our excavation sites are open to the public Sunday-Friday, from 10am4pm. We also run a variety of week courses and day taster sessions. sharp.org.uk

30 species of waders, so there’s no better place to get to grips with these enigmatic and engaging birds. RSPB Adult £16 | Non RSPB Adult £19 events.rspb.org.uk/titchwell Wildlife of the Night 16 July

NWT Cley Marshes

A unique opportunity to attend a night walk on a North Norfolk heath: firecrest, nightjar, hobby, woodcock and glow worms are all possible! norfolkwildlifetrust.org.uk/WhatsOn

The Shackleton Trio and Adam Clark - Live Music Gig 19 July

Deepdale Camping

Norfolk’s premier folk trio return for a sparkling evening of original and traditional folk music in the Brick Barn. 01485 210256 deepdalemusic.co.uk

Vintage Week 19 - 24 July

North Norfolk Railway Travel on your choice of three historic trains during a special Vintage Week, with trains dating from the Victorian era. Two powerful steam locomotives will be in action with restored carriages from the 1950s and 60s. Experience a heritage railcar allowing passengers to enjoy a driver’s eye-view and savour panoramic views of the delightful countryside.

Free Family Fun Days

6 July

NWT Cley Marshes

For details see 1 June

Dragonflies and Damselflies of Norfolk, Dr Pam Taylor 9 July

NWT Cley Marshes

An introduction to the dragonflies and damselflies of Norfolk, looking in particular at species likely to be found in North Norfolk with Dr Pam Taylor, Norfolk Dragonfly Recorder. norfolkwildlifetrust.org.uk/WhatsOn Birdsong Film Showing and Q&A 10 July

NWT Cley Marshes

Join us for a screening of Birdsong: ornithologist Seán Ronayne from is on a mission to record the sound of every bird species in Ireland (that’s nearly 200 birds!) norfolkwildlifetrust.org.uk/WhatsOn

What’s that Wader? Workshop and Walk 10 July, 10am - 12.30pm Titchwell Marsh

This workshop combines an informal, fun classroom session looking at wader identification in depth with some practical time on the reserve. You will cover different aspects of wader ID, including similar and confusing species, differences in summer and winter plumage, flight patterns and silhouettes. Titchwell’s wetland habitats are home to over

NWT Cley Marshes

Did you know we have over 270 bee species in the UK? During this walk we will discover which bee species make Cley Marshes their home. norfolkwildlifetrust.org,uk/WhatsOn

Pedal Norfolk featuring The Untamed 20 July

Holkham Park

Pedal Norfolk opens up a North Norfolk cycling paradise of quieter lanes and roads, historic, unspoilt villages and glorious coastline all under big wide open Norfolk skies. Holkham.co.uk

Marvellous Moth Morning

25 July

NWT Cley Marshes

Experience the opening of moth traps at Cley Marshes and be amazed at the beauty, variety and extraordinary markings of the amazing moths living around Cley Marhses. norfolkwildlifetrust.org.uk/WhatsOn. Scatalogical

25 July, 10.30am - 12pm, 2-3.30pm Sheringham Museum Craft event for kids. Make a fake joke poo to take home. www.sheringhammuseum.co.uk

Diva Opera

25 & 26 July

Holkham Hall

Diva Opera, Britain’s foremost chamber opera company, is set to return to the magnificent Marble Hall to perform The Marriage of Figaro and Don Pasquale. Holkham.co.uk

Blakeney Greasy Pole

26 July

Blakeney

Part of the Blakeney Regatta, the Blakeney Greasy Pole tradition dates back over a hundred years. Run or walk along a heavily-greased

Sample local ales while travelling on the North Norfolk Railway in June. Photo credit: Kev Gregory/shutterstock.com

Join a talk on the visual history of Sheringham in postcards in June.

Photo credit: J and S Photography/shutterstock.com

34 Events

30ft-long telegraph pole suspended over the sea and join the ranks of its conquerors.

The Golden Years

26 - 27 July

North Norfolk Railway

North Norfolk Railway offer this special Golden Years event, two days of classic vehicles and live music accompanied by an intensive train service in celebration of their Golden Anniversary! Recreating the atmosphere of the 1960s, 70s and 80s on and off the tracks, the period saw pioneering preservationists create the foundations of today’s much-loved railway.

nnrailway.co.uk

Bird Tunes - Miranda Rutter and Rob Harbron

27 July

NWT Cley Marshes

Fiddle player and composer Miranda Rutter is joined by Rob Harbron on concertina to present Bird Tunes, an exquisite new suite of folk tunes with birdsong at their core. norfolkwildlifetrust.org.uk/WhatsOn.

AUG

Wells Carnival

1 - 10 August (Carnival Day Sat 9)

Wells-next-the-Sea

A week of family fun and events including a Carnival Day procession around the town featuring floats, fancy-dress and much more. wellscarnival.co.uk.

Free Family Fun Days

3 August

NWT Cley Marshes For details see 1 June

Outdoor Theatre

5 & 12 August

Holkham Park

Two evenings of open-air family theatre, including showings of

13

Twelfth Night and The Big Bad Wolf. Bring a picnic and sit back and enjoy!

Holkham.co.uk

What’s that Wader?

Workshop and Walk

5, 14 & 19 August, 10am - 12.30pm

Titchwell Marsh

RSPB Adult £16 | Non RSPB Adult £19

For details see 10 July.

Robin Hood - Open Air Theatre

7 August

Dalegate Market

The Pantaloons return for their 2nd visit of the Summer, join utter legends Robin, Marian and the Merry Men in Sherwood Forest. A show for all the family, a brilliant evening of comedy theatre.

www.dalegatemarket.co.uk

Gone Wild Festival

7, 8, 9 & 10 August

Holkham Park

Gone Wild Festival is set to return to Holkham Park. Say goodbye to screens and routines, and immerse yourself in a world of live music, thrilling activities and unforgettable adventure.

Holkham.co.uk

Simon Barnes - Spring is the Only Season

9 August

NWT Cley Marshes

Author and journalist Simon Barnes joins us to talk about his new book Spring is the Only Season, where he delves into the science behind the seasons.

Autumn Trail Revealed

10 & 24 August, 10am - 11:30am

RSPB Titchwell Marsh

Join our knowledgeable and friendly guide to explore the Autumn trail! This section of the reserve is accessible to visitors only during August, September, and October, so be sure to schedule a visit with us to uncover this unique conservation area.

RSPB Adult £10 | Non RSPB Adult £12 events.rspb.org.uk

Invertebrate Workshop with Alice Lee

13 August

NWT Cley Marshes

Join artist Alice Lee (Parallel Point) for a fun and free workshop. Get creative and colour winged minibeast (invertebrate) designs, before making your own animated mobile. All ages and skill levels welcome. norfolkwildlifetrust.org.uk/WhatsOn.

Snettisham and Titchwell

Birding Safari

14 & 24 August

Titchwell Marsh

Spend the morning at the wader watch point and witness large numbers of Knot as they leave overnight roosts to whirl across the mudflats of The Wash. Explore the rest of Snettisham reserve before heading off to Titchwell Marsh for more fantastic birding. Breakfast or brunch, snacks & drinks included.

RSPB Adult £80 | Non RSPB Adult £100 events.rspb.org.uk

Sandringham Concert Weekend

15-17 August

Sandringham Estate

Enjoy a weekend of live concerts at picturesque Sandringham, featuring headline acts from Stereophonics and Grammy award winning artists such as Michael Bublé and Mariah Carey this summer. www.lovenorfolk.co.uk

NWT Cley Marshes

Soaring harmonies and roaring fiddles combine with guitar, mandolin and banjo to play songs of the sea, migration and environmental struggle norfolkwildlifetrust.org.uk/WhatsOn. Marvellous Moth Morning

NWT Cley Marshes

For details see 25 July.

Join a birding safari this August. Photo credit: Erni/shutterstock.com

Hamlet - Open Air Shakespeare

23 August

Dalegate Market

The Pantaloons return for their 3rd visit of the Summer, with their hilarious take of this Shakespeare tale.

dalegatemarket.co.uk

Festival on Rails

23 - 28 August

North Norfolk Railway

Enjoy the Festival on Rails, where you can see and travel behind at least 3 steam locomotives. Rover tickers are available for unlimited travel, allowing you to hop on and off all day!

nnrailway.co.uk

Burn Valley Summer Party

24 August

Burn Valley, Beacon Hill Road, King’s Lynn NR21 9LN

Live Jazz music playing at the winery with food by Burn Valley Catering and full Burn Valley bar.

burnvalleyvineyard.co.uk

Wildlife Filming for Families

26 August

NWT Cley Marshes

Explore and film exciting coastal wildlife at Cley using handheld cameras. Then watch your films on the big screen in our education centre. All equipment provided! norfolkwildlifetrust.org.uk/WhatsOn.

Whirling Wader Walk and Breakfast at RSPB Snettisham

26 August, 7:30am

RSPB Snettisham

Witness the sights and sounds of thousands of waders whirling across The Wash. Only occurring on the highest tides of the year, this nature

spectacle combines the mesmerising flights of waders with awe inspiring scenery. Round off your morning with breakfast at The Rose and Crown pub. RSPB Adult £30 | Non-RSPB Adult £38 events.rspb.org.uk

Summer Steam Gala

29 – 31 August

Celebrate North Norfolk Railway’s Golden Anniversary with the Summer Steam Gala. Travel behind steam locomotives and experience demonstration goods trains recalling the days when freight was more important than passengers. nnrailway.co.uk

SEP

Fossils of the East of England

4 September

NWT Cley Marshes

Join geoscientist Matthew Staitis for a look at climate change through the lens of local fossils and minerals from the past 66 million years. norfolkwildlifetrust.org.uk/WhatsOn.

Family History Day

6 September, 10.30-12 & 2-3.30pm

Sheringham Museum

For more information see www.sheringhammuseum.co.uk

Free Family Fun Days

7 September

NWT Cley Marshes

For details see 1 June

norfolkwildlifetrust.org.uk/WhatsOn. Autumn Trail Revealed 7, 14 & 21 September, 10-11.30am Titchwell Marsh For details see 10 August. RSPB Adult £10 | Non RSPB Adult £12 events.rspb.org.uk/titchwell

Whirling Wader Walk and Breakfast at RSPB Snettisham

9 September, 5.45am RSPB Snettisham

For details see 26 August

KING’S LYNN, NORFOLK

Snettisham and Titchwell

Birding Safari

10 & 11 September, 6.15am – 1pm –10th, 7am – 1.30pm – 11th.

For details see 14 August

RSPB Adult £80 | Non RSPB Adult £100

Brancaster Staithe Sea Shanty Festival

12 & 14 September

Brancaster Staithe and Burnham

Deepdale

Sea shanty groups gather in Brancaster Staithe for a weekend of live music, singing songs for the sea. brancasterstaithe-shantyfest.co.uk

Pointillism Illustration Workshop 24 September

NWT Cley Marshes

Join photographer, writer and illustrator Gail Ashton and learn to illustrate using the pointillism technique. norfolkwildlifetrust.org.uk/WhatsOn.

Whirling Wader Walk and Breakfast at RSPB Snettisham

24 September, 6.45am

RSPB Snettisham

For details see 26 August RSPB Adult £30 | Non-RSPB Adult £38

Hedgehogs with Hodemedods

with local artist Fehmi Gökeş this September.

Mosaic Workshop –with Fehmi Gökeş

19 September

NWT Cley Marshes

Fehmi has been making unique mosaics for 30 years. In this workshop you will make your own mosaic and learn some of the techniques that Fehmi uses. norfolkwildlifetrust.org.uk/WhatsOn.

Steam Back to the Forties

20-21 September

Swing back in time for a Forties weekend of live music, classic vehicles, trade stands, historical displays and wartime fashions at all three stations, all accompanied by a frequent steam service. nnrailway.co.uk

40s Weekend

20 September, 10.30 - 12 & 23.30pm drop in Sheringham Museum

See objects from our handling collection www.sheringhammuseum.co.uk

PAUL DICKSON

TOURS

36 Events IN CROMER

George Skipper in Cromer – celebrating the legacy of the great Victorian/Edwardian Norfolk architect.

NWT Cley Marshes

Join Julia from Hodmedods

Hedgehog Support and learn about the seasonal behaviour of this wonderful creature, along with some practical tips for making your garden hedgehog-friendly. norfolkwildlifetrust.org.uk/WhatsOn

Nick Acheson in conversation with Tim Birkhead

NWT Cley Marshes

Tim Birkhead, renowned ornithologist, joins Nick Acheson to discuss his recent book, The Great Auk: Its Extraordinary Life, Hideous Death and Mysterious Afterlife. norfolkwildlifetrust.org.uk/WhatsOn.

India Electric Co - Live Music Gig

27 September

Deepdale Camping

Deepdale welcomes back this wonderful band with their songwriting and melodies, together with the most accomplished playing, supported

Hodmedods this September. Photo credit: ulfi_cargo12/shutterstock.com

The Birth of Poppyland – the development of Cromer as a tourism resort from the late 18th to the early 20th century.

For tour dates, including Norwich tours, see: www.pauldicksontours.co.uk/tour-dates or email paul@pauldicksontours.co.uk, 07801 103737

by Norwich’s finest folk duo. An unmissable evening of music

Tel: 01485 210256 deepdalemusic.co.uk

OCTAutumn Trail Revealed

5 & 12 October, 10-11.30am

Titchwell Marsh

RSPB Adult £10 | Non RSPB Adult £12

For details see 10 August

Free Family Fun Days

5 October

NWT Cley Marshes

For details see 1 June

Whirling Wader Walk and Breakfast at RSPB Snettisham

9 October, 6am

RSPB Snettisham

For details see 26 August

RSPB Adult £30 | Non-RSPB Adult £38

Nick Acheson in conversation with Hugh Warwick

10 October

NWT Cley Marshes

Join Nick Acheson and author Hugh Warwick for an autumnal evening talking all things hedgehog, along with delving in to some of the topics from Hugh’s fascinating publication norfolkwildlifetrust.org.uk/WhatsOn.

Snettisham and Titchwell

Birding Safari

10 October, 6.45am - 1.30pm

For details see 14 August

RSPB Adult £80 | Non RSPB Adult £100

Fiftieth Finale

25 October - 2 November

Close out the main season with the Fiftieth Finale and welcome the renowned steam locomotive 7000 “Britannia” to the Poppy Line Travel behind “Britannia” and locomotives from the North Norfolk Railway’s home fleet. nnrailway.co.uk

Halloween’s A Hoot

30 October, 10am - 3pm

Drop in activity sessions. Have a go at nature crafting and take home something scary. £4 per child events.rspb.org,uk

Halloween Children’s Trail

31 October - 1 November, All day: 10 - 4.30pm

Sheringham Museum sheringhammuseum.co.uk

NOV

Enjoy some festive entertainment at Cromer Pier’s Christmas Show.

with West End production values, including dazzling costumes, thrilling acts, powerhouse vocals, and dance routines to get you in the holiday spirit, hosted by Norfolk’s Olly Day! Box Office 01263 512495 cromerpier.co.uk

International Gansey Day 22 November

Experience a festive extravaganza at Thursford.

Thursford Christmas Spectacular 8th November - 23rd December

Thursford

Celebrate the holidays with this extravaganza of non-stop singing, dancing, music, humour and variety.

Enjoy a fast-moving celebration of the festive season featuring a cast of 130 making this the biggest Christmas show of its kind in Europe. 01328 878477 www.thursford.com

Cromer Pier Christmas Show 15 November - 28 December

Cromer

The acclaimed Cromer Pier Christmas Show delivers festive entertainment

Sheringham Museum, All day 10am - 4:30pm. 11 am Talk & 2pm workshop, and other exhibits. Drop in, no booking required. www.sheringhammuseum.co.uk

Christmas Shopping Day 29 November

Sheringham Museum

Take up our offer on museum entrance with shop purchase www.sheringhammuseum.co.uk

DEC

Man the Lifeboats - Deepdale Christmas Party 20 December Deepdale

These gents return for their annual visit, and this time in December for the Deepdale Christmas Party. 01485 210256 www.deepdalemusic.co.uk

The Coaching Inn Group

The Manor Hotel in Blakeney is a coastal boutique dream. Recently named one of Tripadvisor’s ‘Best of the Best’ in the country, you’re sure to enjoy a memorable experience with their AA Rosette for Culinary Excellence

Experience Blakeney: www.blakeneymanor.co.uk

The Pheasant Hotel in Holt is situated in the beautiful Kelling Estate. Part of The Coaching Inn Group ‘Signature Collection’, the Pheasant is a four silver AA star hotel, which also holds an AA Rosette for Culinary Excellence.

The King William IV is a real hidden gem in Sedgeford. A quaint, nine bedroom cosy country pub and hotel, that is perfectly situated near Heacham, Hunstanton & Snettisham.

Check out our latest offers: www.thekingwilliamsedgeford. co.uk