Very flat, Norfolk
While there is no denying the truth of Noel Coward's famous quote, the little coastal hills of Norfolk are quite exquisite. They won't test your hill climbing skills or challenge your head for heights, but they provide great views over sea and land. (However, they did provide a stern test of my map reading abilities.)
County top, Beacon Hill (336ft), is popularly known as Roman Camp. It is owned by the National Trust and forms part of West Runton & Beeston Regis Heath. The NT have thoughtfully provided a car park at the top, a pair of seats to enjoy the sea view and a flagpole to identify the top. (All hallmarks of a quality top.) According to the NT leaflet there is nothing between Beacon Hill and the North Pole, except for a lot of sea. This will explain the arctic winds you can get sometimes on this coast.
The area is a mixture of woodland and sandy heath with large areas of gorse and heather. The woodlands had some thick carpets of bluebells. Nearby Incleborough Hill (also NT) has a finer view than Beacon Hill, with a full 360° panorama of sea, sky and hills, with several square church towers, so typical of Norfolk. On a clear day you can see from Cromer Lighthouse to Blakeney Point, about 15 miles of coastline.
This small part of Norfolk is a great place to visit. This is my 5th trip. Noddy and I inadvertently bagged Norfolk several years ago. Within a few miles of the campsite, you can enjoy historic houses and gardens, steam railways, military machinery, shire horses as well as the seaside. Lots of lovely sandy beaches all along the coast and typical English seaside resorts like Cromer and Sheringham.
Beacon Hill is sited on the Norfolk Coastal Path from Hunstanton to Cromer. This must be one of the most accessible National Trails as it runs parallel with the A149 and is served by the handy Coastal Hopper bus service. Most of the North Norfolk coast line is designated an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and it’s easy to see why; sandy beaches, shingle spits, pretty harbours, mudflats and wide open skies. There are several important bird reserves and a large seal colony at Blakeney Point.
I camped at the Caravan Club campsite nestling in a fold beneath Incleborough Hill. It is an idyllic place, peaceful, deep in the countryside and ringed by footpaths. It was also very handy for Beacon Hill. My intention was to use the walk set out in the Jarrold Short Walks book which I could pick up at point B. After about a mile it was obvious I was lost (or as I prefer, not in the place I expected to be) as there was no pig farm in the instructions. Even with 2 maps, a compass, a guide book and a GPS, I could not work out where I was.
There was no choice to retrace my steps to last identified location. However when I did so, I realised that it wasn’t where I thought it was and I had never been at point B to start with, which was probably explains why none of the instructions made sense. I had managed to convert a gentle stroll into a route march. The whole walk took 3 hours, was 4½ miles and involved about 500ft of climbing, and very enjoyable it was too, warm, sunny, with just birdsong for company.
Norfolk county top, small but perfectly formed. A quality topping experience.
P.S. What Norfolk lacks in hills it makes up for with tall, square church towers, which provide a similar sort of service, somewhere to climb up and admire the view. This is Cromer and my favourite niece and nephew provide the commentary.
Archie and I are setting off to France for a couple of months sans Noddy. I think Noddy is a bit too old for foreign travel, especially as pet passports mean numerous trips to the vet (Noddy’s least favourite person) it seems wiser to leave him behind.
I plan to tour the Auvergne region of extinct volcanoes and then onto the Cevennes mountains and the Mediterranean. Top of my list of things to see are the Puy de Dôme, the Puy du Sancy, Le Puy-en-Velay and the Pont du Gard. I also intend to see many of the wonderful gorges in the region, the Tarn and Jointe, the Truyère and the Ardèche to name a few.
