coast DISCOVERY
LIZ HOLLIS travels to Norfolk and Suffolk to explore what this impressive coastline has to offer
Stretching 140 miles between The Wash and the estuaries of the rivers Orwell and Stour, the coastline of Norfolk and Suffolk has some unique and unexpected attractions.
With every justification it has become one of the most-visited coastal regions in the UK with its enviable list of holiday resorts and beaches to explore. Top of the tourist list are the coastal towns of Cromer, Southwold and Aldeburgh and the famous golden sands at Great Yarmouth.
Nature-lovers, walkers and birdwatchers are also spoiled for choice with much of this area designated an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. The first Wildlife Trust in the UK was set up at Norfolk’s Cley marshes in 1926 as a permanent bird-breeding ground. These days, the entire East
Anglian coastline is home to extensive nature reserves where you can walk for miles in the wilderness and spot an impressive variety of wildlife.
There is much to discover, but wherever you find yourself along the coast of Norfolk and Suffolk, it is invariably the vast skies that dominate this North Sea landscape.
THE NORFOLK COAST
Dramatic coastal erosion along huge sections of the Norfolk shoreline is threatening homes and livelihoods – but also exposing thrilling, new archaeological finds.
This part of the world, now known as the Deep History Coast, is home to the earliest traces of human life. In 2013, a storm at Happisburgh exposed 850,000-year-old human footprints, the oldest found outside Africa.
Meanwhile, beach erosion at Holme also revealed Seahenge, a mysterious Bronze-age circle of oaks and at West Runton the UK’s biggest pre-ice age mammoth remains were discovered.
Apart from the fossil-hunting, the star attraction, however, is the exhilarating combination of big skies and vast sandy beaches on the north Norfolk coast. As the tide retreats, it leaves miles of endless sand, mudflats and twisting creeks.
One of the biggest treks to reach the sea at low tide is found at Holkham. Part of the Holkham Estate, the 18th century Palladian hall and its nearby beach are accustomed to visiting Hollywood stars, including Gwyneth Paltrow and Keira Knightley. It’s a popular movie location and Shakespeare in Love was filmed here.
The beach at Horsey and the four-mile shingle spit at Blakeney Point are the best places to see the seals, ideally on a boat trip from Blakeney Harbour or Morston Quay. The Blakeney colony of Common and Grey seals is thought to be the biggest in England.
