Sussex
Scrapbook ~ Wildlife walks throughout the year
22nd April 2017
Norfolk
The byway to Sloley
Many many moons ago, believe it or not, I used to be a choirboy at St Peter's
church Crawley. Under the mentorship of Father Ian Smith we went for more hikes,
expeditions, camps and visits than even the scouts could manage (which I was
also doing concurrently). We explored all of Sussex and even visited Lindisfarne
and spent two weeks on a boat going the full length of the river Shannon in
Ireland. They were great days. I hadn't seen him for nearly 40 years but found
out he was retired and living in Norfolk near the Wash. This visit was a great
chance to meet up once again, recount old times and catch up on what everyone was
doing. It was also a chance for us to visit some of the places that Gill's
parents loved so much, namely Cley Marshes Nature Reserve run by the Norfolk
Wildlife Trust and the village and area of Wells-next-the-Sea, both on the north
coast of Norfolk. We also planned on riding down to Hickling Broad and trying to
spot our greatest avian nemesis - the shy, secretive and thus far totally
elusive Bearded Tit.
The hides at Cley are fantastic
We could quite happily live in one of these!
Hundreds of acres of reedbed make this a perfect habitat for some extremely shy
birds.
Another one for the collection.
The most delicious crab sandwich EVER!
The sea at Wells-next-the-sea goes out for miles leaving a huge sandy beach.
A boat load of whelks. Not something you see every day.
Another hide, this time at Hickling Broad. A stunningly beautiful place.
And onto a 360 degree, thatched hide on stilts. Just what we needed for scouring
the reed beds.
We saw one! A short glimpse of a Bearded Tit. Mission accomplished.
Take the time to read
the
countryside code for yourself and please stick to it at all times.