Springer’s Retreat On The Rivers

[kpnut]

23 hours ago, Lulu said:

finally some blue sky 

What a difference a day makes!

A few squally showers on the way to St Benets this morning to meet up with Ynys Mon on moonlight shadow for a dog walk. The sign of things to come. 
We had a fine half hour, the dogs got on really well with Pozzick wanting to play, Finlay doing his normal “I’m busy, you come along if you want” and Seren showing her speed and agility running to and fro. Another rain shower started as we got back to the boats. We went out separate ways as we both wanted to get moored up before the forecast wind and proper rain arrived. 
My potential choices were down the side dyke at Ranworth, but a few trees there, Fleet Dyke where it’s more sheltered and the sensible choice! Or Acle, for the adventure! I chose Acle.

One reason was the boat needed a pump out, having not done so during the icy weather last month. I had rung Maycraft but unfortunately they were closed because of illness. 
Bridgecraft confirmed I could call in there but it did mean me having to tie up to their double moored boats. I had to calm my nerves as it always seems difficult mooring at their yard,  what with tide or wind and today, both. Anyway, I managed and was well chuffed. 
A quick one minute trip to the opposite bank saw me safely moored up with spring line and now, at 8.40pm, and the wind blowing a hoolie, it is incredibly noisy but the boat’s stable. 

So to sit in the noisy boat all afternoon or get wet on a walk? The walk won, of course. 
Up the bank on the Pedro side towards the angling club hut, turning left through the woods and heading for the houses at Upton Green. Then over the fields past Fishley church to head back towards Acle. I could have gone straight over the road and down to the High Street but if I’d succumbed to a cafe or pub there, it’d have been dark for walking back to the boat. So I continued back via Acle Dyke and the Hall Farm moorings. Finlay was far too muddy to be welcome in the Acle Bridge Inn so we went across to Pedros basin for a swim on the lead, up and down till the water around him lost its murkiness. He came out beautifully clean. And we went for half a cider and a bag of mini cheddars in the pub. And most importantly, to drape my coat and gloves on their radiator. 

It was a seriously muddy walk, pretty, interesting and varied, 3 3/4 miles, about 1hr 40, but one that needs saving for a spell of dry weather. 
 

Now to brave the wind and let the dog out. 

 

[SwanR]

Kate I don't know how you do it. I was back to work today in my little home office but determined to get some fresh air in my lunch break ... put my rain jacket on and walked round the block before coming back in for a cheese toastie ... it was too cold and blowy and wet to be bothered. 

Stay safe down there at Acle. Hopefully the weather will cheer up tomorrow ... although all my weather app says is wind!

[YnysMon]

I don't know how Kate does it either. I don't seem to have walked very far at all so far this trip. I've been wanting to walk to Fishley church for some time though. What do you recommend Kate...wellies or walking boots?

[kpnut]

8 minutes ago, YnysMon said:

wellies or walking boots?

Definitely wellies. It’s a lovely walk up through the wood from the angling club, I’ve done it in the summer too, but very very claggy at the moment. 
A better bet if just wanting to visit the church is to park on the road in Acle near the library and walk up that way. It’s a short walk along a muddy lane past some houses and the back of the school playing fields and then along one track, again muddy. 
The signpost says there’s a pillbox too, which you can just about find under a lot of vegetation as you leave the lane at the end of the houses. 

40 minutes ago, SwanR said:

I don't know how you do it

Jean, I’m so used to years of working outside in all weathers it doesn’t really bother me. What bothers me more is all the wet clothes when I get back to the boat, hence trying to dry them off a bit in the pub!

And why my son in law fitted an extra heater vent in the bathroom at the back, which I now use as a drying room. It’s quite effective. 

[Gracie]

8 hours ago, kpnut said:

 hence trying to dry them off a bit in the pub!

But of course...... Now that's a good one  x

 

[kpnut]

What a noisy night! The racket of the water on the hull lulled me to sleep, but I woke up quite early and it stopped me dropping off again, so the earplugs were found and used. My goodness, instant peace. I hadn’t realised how my brain had had such a hammering with the noise. So a good couple of hours extra sleep and I awoke when it was light and the men drilling a piling near the Dunes Cafe had started work. 
 

I headed for Boundary Farm moorings, somewhere I’ve been wanting to try for ages. The morning was beautiful but still very windy. Once I arrived, the sunshine got the better of me and I got the mop and sponge out and shampooed the boat. I’m pleased the slightly green look is now history (for a while at least). 
Once finished, it was still only 12.30 so the plan was a walk to Thurne for a bowl of soup in the Lion. I was going to follow the riverbank up and down the marina banks then along to Thurne Dyke, but at the top of the marina moorings, I found a permissive path to Thurne along a very nice and clean grass track.

It came out on the lane and I turned left along to the pub. It had only taken 25 mins from the boat, 1 mile, so I decided that rather than stop in the pub I’d go exploring a bit further. So I carried on down the lane past the pub and onto a footpath across the fields, eventually coming out next to the church. 
I can 100% confirm that the Thurne giant, that people often comment about in the view of the church from the river, is an ivy covered telegraph pole. I wonder if it grows naturally like that or if someone is having a laugh with a hedge trimmer. 

After a little look in the church, which has what seems a very long nave and a thatched roof 

I carried on across the fields, none of which were muddy, and ended up walking down South Oby dyke back to the river

and along the river back to Boundary Farm mooring. 

In total, 3 miles, 1hour 20. I would have had time after all for that soup! Next time I’ll walk the other way round and end up at the pub!

With the sun still shining brightly, I decided to finish the job I’d started this morning, so got out the polish and Springer’s Retreat is now ready for the season. 
Still only 3pm, so I set off for three quarters of an hour to Fleet Dyke. It really was beautiful on the way with the low sun gleaming through the golden reeds. 
A thoroughly productive day!

 

[SwanR]

Sounds wonderful. Glad it has been a better day out there. 

[YnysMon]

Isn’t Thurne church delightful. I loved the old fashioned lights. Did you find the peep hole at one end of the church that looks directly in the direction of St Benet’s?

[kpnut]

oh no I didn’t Helen. Next time!!!!

why have I turned into italics?

[Vaughan]

12 hours ago, YnysMon said:

Did you find the peep hole at one end of the church that looks directly in the direction of St Benet’s?

 I have read that this is where a light was shone in the direction of the abbey, to inform the monks that a service was about to be held in the church. There is evidence that there used to be a ferry across the Thurne, somewhere near to the "Bishop's bungalow"* which gave direct access on foot, between the two. 

 

* That's another story!

[kpnut]

That’s very interesting Vaughan. Thanks. I will definitely visit again. 
 

Is it my eyesight or has the cross at St Benet’s been straightened up a bit? It was decidedly leaning backwards in the summer. 

[YnysMon]

5 hours ago, Vaughan said:

 somewhere near to the "Bishop's bungalow"* which gave direct access on foot, between the two. 

 

* That's another story!

I’d love to hear more. 

[Vaughan]

 

Here it is, photo taken in 2017, just in front of St Benets Level Mill, between Thurne Mouth and Thurne Dyke.

This was the holiday home of the Rt. Rev. Aubrey Aitken, Bishop of Lynn, whose tomb can be seen in Norwich Cathedral.

In the 60's and 70's he was well known for his sermons in churches all over the Broads.  He was a genuine Broadsman, whose Bishop's crook was fashioned as a boat-hook, with the bottom end as the "bott" of a quant pole.

His family have deep roots on the Broads, especially in boatyards such as Harvey Eastwood and Eastwood Whelpton.

I am especially attached to Thurne Church since in the 70s it was effectively closed, with no vicar. All the same, one Christmas, we managed, with the Bishop's influence, to get permission to hold a service of nine lessons and carols, with the choir all formed from members of the East Anglian Cruising Club, who were based on the Thurne and whose "clubhouse" was the Lion.

One of those memories of the Broads in the 70's, that I shall never forget.

[YnysMon]

2 hours ago, Vaughan said:

 

Here it is, photo taken in 2017, just in front of St Benets Level Mill, between Thurne Mouth and Thurne Dyke.

This was the holiday home of the Rt. Rev. Aubrey Aitken, Bishop of Lynn, whose tomb can be seen in Norwich Cathedral.

In the 60's and 70's he was well known for his sermons in churches all over the Broads.  He was a genuine Broadsman, whose Bishop's crook was fashioned as a boat-hook, with the bottom end as the "bott" of a quant pole.

His family have deep roots on the Broads, especially in boatyards such as Harvey Eastwood and Eastwood Whelpton.

I am especially attached to Thurne Church since in the 70s it was effectively closed, with no vicar. All the same, one Christmas, we managed, with the Bishop's influence, to get permission to hold a service of nine lessons and carols, with the choir all formed from members of the East Anglian Cruising Club, who were based on the Thurne and whose "clubhouse" was the Lion.

One of those memories of the Broads in the 70's, that I shall never forget.

Thank you Vaughan. A lovely piece of the Broads history which deserves being recorded. 

[Wussername]

8 hours ago, Vaughan said:

 I have read that this is where a light was shone in the direction of the abbey, to inform the monks that a service was about to be held in the church. There is evidence that there used to be a ferry across the Thurne, somewhere near to the "Bishop's bungalow"* which gave direct access on foot, between the two. 

 

* That's another story!

The peep hole was once suggested that if a light was shone towards the Abbey it served as a warning to the monks that danger was imminent. From raiding hordes coming up river. 

The purpose of the peep hole was indeed less dramatic. It had a purpose.

You must ask the question, why are so many norfolk churches isolated,  so far away from the villages which they now serve. From that you will find the answer.

Oh, as an aside, when you leave this delightful church and return to your boat, on your left there is a field, with corn, sugar beet, whatever depending on the year, on the season. To the right of the field, a high bank. Hidden from the road. Enter the field, carefully, not to damage the crop. Climb the bank. You will be rewarded by one of the most magnificent views of broadland.

Andrew.

[kpnut]

I’m thinking I need to start a notebook of things I need to re-visit and/or check out.

There’s the peephole, the view Wussername has just mentioned, Fishley church as I still haven’t been able to go in (it’s only open on Fridays), the church Helen said about with the best screen (I’ll have to look back through posts to find that one), the grave of Sir Peter Scott at Irstead, Berney Arms railway station, among numerous other things of interest.
 

Always good to have something to look forwards to. Thanks. 

[YnysMon]

Best screen, in my opinion is Barton Turf, easily walkable from Neatishead or Paddy’s Lane.  Very close second, some would say first, is Ranworth. I do have a slight (?) obsession with rood screens, so have visited quite a lot of other churches in the vicinity.  Catfield is walkable from Wood End Staithe. Others like Worstead and East Ruston depend on a car journey. Upton and Irstead also have rood screens, though not to the same quality and more damaged.

For those interested in Norfolk and Suffolk churches, there are a couple of very good websites compiled by the same guy.  

http://www.norfolkchurches.co.uk/mainpage.htm

http://www.suffolkchurches.co.uk/churchlists.htm

 

 

[Vaughan]

9 hours ago, Wussername said:

To the right of the field, a high bank. Hidden from the road. Enter the field, carefully, not to damage the crop. Climb the bank. You will be rewarded by one of the most magnificent views of broadland.

It is indeed a lovely view. One of the best places to watch the 3 rivers race, as you can see almost all of the course!  On a clear day from there, you can see Beccles.

[kpnut]

7 hours ago, YnysMon said:

Best screen, in my opinion is Barton Turf

That’s the one Helen. Now on my list. I haven’t been in Upton church either so that’s an easy one to go to sometime. And now you’ve given me a couple for when I get bored of diy when moored ‘at home’. 
Have you ever been in that church with the imposing round tower on the road between Stalham and Wroxham?

 

20 minutes ago, Vaughan said:

It is indeed a lovely view

I’m looking forward to going back there on my next trip and investigating. The view across from the field I walked along between the church and Oby was super so a higher up one will be brilliant. 

[kpnut]

Thursday 5th Jan

What a beautiful start to the day. Calm and quiet were bonuses!

Before breakfast, I took a walk along Fleet Dyke and then the riverbank to the pumping station with the two dead trees, getting quite enthusiastic about continuing a circular walk down the farm track and into South Walsham and back round by the boatyard, but one look at the state of the track persuaded me to turn round and walk back along the riverbank. Even so, Finlay needed a little swim before being allowed on the boat!

As we cruised along past St Benet’s (no boats) and up the river Ant (still no boats) I was able to see a lot more than in the summer, with the reeds having died down. The excavation works at the Ant mouth have opened up the view across towards Horning and I was able to see all the ponds etc on the opposite bank as I approached How Hill. 

Ludham Bridge board said 7’4” as I went through half an hour before high tide. And I moored up at Irstead for the first time ever. It’s normally either occupied with boats or fishermen, or at a time I don’t want to stop. An otter was playing about in the water as I came to, but after I’d sorted the boat out, it had gone. 
 

By this time, the beautiful start to the day had degenerated into fine drizzle. I bided my time a while, got togged up for a wet afternoon and set off for Alderfen Broad. 

[Vaughan]

28 minutes ago, kpnut said:

The view across from the field I walked along between the church and Oby was super so a higher up one will be brilliant. 

 

This is a painting by David Dane, which he painted from the same spot, beside the church.  It is not accurate as he has used a bit of artist's licence to compose the picture.

It is in fact, the first painting he did as a professional artist, in 1976.  I bought it as soon as he showed to me, and it wasn't even finished at the time!  His style has changed a lot over the years.

Whenever I look at it, I want to get my oilskins on, before that thunderstorm arrives from over Horning!

[kpnut]

My afternoon walk to Alderfen Broad and Neatishead was nice and varied.
Firstly along the lane from the staithe. That one’s called Shoals Rd and always seems muddy, I think because it’s so tree lined and the fallen leaves squish into mud in the autumn. Then a left turn down Irstead Street. Continuing along there round some bends eventually  took me to a little bridge on a sharp left hand bend and a footpath sign. This makes its way along one side of Alderfen Broad and is the only path that dogs are allowed. Wow, it was muddy! A bog rather than a marsh I’d say. Glad I had my wellies and waterproof leggings on, even though I had started to regret being so togged up as the drizzle had gone and it was rather warm. 
The path eventually sorted itself out somewhat and was delightful, walking along next to a dyke.  

Reaching the end of that there’s a path to the right that leads to a very bouncy boardwalk and a viewing platform.

Dog on lead at this point but even so, as I approached the screen of the viewing platform with him pulling, I made too much noise and as I stood up on the log kindly supplied to see over the top, the ducks took flight, leaving me with just two swans to look at in the distance. Oh well!!

Back along the boardwalk to the junction, there’s a signboard and a carpark. I wouldn’t suggest taking a car along the track to it though, as it’s full of mud and potholes. Even with a 4x4 it’d churn it up unnecessarily in my opinion. Halfway along this track there’s a footpath to the right which leads round to the lane to Workhouse Common. Two beautiful retrievers and a spaniel came to loudly say hello at their gate and I had to throw their ball back under the gate for them. Their owner came out to see what all the noise was about and with that, one Goldie decided the hedge made a good gate hole and joined me on the road. Finlay was still pretty unaware of what was going on, just calmly said hello and carried in rummaging on the verge! The dog was rescued and as I was showing the owner the hole the dog had come through, it repeated the exercise. This convinced the owner that he had a bit of fencing work to do!

Carrying on from there, past the houses and at a sign saying ‘no turning’ heading up the unsurfaced lane leads to a footpath across the field which comes out just before the ‘Fudge Lady’ bend in the road between Neatishead and Gays Staithe. I continued along past the Neatishead moorings, taking Finlay for a swim to clean him up before the pub, we landed up in the pub where I thought I’d have a sandwich. By the time I’d looked at the whole menu and convinced myself I’d have fish and chips instead, I realised it was gone 3.15pm and if I enjoyed a relaxing meal, it’d be dark for the return walk. So I just enjoyed my cider instead and before setting off, bought a chocolate bar from the community shop instead. 
I walked back along the lane, turning onto the footpath by the fudge lady again (and even in deepest winter, her stall is still stocked and I came away £2 worse off but with two bags of coffee fudge, my favourite). Halfway along the path it branches off at a right angle across the sugarbeet and on crossing the lane at the end, another path cuts off the corner of the lane junctions. A left turn on reaching the lane took me all the way back to Irstead, passing two turns to Irstead Street, so obviously that lane I’d taken earlier does a big loop. 
The church lights were on as I passed and it looked very homely and inviting. All it needed was snow on the ground to be a Christmas card scene!

Having set off at 12.30, I arrived back at 4.15 and could still see enough to know the dog needed yet another clean-up! The whole walk was about 5 miles, my step counter app said 6.7, but that included the morning walk down the Bure. 
For info, the walk back from the White Horse to Irstead mooring took 40 minutes, 2 miles there or thereabouts.

 

[kpnut]

How lovely is that Vaughan. Many thanks for posting it. 

[SwanR]

Thanks for sharing your day Kate. Sounds wonderful just to be out in the countryside. 

We’ve managed to moor at Irstead 2 or 3 times now and really enjoyed being there. 

[Lulu]

Im exhausted just reading your account 😂 I realised how unfit myself and Desmond are last weekend. My version of a long walk is in no comparison to Kate’s! We only went on a short walk (for Finlay and Kate) but for us I could tell Desmond was starting to flag towards the end, whereas Finlay was still just as energetic as at the start. Kate kindly kept Finlay on the lead which must have been annoying for him but I cant let Desmond off the lead as if he sees something, being a sighthound, he will be off into the distance in a flash of ginger but we did discuss the advantages of a whippet being a quick wipe clean dog!