March 4, 2005

Charles and Joy Boldero walk seven miles around the Haddiscoe area.

Points of interest

1 You are sure of a warm welcome at Haddiscoe Tavern by Colin and Diana. Well-behaved dogs are allowed in, except on Sundays. We treated ourselves to fish and chips which were excellent, and Charles enjoyed a pint of Greene King IPA which had been well kept. If, on weekdays, you feel unable to finish the seven-mile walk in time to have a meal at the pub, you could start the walk at point * and then use the route across the marshes, along Thorpe Road, and back up it as per the start of walk. The Tavern is not open on Mondays but meals are served on other days between noon to 2pm, with a Sunday carvery from noon to 6pm.

2 The folk who live at Lower Thurlton enjoy a long life and one, Miss Fanny Jones who died in 1993, was 105. John Wesley once stayed in Thurlton, at White House Farm, and inscribed a verse of one of his hymns with a diamond ring on one of the window panes in the attic.

3 The Haddiscoe marshes form part of the Clavering Hundred. The word ‘clavering’ means lying or seated by the water and low meadows. Years ago, the area was a favourite haunt of smugglers. The railway came to Haddiscoe in 1847.

4 Looking up the track you see Thorpe Hall and, in the 19th century and up to the Sixties, the Shardalow family lived there. The pretty and interesting thatched church of St Matthias, with its round tower, was built in the 11th century and the tower served as a fortified lookout across the marshes.

5 Haddiscoe according to the interesting ‘Haddiscoe Cameo’ had murder and mayhem, one in 1695 and the other in 1893. The first incident happened in what is still known as Cut Throat Close. A servant girl was killed by her lover while the family were at church. The murderer then returned to the house and stole money. He was later hanged at Yarmouth. The second was an arson attack on barns at Haddiscoe Hall when straw and wheat were lost. Although a reward of £250 was offered no one was caught for the crime.

Map References OS Landranger 134, Explorer 40: 447970, 438997, 437975,428981, 426990, 433994, 449994, 453991, 452990, (*other starting point) 446981, 436979, 447970.

This was a pleasant seven-mile walk for EDP walkers who, thanks to the generosity of Colin and Diana Burrows, landlords at the Haddiscoe Tavern, can use the pub car park (perhaps returning for refreshment later?).

Haddiscoe is situated on the A143, six miles south-west of Yarmouth.
The Tavern is in The Street, which is the main road through the village.

We turned left along The Street, then right along Thorpe Road a few yards up the road. The first path we planned to use was unwalkable, so we continued along the country lane and turned left along Crab Apple Lane.

At the white post, with the faded blue arrow, we turned right across the field to the hedge line and here, at the sign, we went into the next field and turned left along the field edge with a hedge on our left.

Reaching the grass track we went right along it, with houses ahead, and it becomes a surfaced lane, Mill Lane. We crossed the road and continued along Long Road opposite then, at the T-junction, we kept right – signed Haddiscoe – and walked through Lower Thurlton.

Where the road went right we kept straight ahead along the track and after about 50 yards, at the footpath sign, we climbed the stile on our right and walked along the grass path, ignoring a stile further along on the left.

We continued along the field edge with a water course on the right and eventually, after a left-hand bend, our path went right towards the railway and gates. Here we turned right through small gate, going along a track beside the railway. We went under the railway bridge and turned immediately right along a side road (see * note in By The Way for alternative parking using this ‘old road’).

Reaching the main road we crossed it to the fingerpost sign and went through a gate and along the track. We turned left after the next gate at the second yellow arrow sign and followed along a wheelmarked track, kept the water course on our left and went over the bridge. After 50 yards we went through a gate with a yellow marker and then kept left beside the water course.

After about half a mile we followed the field edge on the right, then went over an earth bridge and, soon, left through a gate over a bridge.
We then kept half right along wheel tracks towards the reedbeds, went through the gate with a yellow arrow, then half left to gates and continued along the track on the left.

Before reaching the farmhouse we turned left over a stile by a metal gate, and then soon the path led us left into a field and up to the country lane where we turned left along it, back to the main road and turned left to Haddiscoe Tavern.

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