Exploring north norfolk
The joy of exploring by motorhome is that you don’t need to travel huge distances to have an adventure and a complete break as we discovered on a recent short-break trip to North Norfolk.
With easy motorway links from Kent, we were in Norfolk a few hours after leaving Skylark & Co HQ (just off the A2 outside Canterbury). Wide roads, with many set to a 50 mph limit are a dream for motorhome driving, where you get the best fuel efficiency and comfort around that speed.
Nelson’s Patch Campsite, Walcott
The first and last night of our 3 night trip we’d booked an pitch at Nelson’s Patch in Walcott. Next door to a lovely pub (not connected to the site), it’s a good base for motorhomes with water, electric hook up and grey waste drainage at each of the 20 pitches. Level ground with neat gravel and grass areas, you can see that once the trees and bushes mature this new site is going to be a real haven. There’s black water (loo) drainage at the entrance to the site but no showers or loos. With Skylark’s well appointed bathroom this didn’t pose a problem for us at all.
Skylark on hard-standing pitch at Nelson’s Patch Campsite, Walcott, Norfolk
After levelling Skylark and plugging her in to mains electricity, we enjoyed a brew on the large grassed section of our pitch before heading out on the walk to the nearby beach. A short route and mainly on paths or quiet roads, it’s a great way to get a feel for the area.
For our second day we left Nelson’s Patch and headed further north following the coastal road through classic North Norfolk towns such as Cromer and Wells next the Sea. Traffic was light and even on narrower roads, we were comfortable.
Cley next the Sea
Our destination was Holkham Hall, but before we arrived there, we made a little detour to Cley next the Sea to buy a picnic for lunch and visit the little pottery shop. The Cley Smokhouse and Picnic Fayre grocers provide a fantastic picnic between them, and we could happily have spent longer exploring the area.
Our daughter’s physical disabilities mean that long country walks are not feasible for us, so we tend to explore by bike. Specifically bicycles with our daughter on a tow-along trike. With this in mind we chose Skylark in particular for her capacious garage. She has no trouble fitting 2 adult bikes, a tow-along trike and all the other outdoor and leisure equipment that makes motorhoming such a pleasure.
Equally, we tend to choose our days out based on accessibility for cycling!
Holkham Hall, Holkham
Holkham Hall and it’s grounds did not disappoint. The large estate has a network of accessible cycle paths (and their own bike hire) which we used to explore the grounds visiting the Church and Walled Gardens before heading out to the wider estate and down through the village to the beach.
Skylark at sunset at Fakenham Racecourse Campsite
Fakenham Racecourse Camping
Staying in the area we booked into the campsite at Fakenham Racecourse for our second night. Located on the edge of town, it’s easy to stop at a supermarket for supplies before you set up for the night. There was not racing on so the site was fairly quiet but we agreed it would be fun to combine a trip with a day a the races next time we visit.
The site is mainly grass (with some hard standing) and each pitch has electric hook up with water and waste facilities located communally. There are clean and spacious showers and loos available to use as well (accessible via a key fob for which you pay a £5 returnable deposit)
Norfolk Broads, Wroxham
If you’ve ever read Arthur Ransome’s classic stories of Coot Club and The Big Six you’ll agree that no visit to Norfolk is complete without a day out on the Broads. Our final full day in the area was spent on the water after we hired a small launch from Wroxham. We went for the slightly lower priced diesel option, but I think it would be worth splashing out (pardon the pun) on an electric boat so you could enjoy the sanctuary of the Broads without the chug of an engine.
Parking at the Broads Tours base is easy with a section of the public car park available for motorhomes and campers. Once we’d collected our lifejackets and had a short briefing we were free to explore for the day. We puttered out of the marina and before long were in the midst of a water forest with trees overhanging the shore on either side. Glimpses of the ‘broads’ (large lakes) on either side revealed people sailing and exploring. We were intent on making it to Ranworth for lunch. The onboard map on the launch gave a useful estimation of time and distance between each place so you could plan your day accordingly.
Lunch over, we stopped at the Hoveton Great Broad Nature Trail for a walk and were rewarded with a view of Terns nesting on the bank. A beautiful and short self-guided walk, I’d really recommend it for all ages.
For our final night we returned to Nelson’s Patch and had a meal at the Lighthouse Inn next door. Named after the nearby Happisburgh Lighthouse the pub is popular with visitors and locals alike. Delicious food, well priced and very generous portions! There was a lovely atmosphere in the pub where dogs were allowed and diners chatted between tables.
Despite being away for no more than 3 nights we felt rested and revived when we returned home. We will definitely be returning to this part of Norfolk and hope you enjoy visiting it as well.
Trip details
We stayed at:
Nelson’s Patch Campsite, Walcott
Fakenham Racecourse Camping, Fakenham
We ate at/got food from:
Cley Smokehouse, Cley next the Sea
Picnic Fayre, Cley next the Sea
Holkham Hall tea rooms, Holkham
Granary Stores, Malthouse Staithe, Ranworth
The Lighthouse Inn, Walcott
We visited:
Holkham Hall, Holkham
Broads Tours, Wroxham
Hoveton Great Broad Nature Trail
