Walking

Footpaths abound in Norfolk and are generally well signposted, easy to find and a pleasure to explore.

The relatively flat landscape, quiet country lanes, "green" lanes, Countryside Stewardship tracks and many footpaths make the area around White Lodge Farm ideal for country walks.

Longer distance paths in Norfolk include:

• The Angles Way
• The Boudicca Way
• The Great Eastern Pingo Trail
• Kett’s Country
• The Marriott’s Way
• The Nar Valley Way
• North Norfolk Coast Path
• The Paston Way
• The Peddar’s Way
• The Tas Valley Way
• The Weaver’s Way and
• The Wherryman’s Way.

Hardingham and Hingham - Local Walks

Step from the garden of your cottage and walk along a track leading directly on to Permissive Access tracks on which it is possible to walk for hours around Hardingham (maps are available in the cottages) and the surrounding farmland.

The pretty conservation area of the village of Hingham, with its predominantly Georgian architecture is only a 15 minute level walk away.

Click here for a downloadable map of off-road walking routes around White Lodge Farm (which is at 033027 using the map's own grid). You'll need Adobe Acrobat Reader to view and print it. If you do not have this click the button in the bottom right of the page to download the reader.

Click here for a downloadable map showing the route of the long permissive bridleway (which is also open to walkers on which White Lodge Farm. Again, you'll need Adobe Acrobat Reader to view and print it.

Wymondham - The Tiffey Trail

The Tiffey Trail offers a variety of landscapes, nature reserves and walks with a wealth of flora and fauna that is easily accessible to all. The river runs within the trail just a few hundred yards out of the town centre.

To add interest and enjoyment to this valley walk benches have been installed with carved motifs representing valley flora and fauna and Wymondham heritage. Two small viewing towers have been erected, one on the Lizard and one at Toll's Meadow; both are made of green oak and echo features of the town's two best known 'icons' the Abbey and the Market Cross.

The Angles Way

The The Angles Way is a 77 mile route passing along the Waveney and Little Ouse valleys on the borders of Norfolk and Suffolk, through picturesque villages and historic towns. The landscape is punctuated by the distinctive round towers of churches and the occasional windmill and watermill. It varies from the open heaths, conifer plantations and sandy soils of Breckland in the west, to the low-lying grazing marshes and watery landscape of the Broads in the east.

The Angles Way Path runs from Great Yarmouth on the coast to Knettishall Heath Country Park near Thetford. It completes the ‘Round Norfolk Walk’ of 219 miles by joining the Peddars Way, the North Norfolk Coast Path and the Weaver’s Way. It also links to the Boudicca Way, the Icknield Way, the Bigod Way and the Waveney Way.

The route mainly uses public rights of way, and you can follow it on the ground by using the green waymark arrows with ‘Angles Way’ in yellow lettering.

The Boudicca Way

The Boudicca Way is a long distance footpath which runs for approximately 36 miles between Diss and Norwich. Running roughly parallel with the old Roman ‘Pye’ Road, now known as the A140, the route follows public rights of way and quiet country roads, stopping off in picturesque villages such as Shotesham, Saxlingham Nethergate and Pulham Market along the way.

The Great Eastern Pingo Trail

The Great Eastern Pingo Trail is an 8 mile circular walk that takes in Thompson Common, Thompson Water and the Village. Much of the walk goes through wooded countryside and wetlands, forest areas and parts of the ancient The Peddars Way as well as open countryside.

Pingos are shallow craters formed in permafrost environments. Those in this area date from the end of the last ice age (9,000 years ago) and are some of the best-preserved in the country. The Great Eastern part of the trail’s name comes from its use of a section of trackbed of the former Thetford-Watton line, built by the Thetford and Watton Railway Company in 1869 and closed under the Beeching cuts in 1964. The car park for the trail is on the site of the former Stow Bedon station

Kett’s Country

Kett`s Country is a 21 mile walk from Cringleford to Wymondham. The walk takes you through ‘enclosed lands’, with public access only on roads or public paths. There are many churches that you can visit on route.

The Marriott’s Way

The 21 mile long Marriott’s Way is a long distance footpath and bridleway which forms part of the National Cycle Network (NCN) (Route 1) and is open to walkers, cyclists and horse riders between Hellesdon and Aylsham. The path, named after William Marriott, the chief engineer and manager of the Midland and Great Northern Railway system for 41 years, uses the trackbeds of two former railway lines.

The Nar Valley Way

The Nar Valley Way is a 34 miles long walk, running from the historic port of King’s Lynn to the Museum of Rural life at Gressenhall, and is contained almost entirely within the watershed of the River Nar.

The route follows Public Rights of Way, tracks and minor roads, and passes through Shouldham Warren. The Nar Valley Way also links with other long distance routes, the Wash Coast Path at King’s Lynn, and the Peddar’s Way at Castle Acre.

The path follows farm tracks through Lexham Estate by kind permission of the landowner, and at each end you pass through commons managed as Nature Reserves at Litcham and Castle Acre.

The North Norfolk Coast Path

The Norfolk Coast Path stretches from Hunstanton in the west to Cromer in the east and runs through Norfolk’s heritage coast within the Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.

The path takes you from views of the Wash and the Lincolnshire Coastline at Hunstanton, and past many internationally recognised wildlife reserves. Just past Hunstanton the path is joined by the Peddar’s Way extending south into Suffolk following a Roman Road dating back to AD61.

There are a variety of circular walks, based from the trail, ideal for an afternoons ramble. The path is well serviced by public transport, by the CoastHopper bus service runs from Hunstanton to Cromer.

The Paston Way

The 20 mile long Paston Way takes in sixteen churches and sixteen villages and towns. The walk starts in North Walsham from the gates of Paston College and finishes in the church of St. Peter and St. Paul at Cromer.

The Paston Way links with the The Weaver’s Way at Cromer and North Walsham.

The Peddar’s Way

The Peddar’s Way is a long distance footpath, 46 miles (74 km) long, that follows the route of a Roman road. The name is said to be derived from the Latin pedester meaning ‘on foot’.

Combined with the North Norfolk Coast Path, it forms the Peddar’s Way & Norfolk Coast Path National Trail which, together run for 97 miles (156 km).

The Tas Valley Way

The Tas Valley Way is a 25 mile walk from Eaton to Attleborough. The path runs between Eaton and Attleborough and links with both Kett`s Country Walk and the Yare Valley Walk. The walk passes through a landscape shaped by the Enclosure Acts, and where public access is now generally restricted to roads and public rights of way. Notable exceptions are New Buckenham and Old Buckenham Commons, where free access may be enjoyed.

The Tas Valley Way - with a few diversions - leads you on a journey to sixteen churches in sixteen villages and towns, scattered amongst the unspoilt countryside of South Norfolk. Each church reveals something of the individual local character - of the countryside, the people, and the history of the settlements.

The Weaver’s Way

The 57 mile long Weaver’s Way footpath runs from Cromer to Great Yarmouth. The name Weaver’s Way comes from the ancient weaving industry that used to be common in the towns of Aylsham, North Walsham, Stalham and Worsted.

The way takes you from the coast at Norfolk, through the Norfolk Broads. It passes through the National Trust estates of Felbrigg and Blickling as well as along the track bed of the former Great Yarmouth to Kings Lynn railway line.

The Wherryman’s Way

The Wherryman’s Way is a 35-mile recreational route following the course of the River Yare between Norwich and Great Yarmouth. The route takes its name from the wherry, a large cargo-carrying barge whose elegant black sails were a once common sight on these waters.

You can walk the whole route or explore parts of it by cycle, train and river bus. Alternatively you can explore one of the ten circular village walks en-route.

Circular walks from the Bittern Line (running from Norwich to Sheringham and Cromer)

There's a great website for users of the Bittern railway line, which is used by commuters and tourists alike, not to mention the locals looking for something a little different to do at the weekend, with some ideas of things to do, including circular walks that are accessible by train.

Circular walks from the Wherry Line (running from Norwich to Great Yarmouth)

Although the walks from the Wherry Line are not yet on the website they are avaialble booklet from and can be orderered online .

Walks around the East Suffolk Line

The East Suffolk Line, the railway linking Ipswich and Lowestoft, traverses some of the most delightful of Suffolk’s unspoilt countryside. The entire line was proposed for closure in the 1960s but the present route was saved following a local campaign and today continues as a lifeline for rural communities and the string of towns that it serves. The walks on this site allow visitors to the area can enjoy the passing scenery in a relaxed way without the bother of finding suitable parking places or having to worry about road safety.

Other options

There are plenty of less formal walking opportunities. Pretty much the whole of Thetford Forest is open access when forestry operations are not taking place, there are the long expanses of beaches, the estates surrounding National Trust properties and private houses and halls (including the Sandringham Estate and Holkham Hall), the bird reserves (although access may be restricted in nesting seasons) and numerous footpaths and bridleways.

Look here for Norfolk Circular Walks, a series of walks, about 4 to 6 miles long, mostly well waymarked and maintained.