Lots of people who read this blog won’t know that I’m not actually from the North at all – I am in fact an interloper who moved to Yorkshire in 2016. Prior to this, my roots were very firmly in the south, beginning in Kent (don’t tell anyone) and then spending three years at the University of East Anglia in Norwich. Moving north was definitely the right decision for me, but I often look back on those years in the South East and East Anglia and wish I’d taken more time to explore the local countryside. Sadly, it wasn’t really very high on my priorities when I was a teenager! Therefore, when an opportunity came up to return to Norfolk at the end of January, I jumped at the chance.
This post is a paid partnership with The Hayloft. All thoughts and opinions expressed in this blog are my own..
The Hayloft
Driving down from North Yorkshire on the Friday afternoon, a persistent drizzle kept me in the car all the way to my destination: The Hayloft near Dereham. Drizzle is not a particularly inspiring weather and for the first time in a long time I was travelling on my own (plus Merry, of course) and I was keen to get there before it was dark given my terrible sense of direction. Happily, I made it with half an hour of daylight to spare and the sat nav took me within metres of the front gate, so there was no navigation drama.
The Hayloft is a cosy, budget friendly apartment sleeping 2-4 people in the countryside just outside Toftwood, Dereham. On a farm, the apartment is tucked away on the edge of the fields, feeling completely secluded while only being a 5 minute drive to the nearest shop – ideal. It had everything I needed for a few nights away, including a choice of DVDs and good kitchen facilities – not to mention the very comfy bed (I actually took the pillowcases off before I left to check the brand so that I could order some for myself). Very generously, Lisa and Owen are offering a free bottle of Prosecco on arrival to readers of this blog – just mention HayloftBubbles when booking through Airbnb.
Having spent a considerable part of my day on a never ending, featureless trek down the A17 and A47, I really couldn’t muster up much enthusiasm to cook myself tea. Perusing the information pack in The Hayloft, I found a handy list of local places to eat, and decided to visit the Honingham Buck. About twenty minutes away by car, the pub has a car park outside, a cosy log burner and had great reviews: sorted. I rang ahead to check they could squeeze in one person and a dog and then hopped in the car and drove down.
Being unfamiliar with the pub I played it safe and ordered a burger. I feel like a burger is the kind of thing which is always a bit middle of the road: rarely gross, but rarely excellent either. Cue the burger absolutely blowing my socks off: it was hands down the nicest burger I’ve ever ordered. I was sorely tempted to go back the next day and have another one!
Horsey Gap
Saturday in the UK was almost universally forecast to be a washout – except for Norfolk. Keen to make the most of it, I was up bright and early to cram as much into the day as possible. I started the day slowly though, with a cup of tea on the balcony at The Hayloft to watch the sun come up. East Anglia really does have some of the best skies and they’re something I’ve missed since moving north.
My first stop was a walk in The Broads, from Horsey Windpump to Horsey Gap Beach, following a 3.5 mile route from the National Trust website. The primary goal of the walk was to see the seals on the beach, something I’d never done when living in Norfolk, but I also wanted Merry to have a good walk. Starting at Horsey Windpump made the walk a bit longer for Merry (who wouldn’t be allowed on the beach) and also meant that I got to use my National Trust card for free parking (woohoo).
The walk is easy and straightforward: almost entirely flat, with red arrows way marking the first half of the walk. If you want to see the seals you’ll need to climb up the dunes from the track at the bottom (the dunes make a very effective barrier otherwise).
There were plenty of seals on the beach in varying states of snoozing (honestly, I’ve never related to an animal more). While there were a fair few people around who’d obviously all come to see them, it didn’t feel busy and thankfully everyone was giving the seals plenty of space. I think as the seals can also be seen at other beaches along the coast, it stops any one beach being too crazy. Merry found the whole thing very frustrating with the beach being right under his nose and not being allowed to zoom around – but I made sure to make it up to him the next day!
If I was to do this walk again I’d probably do it as a linear. The return leg is mainly on roads, mostly quiet roads but also one section where the traffic moves quite fast. The first half was excellent though!
Blickling Hall
Having set off so early I was back at my car by 11:30am. With plenty of sunshine still ahead of me I decided to nip over to Blickling Hall, a National Trust property I’d visited a few times when I lived in Norfolk, and which I had fond memories of walking around when Merry was a puppy. It’s a toss up between Blickling and Sheringham Park for my favourite National Trust site in Norfolk, but given that it was mid-January and the rhododendrons at Sheringham would be nowhere to be seen, I opted for Blickling.
Initially I had intended to grab some lunch from Blickling’s muddy boots cafe, but arriving in the middle of the lunch rush I quickly ditched that idea and set off on a shorter walk around the lake. The cafe was much busier than I remembered it being in 2016! Fortunately, the lake walk wasn’t anywhere near as busy as the cafe, and Merry and I enjoyed a lovely stroll.
The park here didn’t have any deer in when we were there and several people had their dogs off lead (and they all left us well alone, which makes a nice change!). I did however choose to keep Merry on the lead as I knew the lake would just be far too tempting for him – especially with swans and ducks paddling around. Although, I’m sure the swans could take care of themselves: I got hissed at for daring to take the photo below!
Having finished our second walk of the day, even both of them being short walks, I must confess to having been quite tired. All that sunshine takes it out of you when you’re not used to it! So, instead of squeezing in a third activity like I’d initially hoped (a visit to the dog friendly Redwings horse sanctuary), I reluctantly decided that 3pm was late enough to start making my way back to The Hayloft for a hot chocolate and chilled evening. After all, I couldn’t miss the Traitors final.
Norwich
As always, Sunday morning rolled around astonishingly quickly, and I was soon loading up the car to drive back home. I wasn’t going straight home though: I had a few stops to make along the way.
My first stop was a trip into the centre of Norwich to meet a friend for brunch – Norfolk and North Yorkshire being quite distant, it would’ve been a massively missed opportunity not to catch up while I was in the area. Norwich is home to plenty of dog friendly cafes and we ended up going to No33 in the Park in Chapelfield Gardens: it was delicious and Merry was made very welcome (getting cuddles and biscuits from no fewer than three waitresses). The freshly squeezed orange juice in particular was fantastic.
Not caught up by the end of brunch, we went for a wander through Norwich down to the cathedral. Norwich Cathedral is dog friendly and we had a quick mooch around the cloisters, although as it was Sunday morning there was a service taking place so we couldn’t tour the whole building. Next time!
Holkham Beach
Still not quite done, I drove north to Holkham Beach. After he was deprived of a beach run on Saturday, I felt like I owed Merry the chance for a good zoom on the sand! There’s a large pay & display car park along Lady Anne’s Drive, which was reasonably busy but by no means approaching full. Merry had a lovely fuss and a biscuit off the car park attendant – it was very nice as a dog owner to feel so genuinely welcomed. It’s a short walk along a boardwalk in the woods down to the beach, and then another short walk across the sand to get to the main beach.
Initially I was worried that Scotland’s beaches had spoiled me, and that Holkham was going to be too busy for my liking, as there were a fair few people milling around the area immediately adjacent to the end of the boardwalk. My anxiety was only exacerbated when I realised I’d accidentally given Merry a squeaky tennis ball instead of a normal tennis ball when I let him off the lead – there was no way he was going to come near me with such a treasure!
Persevering nevertheless, I carried on to the main beach and was thankfully greeted by a vast expanse of nearly deserted sand. That’s not to say there were no people: just that the beach was sufficiently huge that everyone was widely dispersed. Just the way I like it.
Walking down the beach for about 20 minutes, the distance didn’t seem to be getting any closer (another sign of my favourite type of beach). I did however succeed in tricking Merry into returning the squeaky tennis ball to me, much to his disgust. Spaniel once again under control, I reluctantly decided that it was time to turn around and head back to the car, given that I had about 200 miles to go and it was getting on for 2pm. Holkham has definitely secured a place as one of my top 10 beaches though.
Dog Friendly Rating
Dog friendly rating: 4/5. The Hayloft is a great option for dog owners, with two dogs welcome free of charge (more by prior agreement). Additionally, there are lots of useful thoughtful touches for visiting dog owners, including a clean dog towel, torch for night time toilet trips and some poo bags should you get caught short. I’ve just knocked off a point as there’s no enclosed grassy area, but there is a securely enclosed terrace and there are plenty of country walk options right from the door should you want to ditch the car. A quick note for any other horse owners out there to mention that this property also offers holiday accommodation for horses!
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