Base Camp Journal - Norfolk
A belated post, as I’ve been quite busy the last couple of weeks.
It was an eight hour drive from Cardiff to the Seacroft CMC site, on the coast of Norfolk, between Runton and Cromer. What probably made our stay at Seacroft more enjoyable was having a grass pitch, on a large section of green at the centre of the site. It was like being on a giant lawn during an exceptionally warm and sunny week, though Saturday was a washout. The site also has its own bar, which doesn’t close early, and has a quiet area, and that’s important because all the nearby pubs are full during the busy periods. Cromer is quite a popular destination during the bank holiday weekends, for some reason.
Cromer appears quite close to the site on the maps, but it feels like a long walk from the site to the pier, maybe because there’s just a long, straight road. Runton is much closer. It’s quite a prosaic village, with just a couple of bars and a convenience store, but it’s where the beach can be accessed.
The geography of Norfolk’s coast is quite interesting. Generally it’s warmer and drier, in comparison to Wales, because it’s not so exposed to the crap weather that usually comes in from the Atlantic. Cromer is actually closer to Amsterdam, and closer to some points along the German border, than it is to Cardiff! The region is quite flat, and the countryside along the road between Norwich and Great Yarmouth appears quite similar to the countryside in the Netherlands.
Britain and Europe were part of the same landmass, or at least connected by a landbridge that was partialy inhabited, until roughly 14,000 years ago. The North Sea could be described as a flooded landmass, which is why it’s relatively shallow.
Cromer
Rather like Tenby, Cromer has an abundance of narrow streets and old buildings, and it can be almost as busy, but the town feels less interesting. It looks too… gray. There’s just one high street, a few pubs here and there, and a pier. There isn’t much of a beach, when the tide is in. There’s only a bar and a theatre on the pier, though the theatre is quite active, with cabaret-type shows being advertised for September, and a number of tribute bands expected for October and November.
Apparently the best sea food in Britain is sold in Cromer, because crabs, fish and prawns are abundant near the coast, and they’re still fresh when they’re sold. I didn’t see much in the way of a large-scale fishing industry in the area, though. One of the main things Robby wanted to do is try the sea food at No. 1 Cromer, which is a cafe, takeaway and restaurant. We managed to get a table there, and we ordered tempura prawns, followed by fish and chips. The prices were comparable - sometimes cheaper - to a typical pub meal, and it was actually nicer.
We had a good view of the North Sea from where we were sat. The sea was surprisingly calm. The outline of a couple of wind farms could be seen in the distance, roughly a few miles out, and there were a few ships that appeared stationary. The busy shipping lanes must have been somewhere beyond the horizon. The sky was a vivid juxtaposition of dark gray and orange, as the bad weather had just passed over and the sun was setting. A dark cloud in the distance emptied a distinct column of rain over the sea, which was a rare sight. It’s not something one sees every day.
We returned to Cromer a couple of days later, and found a shop that sold crabs and lobsters that were prepared and ready to eat. I bought us a couple of crabs - the shells, packaged in a similar way to sandwiches, holding the meat that I assume was boiled and mashed a bit. I suspected I wouldn’t enjoy it, but Robby said there’s no better place to give it a try, and he had a point. The meat had a strong, slightly sharp taste. Not my cup of tea (or shell of crab).
Norwich
Since Great Yarmouth was bound to be congested on a bank holiday, and there might be some interesting things to see around Norwich, we visited the latter first.
As it turned out, Norwich wasn’t that great. We parked somewhere I thought would be close to the city centre. We walked past a picturesque area of old buildings and small art galleries, and found ourselves on a long street of cafes and strip clubs. Norwich station just had to be in the city centre, I thought, but walking around that, we found ourselves in a soulless ‘food quarter’, then a bland retail park. Norwich sucked, and we wanted to go to Great Yarmouth!
Luckily, we found a short cut along a beautiful riverside path, on the other side of the bridge, on the other side of the station. That led to the grounds of Norwich Cathedral, which is definitely worth visiting.
Great Yarmouth
The drive along the A47, through Acle, was interesting because the region is so flat, and we passed a few windmills along the way. Great Yarmouth was busy, but we arrived in late-afternoon, so it wasn’t too congested. It’s quite a rough place, but it’s a far more vibrant and interesting place than Cromer. The long road from the car park to whatever was miles away was lined with stalls, shops and various attractions on the one side, and the flambouyantly-lit casinos, bars and strip clubs on the other. Some of latter might have been theatre buildings decades ago. Great Yarmouth couldn’t decide whether it was a seaside resort, a market or a knock-off version of Las Vegas. The sun was already getting noticeably lower in the sky by 16:00, because it was the last week of August, giving everything a bright golden haze.
We walked most the way back along the beach. The sand was like small particles of glass, which wasn’t comfortable to walk on, but not too painful. It still cut large holes in my stockings. Not as many people go into the water, because the sea becomes quite deep just a few metres out.
Robby said Great Yarmouth once had one of the longest piers in Britain. I think the remains of that are the derelict white building with the glass roof, and the struts near the end of the beach.
Norfolk Tank Museum
For those who love classic vehicles of the larger variety, the Norfolk Tank Museum is a few miles south of Norwich, which is still quite a drive from Cromer. The museum is a small, independent operation, but it has an impressive range of exhibits. The vehicles are mostly in good condition.
The main part of the museum is essentially a large garage housing several tanks, a few armoured vehicles and various items of kit from different periods throughout the 20th century. The modern tanks - by modern, I mean post-1960s - were at the back. How on Earth did people drive most the vehicles, with only a limited view of the front and usually no mirrors?
I couldn’t resist having a look inside a tank that I assumed was in service during the Great War (1917 or 1918), climbing through a small hatch at the bottom. It wouldn’t have been very pleasant inside, with four other crew members and very little to shield them from the engine. Several rifles, pointing outwards at the sides, were attached to moveable platforms.
The armoury has a large number of firearms, most of them likely deactivated. Their trigger mechanisms still worked, and the bolt carriers moved as they should. The L85-A1, which was in remarkably good condition, is an old acquaintance of mine, and a rifle I once knew well enough to make safe, field strip, re-assemble and function test with my eyes closed. My experience with other firearms is rather limited, so I didn’t mess around with the other exhibits. Nearby there’s a small building housing old comms equipment, including pretty much all the CLANSMAN kit, some of which - especially the PRC 320 and 350 - brought back a few memories.
A number of personnel carriers and obscure utility vehicles were parked in the grounds of the museum. Apparently some of them are still driveable.