Norfolk Nordic Walking

Mondays are at Whitlingham for us Norfolk Nordic Walkers. There is a walk to suit pretty much everyone. On the 9.15am we aim to get up to 4mph+ on the Magic Mile and push pace. On the 10.15am we cover a cool 3 miles in approx 55 mins with a lot more chat. On the 11.15am we take time to enjoy the park - today we were bird watching - along with our gentler 2 miler.
And then coffee! An important part of the morning.....

Wintery frosty walks this week have been the order of the days across all our 14 sessions. We’ve wrapped up, embraced the change in temps, dug out the waterproof socks and soaked up the Vit D rays.
Bring it on! We 💖 this time of year….

🎶 Walk 1 @ Holkham today:
We headed West out past the Ice House to the Burnham Gate. We then gawped at the size of the Walled Garden (the biggest in Norfolk?) and enjoyed spectacular views of the lake.

🎶Walk 2:
We literally walked through the deer. They were unfazed by us as we explored the Eastern perimeter paths, the tallest statue on the estate (of the Earl of Leicester), the far side of the lake and the church - St Wiburga’s. The hall is all twinkly and wrapped in red ribbons. 🎀 Very festive!
… In total 6 happy and not too soggy miles. Followed by coffee & cake in the cafe. 💜👌🎉

What a gloriously frosty morning at Whitlingham where the sun surprised us all. All three groups escaped the black ice and enjoyed the HILLS in the woods, the mist rising from the broad, the crunch of leaves & the smattering of the white stuff on the grass.
Winter is coming! 💜

The intrepid and bold ‘enjoyed’ the final High Ash Saturday of 2025.
Anticipating a full-on deluge, we were happily blessed with light rain, drizzle and mizzle.
The customary Nordic walking chat, great humour and laughs negated any sogginess. We welcomed my two old friends from university days who Nordic walk with different groups in London. They classed this a “hill walk”!
They were also blown away by the warm welcome and friendliness they received. A lovely morning again, despite the 🌧️ forecast! 💜
Rachel

Bravo all! What a wonderful morning.
First we faced off Storm Claudia’s wake, defeating the swampy sogginess and slip-slidy mud and ignoring the rain to tread the path of a new Saturday walk with some stunning views.
It’s one to repeat next year. Then … 🥁 roll..undefeated by the elements and recharged by coffee, monster chocolate, coffee and angel cake, we moved on the main event….
…Behind the door of Brundall Men’s Shed. What an incredible place it was. It really transforms lives and offers a sense of purpose, belonging and creativity. A huge thank you to Peter, Ray, Steve x 2, Trinny for their time letting us tour all the workrooms and explaining how the shed works, helps address loneliness and isolation, pass on skills down generations, builds a community and enables people of all ages - from the oldest member aged 92 down to a 3 year old.
We loved seeing the results of reuse and recycling, the woodwork and the clear camaraderie there.
We were blown away by the good it delivers and the obvious joy it brings.
Bat and bird boxes, trugs, wood turned bowls, Christmas decorations and much more will be on sale at its Christmas Fayre on Nov 29 10am-2pm.
It’s a charity and welcomes donations. Membership is just £15 a month.
A highlight was Ann trying out the drill under the expert tuition of boatbuilder Ray, who was former production manager at Broom Boats where he worked for 41 years.
Rachel - Walk Leader

😎Definite case of make hay whilst the sun shines on today’s walks! The Catton Park Crew basked in the rays on our 1.5 -2 mile session. Vit D buzz…..
😎 We shifted up a gear over on our 11.20am Spixworth / NDR 3 miler, pushed pace and were back at base in 55 mins.
🎉🎶👌🎉🎶👌🎉🎶👌

We just could not rrrrrrrresist trampling through the leaves and circumnavigating the whole estate (5.25 miles for the record) on our 10am Blickling Blast today.

It’s not for everyone to get up to Gear 2+ which is why we love our DROPPING DOWN A GEAR walk at 11.30am. We enjoy 3 miles exploring the lesser known routes. Followed up with a jolly good chin wag in the cafe. One intriguing topic that came up today is that we have a HUGE legal Cannabis farm literally on our doorstep. 😳😳

The things you learn on a Nordic Walk….!

Another fab Tuesday - where choice is always the order of the day…

The 9.30am crew got the views over the Roman Town and beyond on our 3.3 miler / 56 mins. Love it over in Dunston Common!

The 11am gang got up close not only to the fab new hedges at Whitlingham- but also the “behind the scenes” drainage work going on _to avoid Winter 🥶 flooding_! This 2.5 mile walk always ends in the cafe - *which we love*!

🌺 Remembrance Day 2025

Seal watching spectacular! There are 132 seal pups on Horsey Beach at the moment - and we saw two of them on our Saturday Special. Our 4.5 miler took us over the marshes (dry paths for once) and along the dunes. And there they were! Nifty inland circular route brought us back to base - before coffees at Waxham Barn. Perf start to the weekend....

Both groups at Catton Park on Thursday enjoyed a spot of leaf 🍁 throwing on their walks in the woods. Who can resist releasing the inner child along with a few extra endorphins too!
Try it!