To Skegness, Louth and Into Yorkshire

The weather was pretty ordinary  as I left King’s Lynn.  I headed north though some rather uninteresting countryside.

I stopped for lunch in a pub in a place called Sutton Bridge.  Given the weather did not like improving I decided to stay overnight in the pub.

Very Busy Road

The next morning, I headed north towards Boston.  The Sustrans Route 1 is supposed to head in that direction, however, I could not find any Sustrans signs and I was forced to ride on a very busy road.  It was not pleasant at all, in fact it was very dangerous.

Foreign Farm Workers

Finally, I saw a Sustrans sign that had led me onto small lanes across flat farming country towards Boston.  The farms were all growing vegetables including cauliflowers.  I stopped to a photograph and video some farm workers picking cauliflowers and loading them on to a conveyer built attached to a tractor.  The workers were definitely not British citizens.  I wonder if they will still be working there after Brexit.  I suspect not.

Stopping in Boston for Lunch

I stopped in Boston for lunch at a very nice hotel. Residents of Boston are known as Bostonians. Emigrants from Boston named several other settlements around the world after the town, most notably Boston, Massachusetts in the United States.

Into Skegness

After leaving Boston, I continued on to Skegsness.  I had booked into B&B not far from the seafront.  It turned out to be really good.  The owners told me that the building had been a family home and the previous owners had converted it into B&B with 10 rooms.  It was a bit like Dr Who’s tardis, in that it did not look possible that 10 rooms with ensuites could fit into the building.

Skegsness is another English seaside resort town that is probably seen better days.

The town is famous for being the site of the first Butins Holiday Resort.  The resort is still operating.  I passed it as I headed up the coast out of the town.  This part of the coast is also dotted with numerous ‘Caravan’ Parks that  are actually full of mobile homes.  Many of these seemed to be being used as full-time residences.

Heading in Land

Leaving the coast and heading inland, the route took me into the Lincolnshire Wolds.  This is another Area Of Natural Beauty (AONB), albeit that it is mainly farmland.

As I rode along, I saw a sign to a Waterwheel.  I thought that could be interesting and followed the sign.

The place turned out to be a café that was in an old waterwheel building.  Next to the café was a small enclosure with some animals, including otters and some wallabies.  It seemed rather strange to see wallabies so far from home.  The otters seemed to be very curious animals and ran up to me as I approached.  They may just have been expecting to be fed. The café served a reasonable Welsh Rarebit – not as good as Fortnum and Mason’s Rarebits, but not bad.

Big Rain

I had planned to camp on a farm just outside of a town called Louth.  As I approached the town the heavens opened, it was really heavy rain.  I noticed a sign saying ‘Royal Oak Hotel 400 yards’ and peddled furiously to get there.  When I arrived, I found that the hotel also had a accommodation. They had vacancies, so I decided to stay the night.

It was a very good place to stay.

Leaving Royal Oak

Leaving the hotel, noticed that the name of the name of the small road  I was on was, ‘Watery Lane’.  I soon found out why – there was a small creek riding across the lane.  It made the lane very watery.

Into Louth

I rode the short distance into the town of Louth.  This is a very nice little market town.  I stopped briefly in a small pub, where I chatted with the owner.  He told me that he used to work for a company that operated a large number of pubs.  He had decided to go out on his own and bought this small pub.  His plan was to start a microbrewery.

Leaving the town, I headed west into more of the Lincolnshire Wolds.  This part of the country is a wheat growing area, most of the fields had just been harvested.

Waltham

The route through the Wolds took me north then east towards the Humber river.  I decided to stay in town called Waltham that is not far from Grimsby.

The hotel I stayed in was basic but all I needed.

Up the Humber and Over the Bridge

The next morning, I rode through Grimsby and then onto the Humber to bridge that crosses the river west of Hull.

It is a very impressive suspension bridge.  Check out the Flickr photographs.

By-passing Hull

I had wanted to stay in Hull however there was no accommodation to be had. Hull is the European Centre of Culture for 2017.  As a result, accommodation has been fully booked for most of the year.

It was late in the afternoon as I pushed on along Route 1 towards the tourist town of Beverley.

I had already booked a campsite on farm close to Beverley.  As I pitched my tent, one  my neighbours came over and asked if I wanted “something to eat and drink”?

I ended up having a meal a couple of beers with him and his family.  He turned out to be very interesting bloke.  He was an ex Special Forces Soldier.  One of his sporting hobbies now days is diving.  He dives all around the British Isles coast.  He told me that diving is very popular in the UK.  This somewhat surprised me.

The bloke and his wife also gave me some breakfast in the morning.  I then headed into Beverley.

Flickr

Skegsness

https://www.flickr.com/photos/twwilko_photos/albums/72157685944761453

Louth

https://flic.kr/s/aHsm4eXA9d

Garmin

Leaving Kings Lynn to Sutton Bridge

https://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/1946937490

Through Boston to Skegsness

https://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/1948855710

From Skegsness to near Louth

https://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/1950654482

Through Louth to Waltham

https://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/1953182155

Waltham to near Beverley

https://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/1962011462

Cromer and onto Kings Lynn

From Lowestoft, the route took me north west through Great Yarmouth.  I cannot recall anything particularly ‘great’ about Great Yarmouth.

I had booked a pitch at Comer Hall Camping which turned out to be very close to the town.  It was somewhat confusing to find a place as the camping ground is on a large farm that also is the site of a zoo.  This confused even Google Maps.

Anyway, I finally found the place and there was a note on the office door, telling me to “pitch up anywhere I like”.

After setting up my tent, I walked into town.  There were lots of people wondering about the town.  I ended up having a meal a ‘gourmet’  hamburger place.  I rarely eat hamburgers, but these ones were OK.

The Pier

The hamburger restaurant overlooked the Comer Pier, which is a major tourist attraction in the town.  I walked down to the pier and took a photograph of the sunset.  There were lots of other people taking photographs of sunset.  It was very spectacular.

Good Café

In the morning, I wandered back into town looking for a place for breakfast.  I happened upon a small café which turned out to be very good.  The owners worked in the café and were very interesting to talk to. The wife is an avid trekker and frequently travels to Nepal where she undertakes long walks in the Himalayas.  All of the tips that are collected in the café are given to charities in Nepal.

Travellers Causing Trouble

As I wandered around the town after breakfast I noticed that they were a lot of policemen also wandering around the town.  This seemed rather odd for such a small town.  I asked one of  the policeman why there were so many of them around.  He said, “haven’t you seen the news about the troubles here”?  I said I hadn’t.

The policeman went on to tell me about the trouble there had been with ‘travellers’ that had descended on the town a couple of days ago.  Apparently, a very large group of mainly Irish ‘travellers’ arrived in the town in campervans.  The main trouble they caused was in restaurants and pubs where they ordered food and drinks, and then left the premises without paying.  They also abused people in the street.

Apparently, all this ‘carry on’  got quite a bit of a coverage in the national press.

Walking Around the Town

Cromer is nice town with a nice little beach and some interesting shops.  It was very pleasant just wander around and checked things out.

Library in Church

I also spent some time in the local library which is housed in an old church.  It is good to see old church been put to good use.

Waking up to Growling and Snorting

On the morning of the second day in Cromer I awoke to the sound of very loud growing and snorting.  Obviously, it was one of the animals in the Zoo next door.  I think we have all found ourselves sleeping in close proximity something that growls and snorts at some time in our lives.

Concert

In the evening , I booked a ticket to the show that was playing in the theatre which is located the end of the pier.  The show was old time ‘variety show’ that I suspect you would have been seen in the theatre between the two World Wars.  It had bit of everything – singing, dancing, comedy, and juggling.  All of the performers seemed to be able to do at least two of these things.

Lots of Dog

Comer is another town where everyone seemed have at least one dog.  There were dogs everywhere.

One family, I came across had white schnauzers.  I am very familiar with schnauzers, having owned two miniature schnauzers myself.  They were grey, also known as ‘salt and pepper’. The owner of the white schnauzers said, “these guys are just salt”.  She also said that they are always the centre of attention, and “when people ignore them they get upset”.

Short Ride to Sheringham

Leaving Comer, I had a very short ride to Sheringham where I stayed in YHA.  I had a private room which turned out to be very good.

Wells-next-to-Sea

After Sheringham, the route took me along the coast towards the quaintly named, Wells-next-to-Sea.

A couple of kilometres before the town, I saw the sign saying, ‘Miniature Railway’.  I followed the sign to check it out.

The railway turned out to be very miniature.  You can see a video of the train on Flickr.

The town of Wells next Sea was absolutely packed with tourists.  I only stopped briefly before heading towards King’s Lynn.  The route took me away from the coast through some pleasant villages.

Old Rectory

I had booked into a B&B called the Old Rectory in King’s Lynn.  This place turned out to be really good.  The owner had sent me a SMS with instructions were to find the keys and which Carey’s face in which locks.  Included in his message was a recommendation for a meal.  He recommended the restaurant in the hotel next door.  I took his recommendation and was pleased I did the meal was excellent.

Flickr Links

Cromer

https://flic.kr/s/aHsm3mKXRC

King’s Lynn

https://flic.kr/s/aHsm3cVUgM

Garmin Links

Lowestoft

https://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/1946937360

Cromer

https://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/1946937391

Sheringham to King’s Lynn

https://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/1946937465

From Felixstowe to Lowestoft

The Orwell Hotel in Felixstowe turned out to be very good.  It was great value at only AUD 60 per night.

Leaving Felixstowe

I got a bit lost leaving Felixstowe and heading north.  I was looking for the ferry that crossed the Deben River.  You would think it would be easy to find. The Garmin found it difficult.

I finally found the ferry crossing and continued heading north.  The route took me through the Suffolk Coast and Heaths Area of Natural Beauty (AONB).  While it was quite pleasant riding on mainly flat country roads, there wasn’t too much natural beauty to be seen.  There were, however, a large number of pig farms.  Each sow, appeared to have been given a small hut to live in.  I guess that that is better than nothing, and more humane than ‘battery farming’.

Staying in YHA in Blaxhall

As was riding along a noticed a sign to a YHA.  It turned out be in a village called Blaxhall.  The village really only consists of the YHA and a pub.

I checked into the YHA and headed to the pub for a meal.  As I was ordering my meal, the two lady cyclists that I had run into on the Felixstowe Harbour and Beach ferry, turned up in the pub.  We ended up having a meal together.  They were staying in, what I took to be, a very up market B&B not far from the village.

The YHA turned out to be very good. The YHA hostels in the UK have certainly changed a lot since I first stayed in them in the late 1970’s.  Those days, you are required to bring your own sheets,  and do chores such as sweeping the floors and cleaning the toilets.

There is none of that nowadays – staff in the hostel do all of that stuff. Also, most hostels like this one, serve alcohol and provide breakfast.

Into Adleburgh

Leaving Blaxhall, I headed towards the coast to the seaside town called Aldeburgh.  It is one of the more popular seaside towns that is in this part of the world.  It is known for its festival.  The festival had taken place the day before my arrival.  However, there were still lots of people in the town and there was no accommodation to be had for love or money.

I headed inland looking for a place to stay.

Camping in Lieston

I ended up staying in a campsite on farm just outside a village called Lieston. The contrast between this village and Aldleburgh was stark.  It is really amazing how villages that are so close together can be so different.

The only place to get an evening meal in Lieston was a very dodgy Indian restaurant.  I didn’t have a very good night’s sleep as a result of eating in that restaurant.

There was no place in the village that served breakfast.  A passing local told me that there was a reasonable café at Sizewell about five kilometres away. Sizewell is famous, or possibly infamous, for being site of one of the UK’s nuclear-powered electricity generating plants.

The café was on the beach and was very popular.  The power plant overlooks the beach.  I was really surprised at how many people were at the café.

Ride to Walberswick

After breakfast, I headed north on country lanes to a village called Walberswick.  It was a glorious English summer’s day.  When I arrived in Walberswick, there were people everywhere.  There were  almost as many dogs as people.  It seemed that there was a rule that said ‘you need a dog in your family to be allowed in the town’.

Row boat ferry to Southwold

Walberswick is on the southern side on the River Byth.  There are a number of ways to cross a river including Bailey Bridge over which the cycle path crosses.  However, there is also a small ferry.  This one turned out to be very interesting in that it was a rowing boat.  Check out the Flickr link to see a video of the ferry.

Lunch in Lord Nelson

After the ferry crossing I headed into Southwold for lunch in the Lord Nelson pub.  At some time in the future I will have to add up the number of Lord Nelson pubs that I have visited over the years.  I am sure it will prove to be a lot.  They can be found, not only in England, but around the world including Geneva.

On to Lowestoft and Trouble with Westpac

I headed onto Lowestoft, where I had booked a hotel on the beach front.

The ‘check in’ did not go well.  The receptionist told me that my AMEX card had been rejected.  I tried to use my Mastercard that is linked to the same account.  It was also rejected.  I called the Westpac so called ‘helpdesk’.

Westpac told me that both transactions where charged my account.  As we chatted I logged into the Westpac online app.  I could not see the transactions.  Indeed, the only transactions that I could see were from five days ago.

The hotel said that they needed proof that the transactions had been processed because, their  system had no record of them being processed.  That seemed a reasonable to me.  I asked the Westpac ‘helpdesk’ why I couldn’t see the latest transactions on my account. They told me that they were having problems with their systems.  This is something that Westpac customers have to put up with on a regular basis.

I had thought that things were getting better at Westpac , but it would appear that are not.  The problem is, as we all know, that it is difficult to change banks.  Also, there is no guarantee that the service will be any better if you do.

In the end, I had to pay for the room using my currency card. It was all very embarrassing.  I suggest to everyone, think twice about banking with Westpac.

Walk and Meal

Once I had finally settled into the hotel, I decided to walk along the seafront to find a place to eat.  I found a gastro pub which served a very good night baked seabass.  A bonus was that they accepted my credit card.

It was a bit cool as I walked back to the hotel.  Clearly, the end of summer was on its way.

Flickr Link

https://flic.kr/s/aHsm3khEHU

Garmin Links

Felixstowe

https://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/1935320278

Blaxhall

https://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/1935320300

Leiston

https://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/1935320319

To near Colchester and onto Harwick and Felistowe

It took me awhile to get out of Burnham on Crouch.  In fact,  it wasn’t until after lunch time that I finally left the town.

Past the Aerodrome

The route took me past an aerodrome.  There were a number of light planes flying around. One appeared to be a WWII Hurricane.

Getting at bit

In this part of the world, the signage on the Sustrans routes is a bit problematic.  I found myself getting lost a number of times.

Finding the Campsite

I had booked myself in to a campsite about five kilometres from Colchester.

It was late by the time I arrived at the site and decided to find a meal before pitching the tent.

Meal at the Alma Pub

A couple on the site suggested that I eat at the Alma pub.  While I was eating my meal, I noticed that there was cricket on the television.  It turned out to be the first Test between England and the West Indies.  What was really notable about this game was that it was the first Day/Night Test  to be played in England.

Unfortunately for cricket, virtually nobody in the pub seemed the slightest bit interested.

It was very late by the time I got back to the campsite. It was a bit of a pain, pitching the tent in the dark.

Chat with Norwich Couple

In the morning, I ended up having a rather a long chat, with a couple who were camped nearby.  They had only come from Norwich to told me that they often just head out into the country for short breaks in summer.

The bloke from told that owned a  Norton Commando 850 Mark 2 Interstate, that he was currently restoring.

Into Colchester

In the morning,  headed the short distance into Colchester where I had breakfast.  The major attraction of the town it is castle which dates back to Roman Times.

Onto Harwick

After leaving Colchester, I headed onto towards Harwich.

About 15 kilometers short of Harwick, I stopped briefly in a pub.

The notable feature of the pub was that they had a copy of the front page of the Sydney Morning Herald the day after England’s Rugby World Cup win in 2003.  The page was signed by Martin Johnson.

The landlord and great pleasure in showing me this memorabilia.

I was not impressed.

Ferry across to Felixstowe

I rode on to Felixstowe and  found the jetty for the ferry that would take me to the northern side of the harbour.  The ferry is known as the harbour and beach ferry.

On board I met two other cyclists.  They were  a couple of Englishwomen who were riding up the coast to Comer.

The ferry took about 15 minutes to cross the harbour, where we were to find how it got the second half of its name – we landed on a stony beach.

It was actually quite an effort to get the bikes over the beach onto firm ground.  It was then a short ride to my hotel, the Orwell in Felixstowe.

Flickr Link

https://flic.kr/s/aHsm1xAkPs

Garmin Links 

https://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/1928778286

https://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/1928778373

Southend on Sea

I rode from SW18 to Fenchurch Station in the City and caught the train to South end on Sea.

Faded Glory

I had book a night in the Bay Guesthouse that is on the Esplanade.  It is one of many such places in Southend.

Southend is one of many English seaside towns that have struggled since the 1970’s when the poms started travelling to Europe and beyond for their holidays.

There are lots of the ‘entertainment’ arcades and large ‘adventure’ park with mechanical rides.

Dinner on the Beach

I had a reasonable meal at a café on the beach.

The Pier

The main feature of the town is the pier.  It is the longest entertain pier in the world.  The reason for its length is the extraordinary tidal movements.

There is a train that runs along the pier.  A ‘ride and walk’ ticket is only GDP 2.50 for ‘Seniors’, including holders of NSW Senior’s Cards.  Very good value post Brexit Vote.

Ride to Burnham on Crouch

In the afternoon, I head towards Colchester.  This involved crossing the River Crouch on a very small ferry.

As I crossed the river, the heavens opened. I decided to stop in the town on the other side Burnham on Crouch. The ferryman suggested the White Harte Hotel. It turned out to be a good choice.

Flickr Link

https://flic.kr/s/aHsm2WTbH3

Garmin Link

To Fenchurch Train Station

https://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/1925204848

North from Southend on Sea.

https://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/1925204903

About Southend on Sea Pier

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Southend_Pier