[Closed] Norfolk, or the rest of East Anglia, 2 day tour.

Nice to have a bite and pint on the ship berthed at Wells-Next-the-Sea (good Yoof Hostel there too).

Don't know about routes etc ,
but the beach at Wells next to the sea is beautiful. Must see imo.
Cromer is old school seaside which I quite liked.

Frenchies Fish and Chips at Wells is a good one for a stop off.

Suffolk coast is really nice too.

This may be useful for coming up with a route, though it doesn't include much of the Norfolk Broads which are worth exploring.
http://www.sustrans.org.uk/ncn/map/route/fakenham-to-harwich

If you are nearby, calling in to sea the Seals at Horsey Gap would be good too (not sure if they are there at the moment though)

You have loads of options, depending on what you want to see - countryside or coastline (noting that if it's windy the coast could be hard work).

North-east Norfolk is slightly lumpy but very pretty farm land. Starting at King's Lynn, the NCN1 takes you mainly off-road through the Sandringham Estate. If you want an ice-cream you can take a detour to Hunstanton for a sand beach and then onwards to Wells Next The Sea (about 37 miles). The campsite at the end of the estuary is fine - nice sandy beach and protected by pine trees, but mostly caravans. Then head back to Kings Lynn the next day.

There are a number of good breweries with pubs on the east Norfolk / Suffolk border, including St Peters and Adnams. For coastline, Southwold / Aldeburgh region of Suffolk is very pretty and you could just do a few loops around that area using NCN1 and the regional cycling routes. It's about 35 miles Norwich - Southwold so you could either do Norwich - Ipswich using trains to get there and back or do a loop around the Bungay - Southwold area. There is an orchard campsite on the NCN1 at Holden. I am sure there are loads of other gems for example on ukcampsite.co.uk.

For less distance, Norwich - NCN1 through the broads - Burgh Castle - Great Yarmouth loop is about 60 miles total.

Seals at Horsey Gap

They are mostly grey seals, so only see them in numbers during the breeding season which is winter (best in November / December). On the north coast at Blackeney Point, there are both grey and common seal breeding colonies so you can see common seals around June-August. But it is advisable to get the boat trips at Blackeney (it's a very long walk to the Point).

Lots of lovely scenery and pub stops around north Norfolk. Give Yarmouth a wide berth.

Between Hunstanton and Yarmouth it's lovely, just watch out for traffic on the coast roads.

Sea food and breweries should help plot a decent route. There's a brewery in Holt to start you off, then up to the coast and along....

Crossing the Waveney can also get a bit fraught the nearer you are to the Broads. Too much traffic too few bridges, there may be ferry options during the summer months.

Great, this sounds promising. It'd be entirely on road by the way.

Lovely area and potential for lots of quite lane riding (I've only done field work down there), but stay away from the A-roads - there are a lot of lorries!

For scenery, spectacular pubs, direct and easy to navigate and plenty of novice rider friendly stopping opportunities I'd ride the North Norfolk coast road from Hunstanton to Cromer. So many lovely villages along the way.

Seafood wont be at its best, remember only eat with an R in the month but there will be plenty of local produce in the good pubs.

It's lovely up there, I spent many happy years on those roads. 🙂

Great, this sounds promising. It'd be entirely on road by the way.

I should have clarified, the route 1 from King's Lynn to Hunstanton is tarmaced / paved, just that some of it is separate from the road (particularly around the A149 which can be horribly busy).

It's not what you were asking but I was also going to recommend the route 11 Ely-Wicken-Anglesey Abbey-Cambridge-towards Stansted Mountfitchet hopping on a train back to Ely when you've had enough. However, I think the 11 from Ely-Barway and again through some sections of Wicken Fen might have some gravel / hardcore rather than all tarmac. But it's completely flat between Ely and Cambridge and very quiet. For an on-tarmac route I would do something like [url= http://tinyurl.com/nr93enr ]this route[/url], park at Wicken Fen and do a loop around to Isleham on the first day then through Ely for lunch on the way back. The 2-3 miles on the A142 would be a bit rubbish, but it gives you an on-road loop.

Seafood wont be at its best, remember only eat with an R in the month

Ely-Barway is fine on a road bike but compared to the coastal routes it will be dull. Consider plotting a route slightly inland with occasional forays to seaside towns if you want to avoid holiday maker traffic on the A149.

I live and Ely and grew up in Hunstanton BTW

Fat Birds in Hunstanton let me test ride a £3k Lynsky without asking my name, let alone taking anything as security. Just in case, while you are there, just saying like....

This is a great location to explore the North Norfolk coast. It is a bit hilly but nothing too steep and an area rich in wildlife and stunning countryside.
http://www.deepdalefarm.co.uk

Or this place. It is a bit further round towards Cromer but the Broards would be 45-50 mile round trip, easily done in a day. The campsite is great and allows you to have a real fire which is rare these days.
http://www.breckfarm.co.uk

Deep Dale Farm is lovely, a couple of good pubs within walking distance, and a cafe that does a mega cooked breakfast 🙂

I'm originally from Wells-next-the-Sea and know the north Norfolk area very well. Wells would be a wonderful place to have your camp and spend an evening. There's nowhere like it along the coast. Miles of empty beach and sand dunes backed with pine forest, An inland harbour - sitting on deck of the Albatros (wonderful old sailing ship turned bar) looking across the salt marshes with a beer as the tide rolls in and the sun sets, then down in the bar with impromptu music and chat until whenever Ton feels it's time to roll to bed. Plenty of other places to eat too.
On your way into Wells divert through Burnham Market and through Holkham estate riding past the hall.

Last summer I rode all of the Norfolk coast. The west side is good if you're wanting a fast road ride but best diverted if you don't like sharing with fast traffic. This is good because you can ride through the Sandringham Estate (on the cycle route that konagirl mentions). The interior of the county is pretty much the same mix throughout but the coast is where it's at. You could ride further along the coast to Sheringham (taking in the Kelling Alps) but would need to take some minor roads across the county back to your start point.

I did the ride to Yarmouth and back. It was a good road ride but it gets monotonous at the Yarmouth end where there isn't a road that's near the sea. Very flat there too. The north coast is nicely undulating and interesting.

I've just had a week up there - camped here:

http://www.baconsthorpemeadows.co.uk/

lovely site, tents only and they allow fires.

managed a bit of pootling round by bike, some lovely roads along the coast and inland, and a few surprisingly steep climbs. As a south Norfolk boy it pains me to say, but stick to the north of county - far better scenery, roads and facilities.

Im in Ipswich on the Eastern side if you want a start point and safe place to park. From here to Felixstowe and the Bawdsey Ferry across the Deben then head up to Southwold for Adnams beer and spirits. Cross to Halesworth and on to Norwich and Aylsham/Burnham Market this is either NCN51 or NCN1 and will keep you busy for a couple of days. Train back to Ipswich from Norwich is 45 minutes or so. Mail in profile if you want more.