Norfolk: Burnham Overy Staithe to Stiffkey 5/9/2008***

 

Burnham Overy Staithe   Norwegian wasp   File-shells Ensis ensis, arcuatus & siliqua

From the main road it is only 100m to the waterside and the path along the embankment beside Overy Marshes.  The first bird recorded was wood pigeon, which seems to be the most frequent species around here, wherever we go – in the villages, out on the saltmarsh, in hedges and fields.  Shrubby seablite was again omnipresent, as also was the unrayed form of sea aster, which has been very much more numerous than the rayed every day, and sea spurge.  Soon, a boardwalk led up the dunes into Holkham Nature Reserve.  The vegetation here was limited, the sand leached of calcium, the surface dominated by lichens, but there was an abundance of common centaury.  Insects we saw here included the Norwegian wasp Dolichovespula norwegica, a decreasing species, and the "notable" hoverfly Cheilosia barbata.  We walked most of the way, therefore, east along the beach, with the usual range of shells, including several whelk-like ones typical of the east coast, but only the odd slipper limpet as yet.  The sand was dominated, however, by a huge wreck of file-shells of three different species and great range of sizes, presumably the result of recent storms.  Inland the dunes were soon covered in a Corsican pine plantation, so we kept to the coast around a wide sea-inlet (Holkham Meals) where saltmarsh plants appeared again, including three glassworts (common, purple and one-flowered).  We sat on a driftwood log to have a quick lunch.  Although it had been only drizzling slightly until then, the forecast rain started to make itself felt, increasing as we passed the row of beach-huts that preceded the coastguard look-out and lifeboat station at the corner of The Run, the long inlet to Wells-Next-The-Sea.  From here it was a paved embankment into town, but flowery enough along the banks, with houndstongue, viper’s bugloss, musk thistle, sea wormwood and musk mallow.  As we arrived in the town we considered abandoning the walk as it became more and more wet.  We did some shopping and stopped for a coffee, but the rain still continued, so we went up the road for the bus, only to find we would have to wait another hour, the service being less frequent around the middle of the day.  As the rain was lighter by then, we decided to use the hour fruitfully by continuing our walk, around the harbour and out along the edge of Warham saltmarshes.  Many walkers had passed here this morning and with the rain had caused the path to become muddy and slick, so less pleasant.  By the time we had proceeded half an hour the rain started to become serious and we were glad of umbrellas, even though wearing waterproofs.  The three miles to Stiffkey were very uniform and (at least in this weather) rather dull, alleviated only by the welcome cries of curlews sharing the muddy creeks with black-headed and herring gulls, and the occasional oystercatcher and redshank.  The only other interest was provided by a large adult toad in the path, which perhaps enjoyed the rain more than we did.  We turned inland along the short road beside the campground at Stiffkey, the nearest approach to the main road and a long-anticipated bus-ride back, for which we only had to wait five minutes.  It was only a mile inland to our hotel for the next two nights – Holte Arms in Burnham Market, an old pub that is very busy and has 36 rooms.