Easter mini tour of NW Suffolk

Action Man arrived on Easter Sunday with his rucksack and ill-formed plans for a two-day ride to Somewhere. We took all morning to find a suitable destination that had accomodation available, and set off in a Diss direction, following the delightful Low Road along the Waveney valley through tiny villages and then gorse-covered heathland up towards the Norfolk border, with the sound of a chime whistle from the Bressingham steam museum floating across on a lovely tail wind.

The wind made it an easy ride to our digs: the Cornwallis Hotel in Brome, near Eye. This beautiful Tudor hotel was perhaps a bit posher than we deserved after such modest efforts to get there, but never mind; we made up for it on the return leg with 50 miles against the wind.

Action Man is a big fan of Sandringham Class locomotives and he had spotted Quidenham on the map, whose Hall has a loco named after it. So from the hotel we looped north into Norfolk via Burston (see magnificent mill, pictured) and Shelfanger - this time hearing the sounds of a race meeting at Snetterton on the wind - to find Quidenham (pictured), now a Carmelite monestry.

West towards Newmarket

April Fool's Day. We headed West from Bury, blown along by a strong Easterly wind, and through the lovely rolling countryside of Little Saxham, Ousden, Upend (pictured - this spot hasn't changed; see here) into the horsey villages on the outskirts of Newmarket. The verges here are wide and beautifully kept; the roads deserted.

We were aimng for the King's Head at Dullingham, but found it closed for refurbishment and ended up at the Black Bull in Balsham for a very tasty roast dinner, served by friendly staff. A chap at the bar was complaining about something he'd read in his paper concerning a new version of darts, played with a square board. He was most unhappy. An April Fool.

Woolpit

25th March. Time was short so we did the short hop from Bury to Woolpit. Lunch at the Bull - unpretentious food, not expensive. Good.

Woolpit has its own website, which says:

"Woolpit is an attractive Suffolk village with period and modern houses nestling around a mediaeval village centre. Its lively community is richly provided with a wealth of clubs and organisations, and well served with shops and other amenities.

Its greatest claims to fame are: the legend of the Green Children, a mediaeval mystery of strange children appearing from nowhere, whose skin was green and who would only eat green foods; the beautiful church of St Mary, with its stunning hammer beams and angel carvings, perhaps equalled but unsurpassed in Suffolk; and the former brickworks, long since disused, the white bricks of which were used, locals claim, to build the White House in Washington, D.C.

These days Woolpit attracts tourists and painters who appreciate its picturesque setting and historical heritage, but those who live here also take pride in the annual Woolpit Festival, a medley of concerts, readings and theatre; in the 30 or more clubs and societies catering for a wide range of needs and interests; and in the development and care of their beautiful home village."