After an enjoyable rest day with my cousins, a relatively short walk today on Peddars Way, out of the Thetford Forest.
Yesterday was spent catching up on family news, eating some excellent food prepared for me, exchanging greetings with very friendly dogs with comically big eyebrows and moustaches, in addition to laundry and learning more about the area. Today one of my cousins generously drove me to where the Peddars Way crosses the busy A11 road at a rest area, saving me a train journey and a long walk. I felt very blessed (as my mother would say).
After our goodbyes I turned to continue my walk north. Following the Peddars Way is easy. Not only are there multiple finger posts, the route is also very straight, a sign that I was on a road originally built by the Roman's almost 2000 years ago, possibly following an earlier route. At times on a single track road, on others a forest track or footpath, the landscape is not quite flat, but very nearly. Much of the day's ramble was through woodland and forest with occasional fields and one lake. On my left for one long section the path ran beside lands owned by the Ministry of Defence with numerous keep out signs. I was looking for stone slabs with writing carved on them as reported by my guidebook. Of the two "Norfolk Songlines" I found today I could only read the words on the second. They described surveyors creating a web of roads reaching "the edge of empire", presumably the Roman empire.
Watton was not on the Peddars Way but nearer Bed & Breakfasts were closed (opening March one told me), so I diverted into the town. I walked by small shops on the high street: a carpet shop, a funeral director, a café, a butcher, a bakery, estate agents, "International Shops" catering to people from Eastern Europe and beyond who have come here to work, finally reaching my bed & breakfast. After extracting a key with the code sent by text message I was into my room for the night. At a similar time, money for the accommodation was extracted from my bank account. Now feeling stuffed after over-eating at dinner after being tempted by arancini, chicken and chorizo tagliatelle and blueberry crème brûlée, my length of walk today did not justify it. By the time I had finished the wind outside had strengthened, flapping the loose material of a marquee standing outside, redistributing leaves and litter.
No comments:
Post a Comment