Diss to Thetford Forest
After a lovely rest day, I was ready to set off on the trail and left Diss via the Angles Way.
It was a beautiful morning, with no clouds in the sky, as I set out along fields south of Roydon.
The Angles Way took me to Wortham Ling nature reserve. It was a beautiful heathland. It was really nice to see some gorse again too. Seeing some made me realise that I’d not seen any since my first couple of weeks!
I then headed along a lane before rejoining the Angles Way at Redgrave nature reserve. The Angles Way came off the lane to rejoin later on, so I could have continued along the lane, but I opted for softer ground and the hope of some shade. I’m really glad that I did, the reserve was beautiful and peaceful.
I even found a little bit of shade, to stop for a snack.
I took a short lane through the outskirts of Redgrave before taking the Angles Way to Hinderclay Fen.
Along the way, I passed a windmill in the distance. On a recent trip to the Netherlands, a friend had challenged me to send him a picture of a windmill. I failed to see one, so it was nice to finally complete the challenge!
I then took a farm track and a series of footpaths through Gasthorpe and to Knettishall Heath.
Along the way, I passed Riddlesworth Hall, which was massive! It could easily have been a national trust stately home.
Knettishall Heath is the end of the Angles Way. For me it was also the end of Leg 10!
I left the woodland along the Peddar’s Way. The Peddar’s Way is a 46 mile trail that follows a old Roman road to the Norfolk Coast. The trail took me through woodland, which gave some much appreciated shade, as the temperatures were definitely warming up!
The path then took me through marshland to the road. The route was along a boardwalk, which was nice to walk along. The wood had a slight bounce to it.
I then took a lane all the way to the outskirts of Thetford. This was one of the toughest parts of the day, with little shade, it was warm and the tarmac seemed to reflect the heat. Along the way I passed a lovely war memorial at Kilverstone Hall. It had benches that you could sit on, on the sides, and looked like it had running water at one stage
I stopped in Tesco to get a cold drink, then continued up another lane to Croxton, before joining a farm track. It was nice to be back off the tarmac and surrounded by nature again.
The track took me to Thetford Forest, where I finished for the day. Last night, my campsite for this evening cancelled my booking due to unforeseen circumstances. I tried to book an Airbnb, but unfortunately they didn’t get back to me, and with very few other options, I opted to wild camp on the woodland. I found a lovely secluded spot, hidden away, for hopefully a peaceful night’s sleep!
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