OTTERS, WINDMILLS AND SLEEPY COWS…
A LONG OVERDUE RETURN TO NORFOLK
We’ve just returned from a visit to East Anglia, scratching a 10 year itch and capturing beautiful Autumn colours.
Autumn breaks are almost all about the photography for me, so the timing has to be spot on if we’re to make the most of the changing seasons. I feel we were maybe a couple of weeks too early to catch the best of the colours but no complaints from me - we made the most of our time there.
I had a couple of objectives in mind, mainly centred around the wonderful Thetford Forest as it’s an area I know fairly well and could maximise my limited time in the best locations. Cath, of course, had her own plans for the week but we’ll come to that shortly. Thetford is centrally located for all of the East Anglia honeypot locations, being in easy reach of The Broads, the Norfolk and Suffolk coast, and the main centres of Norwich, Ely and Cambridge. There’s almost a timelessness about this part of the world despite being within easy reach of London. The landscape is relatively unspoiled and, lack of contours aside, it’s ideal territory for a landscape photographer. Let’s be honest, if it was good enough for Constable to paint then it’s more than good enough for me to capture digitally.
I spent some time photographing the area around the River Little Ouse and never fail to appreciate how pristine the whole region is. Crystal clear waters and a wide variety of wildlife transport you to a simpler time where everything slows down. People have time to stop and chat, sharing their appreciation of a special place. We spent a fabulous morning walking the stretch of river near the wonderfully named Santon Downham, watching sleeping swans drift on a gentle current prior to waking up at sunrise. Further upstream we saw otters fishing for breakfast as a Kingfisher flew past. Perfection. Further along we heard the sound of snoring. Yes, you read that right. Rounding a bend we came across of herd of ginger Highland Cattle, all fast asleep with their breath steaming in the morning chill. Must be the Norfolk air ! A stand of fir trees catching the morning sun completed the scene so we decided to head off and find somewhere for breakfast.
A while later it was time to indulge one of Cath’s obsessions. A short drive took us to RAF Lakenheath, currently home to the U.S. 48th Fighter Wing and their stunning F-35A Lightnings. Cath loves anything to do with aircraft and could happily sit at Cardiff or Bristol airport all day. We’d heard jet engines firing up on our drive there, so imagine Cath’s joy when four F-35s flew over us as we arrived. We were then treated to Boeing KC-135 Stratotankers practicing “touch and go” manoeuvres on the main runway. Lakenheath has a large viewing area so we had a fantastic view of the runways and things got even better when two F-35s taxied out in front of us ready for take off. Nothing quite prepares you for the noise these machines generate and I can see why people find them so fascinating. Capturing the jets in flight is really challenging but I enjoy trying and was pleased with some of my results. It is, of course, a completely different style of photography to the more pedestrian landscape work that I love so much, but fun nonetheless. After the peace and quiet of the morning the contrast couldn’t have been greater though.
After a busy couple of days we decided to take a trip to the coast and a visit to Great Yarmouth gave us a chance to take in huge skies and miles of golden sand. Much more in my photographic comfort zone ! I love coastal resorts at this time of year. The crowds have gone, arcades have closed down, and there’s space to breathe and take in the views. It was pleasing to see that the town acknowledges its heritage with the promenade displaying images of the huge herring fleet that operated out of the port for centuries. A good long walk in fresh North Sea air is always a benefit and never fails to work up an appetite !
The next few days were spent photographing the fabulous Norfolk Broads and I’m always drawn to the numerous windmills (or more properly, drainage pumps) that dot the landscape here. They’re so photogenic and in the right conditions can deliver images that become excellent additions to the portfolio. Unfortunately I didn’t get any of the misty sunrises I was hoping for but I’m still really happy with the images I came away with. It’s great to see that many of the pumps are looked after by various trusts set up to ensure they’ll be around for some time to come.
We spent a day in the wonderful city of Ely, at 85ft above sea level the highest land in the Fens ! Visiting the beautiful cathedral is of course a must and it never disappoints. The city centre is a delight to walk around and it was good to see so many shops owned by independent traders rather than the usual crop of chain stores. Oh and the parking was free as well. What’s not to like ! A very enjoyable day out but I needed to get back to photographing landscapes.
The rest of the trip was spent photographing woodland. Readers of my blogs will know I’m drawn to woodland as a first choice for my photography and this part of the world never disappoints. Thetford Forest covers 47000 acres so there’s plenty to go at. Knowing where to find the best locations is important when faced with an area of this size for such a limited time. I could honestly spend a week just in the woodland and will probably return on my own at some point to do just that. Although peak Autumn colours are still a couple of weeks away there’s still enough change to keep photographers interested and I really enjoyed my time there.
Unfortunately time ran out and I wish we could have stayed longer but we’d pushed our luck with the weather and with a stormy outlook for the coming week it was time to head home. No complaints though. We’d met some lovely people, discovered some excellent restaurants and seen fabulous scenery, wildlife and architecture. Cath got her aviation fix as well ! Lots of memories captured that I’ll now revisit as I edit my images over the next few days.
Norfolk is such a wonderful place to visit and we’ve already booked to return next year. I can’t wait to get back and visit those otters and windmills and I’m fairly sure those cows will still be snoozing amongst the fir trees !
