Walking the Suffolk Coastal Path - Boyton - Butley - Orford (Walk 6)
(Saturday 6th April 3.2 miles. Route taken: Sea wall, Butley Ferry, Sandy track, road. Time taken 1hr 45mins )
I was a little taken aback when I started todays walk, face on into the wind. The plus side was it wasn't cold or wet. Once I turned onto the sea wall the wind was blowing into my side. The track was still very rutted so hard going on my ankles.
There were several more pill boxes along this section, some more intact than others.
The area was very marshy with many lagoons. There were flocks of Grey-lagged geese, Canada geese and swans on these.
It was good to hear and see Skylarks in flight. I did encounter a few more people on this stretch of the walk. (4 to be exact). I also saw two egrets and a cormorant. It is always good to see a sign showing I am still walking in the right direction. Over the stile and on I went.
As I neared Butley the boatmen were preparing their boat for the ferry crossing. I was a little nervous about going across in a rowing boat as it was rather windy. The husband and wife team in charge that day were very reassuring and informed me that they had rowed over 300 customers across in just one day.
The ferry crossing is the smallest licensed ferry in Europe. It has been operating from its present site since 1383 and is one of only two in Britain working under oars alone. As I boarded the boat my husband was taking photos.
Having braved the trip I arrived safely on the other side, walked the plank before arriving on dry land, and continued my journey to Orford.
Once in Orford I visited Orford Castle. It was built between 1165 and 1173 by Henry II of England to consolidate royal power in the region.
The walk from here to Orford was mostly done on sandy tracks and then country roads. It was mostly arable land with the occasional field of pigs.
The road sides are a mass of Alexanders (Smyrnium olousatrum) this year. They were an introduced species but are now widely naturalised especially in the south and southeast. There were also bluebells along the way. These are a good two weeks earlier than last year. There was also a mass of Springbeauty (Claytonia perfoliata) originally introduced from North America.
I also wandered around the quay before heading to the Jolly Sailor, (a 400 year old building) where I spent the night.
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