Burnham, Deepdale & Wells-Next-The-Sea

Our September holiday has been a minimum two weeks for as long as we have been camping (6-7 years). Certainly since we have owned the van it’s been at least two weeks, and last year it was three. This year has been a little disjointed for a number of reasons. Firstly, it was always going to be later due to a wedding we had been invited to. This meant from the off we were going to be going later than usual. On top of that, I was in the process of trying to get a car ready for sale, which distracted me from finishing my solar upgrade. Suffice to say, this delayed our even further, so we were going to be limited to approximately 10 days.

We erred towards Norfolk as it’s not somewhere we have explored extensively, and it was a lot closer than the more familiar jaunts of Devon & Cornwall. I had my reservations, but we didn’t commit until the night before we left home.

Our first stop was booked on the Wednesday morning of departure after reading a online review of the best campsites in Norfolk.

http://www.edp24.co.uk/features/8-stunning-norfolk-campsites-to-visit-in-2017-1-4833776

We left home under extremely windy conditions, heading for Burnham, Deepdale. The wedge shaped, flat sided Wolfgang was a real handful to keep in a straight line during the strong gusts of wind. But I was relaxed knowing that if Google maps navigation was correct, in 3 hours we would arrive at the campsite.

Deepdale Backpackers Campsite

At reception they had already penciled in a pitch for us and were all ready to chaperone is to said location. As seasoned campers we questioned the flexibility of other pitches.After a few taps of the keyboard and numerous biro scrawlings on the campsite map we had choices. Ironically, we chose the pitch right next to the reception area because it had a cosy feel to it. The grass was green, and it was effectively walled on all sides with tents aplenty. The alternatives were on higher ground, and far more exposed to the elements.

Other than a few tweaks to set the van up, a trip to the local Nisa store to get some supplies, and a stretch our legs (a whole 1 minute walk !) , the day pretty much ended there. We could both relax knowing we would be able to get up and explore in the morning.

So breakfast and a cup of tea saw us leaving the van at 10am. There are numerous, small independent arts, crafts and coffee shops within a few hundred yards of our campsite. It’s nice, and offered a couple of hours perusal, but not enough to hold our attention any longer.

With the bikes on the back of the van we decided to explore the local surroundings a little further. We spent best part of a couple of hours cycling out of the village, onto the Brancaster Straith Quay. It was really great to see Mandy enjoy the ride as much as I did. It rained 50% of the ride, but she still was in high spirits when we got back to the van.

After the ride, the weather took a turn for the worse. We were largely confined to the van, but with Netflix Series 2 of Ozarks downloaded on tablet, what better excuse to chill with the curtains closed ?.

After a broken nights sleep due to exceptionally windy conditions, we decided to catch the early bus into Wells Next The Sea. I’m constantly amazed at just how beautiful our country is, and just when we think we’ve seen the best it has to offer, we find this!