Our arrival off the A149 was less than exciting: the car park was rammed with mobility style cars and inside Lathams, people were tucking into jumbo sausage rolls and super-sized tea cakes. Nobody gave a damn about what they were wearing.
Unprepared, we stepped outside into tundra conditions. The road ahead, named Middle Wall, was straight and led across exposed marshland. It looked like the opening scene to "Great Expectations" and quite frankly, I didn't fancy it. Sensing my reluctance, Sue marched off at some ridiculous SAS training speed.
But after half a mile, there was a change: the strait started to curve a little; small trees suddenly lined our route; and the sun made an appearance. This wasn't at all bad.
Soon we entered the nature reserve, where the challenge was to stay upright. "Good choice Mr Roberts," said Sue slippin' and a slidin' along: the mud, merely adding to her fun.
Did I mention the surroundings? All around us petrified trees, lay in some glutinous, primordial swamp: the scene filtered through sun and shadow, resembled a vast, modern art installation.
After remote cottages, churches and a trek through forest, we suddenly emerged at the edge of Hickling Broad. Here, the water appeared some kind of chemically charged super blue.
The last part of our walk, took us along the River Thurne and past riverside, holiday homes, which looked delightful in daylight. But at night, the proximity of all that cold, dark, water might not be so welcome.
By early afternoon, the cold was once again kicking in. But it was too late for me. Too late, because even my icy, republican heart had warmed to Potter Heigham and its various walkways.
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Location:Pottergate,Norwich,United Kingdom
