there are a lot of beaches in suffolk, some are well known and frequented, others less so. but less than 10 mins drive from our cottage is Kessingland beach – a relatively unspoilt and more wild beach which reminds me very much of Dungeoness, with its pebble dunes and grasses, its definitely worth a morning walk. you will spy fisherman, dog walkers and bird watchers from the adjoining Benacre nature reserve and is much less touristy in the summer months. not far away in Thorpeness you can rent the house in the clouds – originally intended to be a water supply in 1923 Glencairne Stuart Ogilvie with F. Forbes Glennie (architect) & H. G Keep (works manager) brilliantly disguised it as house, and so it looks like a mystical cottage high in the sky. Thorpeness is one of those strange towns – a bit like a disneyfied part of Switzerland, mock Tudor houses are built around a Peter Pan boating lake, and 1930’s houses are built directly facing the long pebble beach. but my all time favourite beach is Covehithe, which happens to be the local beach to our cottage – beautifully windswept and unspoilt, its sadly receding coastline tumbles the trees into the shoreline, leaving eerie bleached out trunks and branches that give the beach an eerie quality. And of course there is the lovely Southwold beach with it’s pier and fishing harbour, it may attract more visitors in the summer months, but on a bright brisk winter’s day it can still soothe the soul. Wrap up warm and get a fish finger sandwich from one of the beach cafes – I prefer the one near the end towards the fish harbour. nothing more refreshing to be by the sea and take in that fresh air! the next beach is Walberswick, accessible by walking through the fish harbour and then crossing the pedestrian bridge and if you get tired to walk back, you can get the little rowing boat ferry, which takes about 2 mins to cross back to Southwold. once you are in Walberswick, the sandy beaches turn into pebbles as you head back towards Aldburgh. you can then visit, Dunwich, Sizewell, Thorpness, and Aldburgh – all interesting in their own way. I am discovering that Suffolk is a diverse and interesting coastline with much to explore.
christina wilson sweet nothings 