Hellesdon to Taverham Garden centre ca. 4.3 miles Since Hellesdon is our home, we started our walk from here, but it is easy to get to either by bus (28, 29, x29 First bus) or by car. We use what3words grid references to all locations. You will see these in ( ) with /// in front of three random words. Check out what3words.com for more info. Opting for a slight detour to avoid the cars on Drayton high road, we decided to walk through Drayton woods (///dent.dark.arrive), then cross the road (///flaked.reporting.revival) and walk down towards low road (///geek.tops.dial). Following low road towards Drayton, be careful because people tend to drive way too fast along this road and there is not always a great deal of space to get out of the way. It is such a lovely walk though, framed by gorgeous countryside on both sides with the river Wensum on your left. Make sure to look out for birds of prey and other wildlife as you walk!
Our first pit stop was The Willows in Drayton. This amazing café is one of our favorites, with great breakfasts, lovely coffee and friendly staff. www.thewillowsdrayton.com (///clubs.most.makeovers)
They do have lunches as well, as well as roast dinners on Sundays. If you want to visit them by car, they have a small car park for 10 – 12 cars, but it can be a bit tricky to get into.
If you do come here by car, make sure to pop in and see our friends at Priscilla Bacon Lodge. They have a cute little charity shop here (///dizzy.shuttling.defenders)
After our poached eggs of toast and cappuccinos we made our way towards Marriott’s Way (///dignity.without.companies). Marriott’s way is a 26-mile-long walking route stretching from Norwich all the way to Aylsham. Would you dare to take it on all at once? Check this link for more info https://you-well.co.uk/marriotts-way/ Marriott’s way is full of wildlife and beautiful nature – further down the way there are several badger sets, but more on them on another walk!
The part of Marriott’s way we took on this time leads you through Drayton and Thorpe Marriott all the way up to Breck Farm Lane, but before moving on we just have to make a shout-out to Taverham & Drayton litter pickers, with Stacy Bradley at the steering wheel. There are few projects you can better see just the power of local people caring for their local environment. At the time of my writing this, they have cleared 3,724 kilos of rubbish over 65 litter picks…. Crazy!
The last stretch between Marriott’s way and Taverham Garden Centre is not much to write home about. But when you finally get there, it is well worth the walk. On this day they had a lovely Christmas fair around the back, complementing their normal community of shops with everything from a massive craft shop to a hairdresser. Our own Val was there with her gorgeous Mutt Matts www.facebook.com/ReclaimthatStyle. Did you know that she saves around 300 duvets from going to landfill every year? Not bad for a business of one!
At Taverham Garden Centre it is obligatory to have a coffee and a slice of cake at their cafe’. Well, it is for us anyway! Check out www.facebook.com/TaverhamNursery for opening times to avoid disappointments. As much as the lemon cheesecake was amazing, the best thing of the day was by far to run into @earthstone_ceramics and walk away with one of his stunning bowls. Wow! Check him out on Instagram, but even better, figure out where he will trade next. They are not just beautiful to look at, but the texture is just fantastic.
