North Norfolk Railway Beer Festival 2011
North Norfolk Railway Beer Festival 2011
The 10th North Norfolk Railway beer festival
There was a selection of 120 ales from around the country plus a range of ciders and perrys all for the price of £2.80 a pint. Entertainment and food was available throughout the weekend together with both diesel and steam train workings to make a truly unique event. Even the rain throughout the weekend could not dampen the enthusiasm of those attending, with plenty of shelter available in the carriages alongside Platform 2 where the beer tent was situated. This was an excellent weekend with ample opportunity for some walking along the picturesque coast to Cromer. There was also a late bus between Sheringham and Cromer calling at Woodhill saving us the walk across Beeston Bump in the dark back to the campstie at East Runton. When it comes to beer festivals you cannot beat this one.
Essential Information
Walk Statistics:
Total Walk distance: 9 miles
Walk difficulty: Easy
Maps:
OS Map: OS Explorer Map 252 Norfolk Coast East
OS Route Map: Available here
Google Route Map: Available here
Accommodation:
Woodhill Park Campsite
Website: http://www.woodhill-park.com/
Location: View in OS Map | View in Google Map
Woodhill Park Campsite, Runton
Website: http://www.woodhill-park.com/
Location: View in OS Map | View in Google Map
Woodhill Park Campsite, Runton
Transport:
Bus Service
Operator: Norfolk Green
Service Number: Coasthopper
Timetable: Available here
Norfolk Coasthopper service - between Cromer and Sheringham.
Operator: Norfolk Green
Service Number: Coasthopper
Timetable: Available here
Norfolk Coasthopper service - between Cromer and Sheringham.
bus Service
Operator: Sanders Coaches
Service Number: 44
Timetable: Available here
Sanders Coaches Service 44 Sheringham to Cromer
Operator: Sanders Coaches
Service Number: 44
Timetable: Available here
Sanders Coaches Service 44 Sheringham to Cromer
Walk Data
Date of Walk: 2011-07-16
Start Time: 12:00:00.0Z
End time: 22:30:00.0Z
Walkers: Griffmonster Kat
Weather Conditions: Blustery wind, some heavy rain with some sunny spells at the end of the day
Equipment: none
Start Time: 12:00:00.0Z
End time: 22:30:00.0Z
Walkers: Griffmonster Kat
Weather Conditions: Blustery wind, some heavy rain with some sunny spells at the end of the day
Equipment: none
Walk Notes ToC
Without any shadow of a doubt this beer festival is my favourite. This is the third year in attendance and it never fails to disappoint, getting better with each year. This year we spent most of the weekend at the festival being in attendance on Friday evening, throughout Saturday and Sunday lunchtime. There were some excellent beers on offer and far too many to mention here - see the slideshow for a sample of some of the ales we tasted. My personal favourites were Betty Stoggs from the Skinners brewery of Truro, a full bodied pale amber ale; O'Hanlons Yellowhammer, a very moreish well balanced pale ale; plus all the brews from the Tydd Steam Brewery, all of which were very pleasing to the palette. The predominant beer style was pale and golden beers with very few stouts and porters, but I guess that is the trend these days. I did manage to sample one stout, Panthers Black Ale which was a a fine example of a Norfolk stout.
Saturday was our main attendance when we spent most of the day at the festival. The initial intention was to walk into Sheringham but the blustery day with constant heavy showers made us take the path alongside the road in as this was a little more sheltered. As we headed into West Runton the rain became heavier and we were getting drenched. Quite amazingly the open-topped Sanders bus stopped for us despite not being at a bus stop and despite not attempting to flag the bus down. This was appreciated as we did not really want to spend the rest of the day in damp clothing. We did manage to have a wander around Sheringham during the day and have a meal at the Jolly Tar restaurant. I hate putting places down, but this was not very good food. We had a plate of haddock in breadcumbs and chips and peas and the fish was so hard you needed industrial mining gear just to get into it. The service was also very slow considering there was very few people in the restaurant.
Music at the festival was most excellent with the the entertaining Ugly Dog Skiffle Combo playing throughout Saturday. These are a great fun band who cover songs in their own distinctive style including a reggae version of the Undertones Teenage Kicks and a skiffle version of Led Zeppelins Rock n Roll. On Sunday lunchtime we watched the Jazz of the King Size Papas. Although I would never consider myself a jazz aficionado, these supplied a relaxing and entertaining lunchtime in the sunshine.
This year saw the introduction of a late 44 bus by Sanders - leaving Sheringham just before 10pm. This was much appreciated and very well used and is a lot more convenient than getting a taxi or hiking across Beeston Bump in the dark or getting the late train to West Runton and walking.
All together, a well rewarding beer festival. We already have next years beer festival marked in the calender - see you there!
Steam train operate throughout the Beer Festival
Directions ToC
A simple circular route following clifftop paths in one direction and the beach in the other.
From Woodhill Park there is a path that runs along the cliff top, past West Runton and in front of Beeston Regis caravan site. Here it joins the official coastal footpath for the ascent up Beeston Bump. You can now follow the National Trail acorns down into Sheringham. Planning this walk right you will then be able to walk the shoreline all the way from Sheringham to Cromer. To return from Cromer follow the cliff top path to Cromer Bowls club where erosion forces the walker onto the road through to East Runton and back to where the walk starts.!
great music from The Ugly Dog Skiffle Combo
Features ToC
Sheringham Poppy Line: View in OS Map | View in Google Map
Wiki article: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_Norfolk_Railway
Sheringham is the terminus for the North Norfolk Railway, also known as the Poppy Line. This preserved steam railway runs the 5 miles between Sheringham and Holt along the former route of the Midland and Great Northern Joint Railway and has recently been reconnected to the National Rail network allowing steam specials to run from London and Norwich.
Work on rebuilding the line started in 1965, and on 4 June 1967, two steam locomotives were delivered. The operating company, North Norfolk Railway plc, was launched in 1965 following the granting of two Light Railway Orders. In May 1973, the railway was the scene of filming of the episode The Royal Train of the popular TV programme Dad's Army. The main restoration sheds are located at Weybourne with new carriage storage sheds more recently built near Holt with Heritage Lottery Funding.
Sunday afternoon jazz from the King Size Papas
Images ToC
Below are a selection of images taken from from the photo album for this walk. There are links to the entire photo album plus a slideshow of all the images. Feel free to browse through these or click on any image to view a larger version in the Gallery.
View complete photo album
Click on an image below to view the Image Gallery
Summary of Document Changes
Last Updated: 2013-04-11+01:00
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