Windy Sunday Ride. - Hunstanton and back - 46 miles.

We had planned to ride to Hunstanton since mid week and had been monitoring the weather forecast. Looked like it would be fine and dry , although rain was due after 17:00 AND there was strong winds from the SW. We set off ay 10:45 and headed towards Walsingham, straight into the wind which was much stronger than expected but we put our heads down and pushed on. I had bought a little "wing" mirror   and it was pretty good and we stopped in Walsingham  by the Church ( well one of the many) and swapped it onto Jane's bike for her to try.

Shrine of  Our Lady in Willingham - bathed in Spring Sunshine.

From there it was on past the Farm Shop and up the hill to Egmere and across the B1105 and along the little lane , past the ruins of a Church. There once was an entire village in the area which was abandoned and left to fall into ruin in the 15th Century.

Remains of Egmere Church

We carried on the minor road , coming out in between South & North Creaks. We actually had the wind behind us for about a mile which was a welcome relief! We then took the minor road in North Create and climbed up to a particularly "high" point ad exposed area with the road heading directly SW , straight into the wind. This made for a tough couple of miles before we got to Stanhoe. After Docking and on an open and exposed stretch of road , we stopped and got of the road and waited for approximately 30 Boy Racer / Gary Boy type cars to go past at high speed and all giving a throaty roar from their twin exhausts..... some looked quite smart and others pretty rough! Quite a few of them were Subaru's!
After Ringstead we took the road which skirts around Hunstanton Park and then round the back of Old Hunstanton before arriving in Hunstanton where we stopped at the Café on the cliff edge
There was some serious Kite Surfing going on in the distance and some of the surfers were taking off and literally hanging in mid air.

 Treat of the weekend was a Fish Finger sandwich for me and Jane stayed safe with a Cheese and Pickle Sandwich ( for her din dins). I made the mistake of treating us to a bowl of cheesy chips which we managed to see off anyway , but regretted later!
On our way out of Hunstanton we spotted a procession of what was either Nuns or Klu Klux Klan making their way from the beach to the Car park

 

Nuns or KKK ?

The route back took us initially along the A149 with the wind almost behind us. We sped through Thornham and then Brancaster. Both villages seem to have an increasing number of renovated house with pastel shade paint work and very neat looking low maintenance gardens. This area has the feel of  being well to do and could be call the Gold Coast.

We stopped for a picture of me outside what must be one of the last remaining AA boxes in the country.

 Took the road to Burnham Market from Burnham Deepdale and then onto Burnham Thorpe.
On the road from Burnham Thorpe up to New Holkham , we spotted 2 Red Kites and a Kestrel enjoying the winds and waiting for us to get out of the way before they probably came down on the road to clear up the rabbits and pheasants which had met their untimely end earlier.
We were treated to a Barn Owl hunting the road side verges as we cruised down Crabbe  Road into Wighton.
Arrived back at Binham having done 46 windy miles. Good ride and our legs knew they had been out cycling today.

Selfies in Hunstanton Café