While the swelling in my walking conmpanions eyes had reduced a little with the assistance of antihistamine, they were still visibly puffy and continued to cause concern. We decided to wait and see what the morrow brings before seeking medical assistance.
We wakened to deathly quiet and overcast, steely-grey skies. One of us had eyes like golf balls and it wisnae me. Symptomatic of an allergic reaction to the pollen on the grasses we were lying on my walking companion was reduced to anti-histamine tablets for breakfast. In response to the allergy attack, we rose pretty promptly, packed up and moved on without taking the time to prepare a drink or breakfast. Given the allergic reaction and, as most of the day's walking was going to be on sea wall, we were not confident about what the day would hold for us. If it was all newly mown or full of tall mature grasses then we could be in trouble. We set off still walking on the outward sea wall but had in our minds that if the conditions deteriorated any further vis-à-vis allergy, we would move in to check out the inner wall to see if the walking conditions were any better. We do try to walk as close to the coast as we can, but sometimes for safety or other reasons, it just is not possible to get close to the sea's edge. The early route was a couple of relatively short sections that turned us to our right for the long straight that runs along the expanse of marshland that sits off an area on the OS maps called Puff. This section runs in to another one that borders one of the many bombing ranges that are located in this part of the country and operated by the Defence Council. Operated under the auspices of RAF Holbeach, the range is used primarily for bombing and strafing practice. In these areas there are often notices warning you not to walk on the land when the red flags are flying. Initially, we thought this meant you could not even walk on the sea wall if the red flag was up. However, we have tested this out on a number of occasions now, including on sites where there are manned observation posts and have never been asked to leave. The areas that have to be avoided, I think, are those that lie on the seaward side of the sea wall, which is where they actually drop bombs or fire guns. Obviously, you need to use a bit of common sense but important to remember that it is not always as straightforward as it seems. When in doubt ask a local! At the end of the first long straight we went inland for a little bit towards the car park just before Lawrence Farm, where we joined the inner sea wall for a few yards. The walking here was no better than what we were on so we returned to the outer wall again. We passed the first defence signs here advising not to enter if red flag, etc., but we decided to continue on the path anyway. It was interesting because in direct defiance of the red flag ordinance there was a herd of cows grazing on the marshland. We considered dropping the bubble to the authorities on them but eventually decided to let them off with a warning. To our relief there was a tarmac road running along the back of the sea wall that for a time at least, took us off the mown grass. There were a number of firing range observation posts on this stretch, all with cars outside which made us think bombing runs were imminent. We sat and brewed up just outside one of them to give them a chance to tell us we should not be there but no one came near. The Wash is an internationally important habitat, site of numerous rare sea plants and the location for a number of important wildlife species. It has the second largest area of intertidal sands and mud flats in the UK, with numerous creeks reaching out in to the saltmarsh area. Bird species such as Little Egret and Marsh Harrier are to be found here and there is a fantastic range of plants that have adapted to and grown in the saltmarsh, as well as an equally broad range of invertebrates that attract the huge flocks of birds that gather here in the winter. Far out at the sea’s edge there are also important colonies of seals. Its all there, you just need to leave the sea wall and have the time, patience and knowledge of where to look for it and how to do it safely on what can be treacherous mud flats and marshes. At this point the sea is at least another couple of miles offshore and already with seventeen miles to walk in the day we did not have the time or energy to walk out and back. There is not really a lot to say about a lot about this stretch of our walk. The constant overcast skies put a dampener on the early part of the day and you can only spend so much time looking at endless saltmarsh (Dawsmere) and tilled fields before it starts to become repetitive. Although the roads and paths were flat, psychologically it was difficult walking because of the many long straights where the path is laid out in front of you for mile after mile. Such days are usually broken up with interest in the wild flowers, a nature reserve, birds or butterflies but there seemed to be nothing moving that day with only sparse bird or insect life. It was a long, slogging route march. The visible pathway shortened a little as we approached the Gedney Drove area and there was the odd corner or two but little about the countryside changed. We had been walking for about four hours when just after Gedney we stopped on a slightly wider section of the sea wall and set up to have lunch. A lady walking a dog stopped to speak to us and surprised us by advising us that we only had about twenty minutes walking to reach Sutton Bridge when we thought there was still at least an hour to go. Her little dog showed an interest in my walking companion who was foolishly taken in it by it only to watch her lunch sandwich disappear down its little gullet! Our visitor lived in one of the two lighthouses that sit on opposite banks of the River Nene about three miles below Sutton Bridge. The two lights used to guide shipping up the river to Sutton Bridge and Wisbech. The two houses were built in 1826 at the time when the draining of the the Fens was completed and the river was opened up to navigation. The lighthouse on the other bank was the home of the famous artist and conservationist Sir Peter Scott, after whom the walk we will complete tomorrow is named. More on him anon! Still walking on the outer wall we were still a considerable distance from the sea, at least a couple of miles. As we left the Gedney area, looking towards the sea, we could just sea the top of what is locally called ‘The Doughnut’ . The proper title for the feature is The Outer Trial Bank, one of two islands constructed in the 1970’s for a governmental resource scheme. The idea was to capture the freshwater from the local rivers (Nene, Witham, Welland, Great Ouse) that pour in to The Wash and store it in a reservoir. Surprise, surprise, it did not work as the resultant water was too salty to use. So after spending about £3M, the project was abandoned and the two isles are now home to important seabird and seal colonies. While we could not actually see the River Nene at this point, we could see the tree line that runs up the far bank and believing we would soon be finished we set off with renewed vigour. As we walked fighter aircraft arrived to take up station on the bombing range and commence to practice their craft, shattering the quiet of the day. The two or three craft set up in a circular pattern and took turns to pass over the range and swoop down on target area unseen by us. We watched them for about four passes before leaving them to their fun. Pretty soon we were on the River Nene and starting the long, straight walk up the river to Sutton Bridge. It probably took us twenty minutes to reach the line of the two lighthouses (both now domestic accommodation) at the lower end of the river and at least another forty minutes to reach the town. The sun had come out and we walked the last bit in very warm conditions. Our water supplies were almost finished and no doubt we were slightly dehydrated. It would be fair to say that by the time we reached Sutton Bridge, after a further wee break as we walked through a industrial yard, we were beginning to tire and we were pleased to finally reach our accommodation and get the feet up. While the swelling in my walking conmpanions eyes had reduced a little with the assistance of antihistamine, they were still visibly puffy and continued to cause concern. We decided to wait and see what the morrow brings before seeking medical assistance. It had been a curious walk. Without a doubt the area has a stark, desolate and surreal beauty to it. It is cathedral-like in its silence and scale. It has numerous national and international designations and protections for the vast range of wildlife species and habitats that it holds. And yet it was curiously ‘empty’ on the day we walked it, with little to see other than the wildness itself. Maybe everybody and everything knew the jets were coming and had buggered off on their holidays!
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