Wells & Walsingham Light Railway Steam train trip
Four miles of 10¼-inch track, the longest line of its gauge in the world, pulled by the Garratt locomotive Norfolk Hero. It runs past the bottom of our garden, so wave.
Chapter three
Days out
Distances are rough driving times from the house.
In Walsingham
On the coast
Inland
The Anglican Shrine In the village
The Holy House, built in 1931 and enlarged in 1938, with its holy well and quiet gardens. Norton's Café Bar is in the grounds.
Slipper Chapel, Houghton St Giles 1 mile
The Roman Catholic National Shrine and a Minor Basilica since 2015. A pilgrim Mass is held daily at noon.
Binham Priory 10 min
Romantic ruins of a Benedictine priory around a working parish church. Free (English Heritage). The Parlour café and dairy shop are next door.
Wells-next-the-Sea 10 min
Crabbing off the quay, Staithe Street's independent shops, and the colourful beach huts backed by pinewoods. The Coastliner 36 bus runs from the village.
Holkham Hall & estate 15 min
The Palladian hall, deer park, walled garden, lake and bike hire. The park is open year-round.
Seal trips from Morston Quay 20 min
About an hour by boat to see the grey and common seals on Blakeney Point. Grey seal pups are born from November to January. Several family firms run trips; book ahead and check the tide.
Cley Marshes 25 min
The Norfolk Wildlife Trust's oldest reserve, with six hides for spoonbills, avocets and bitterns, and a café with a view across the marsh to the sea.
Pensthorpe 15 min
Wetland reserve near Fakenham with a garden by Piet Oudolf and big adventure play areas. Good for a wet day with children.
Holt 25 min
A Georgian market town of galleries, bookshops, delis and tearooms. From April to December it has an award-winning street market.
Winter
Tens of thousands of pink-footed geese flight over Holkham at dawn and dusk. Seal pups on Blakeney Point. Fires lit, piano played.
Spring
Snowdrops in the Abbey Grounds in February. The railway reopens in March. Lambs, and the first migrant birds on the coast.
Summer
Beach days at Holkham and Wells, sea lavender on the saltmarsh, and long evenings on the west-facing patio.
Autumn
The geese return. Quiet beaches, wader tides at Snettisham, and the last steam trains before November.