Ecological writer Satish Kumar once wrote that ‘unless you know Nature, you cannot love her’. Likewise, if we wish to protect England’s green and pleasant land, it’s important to get to know why. People who drop fast food litter, pollute our seas with oil and hunt our precious wildlife, obviously were never taught all about why our land is so beautiful and precious.
Suffolk has a stunning coastline of 50 miles or so, just 2 hours from London. Southwold (in the image above) is an affluent resort popular with Londoners, and is known for having its lighthouse bang in the middle of the street! Home to independent grocers and a unique little pier, nearby Walberswick is a popular haunt for artists and writers, which has its own little ‘wherry’ (rowing boat ferry) to go back and forth across the river. Like Norfolk, it’s known for its wide sandy beaches and pastel beach huts, and a resident seal population.
Always leave seals alone (pups cannot survive if spooked back into the sea, as their blubber is not thick enough to prevent freezing/drowning). Keep dogs away from seals, as seals often hide their pups in sand dunes (especially during breeding season). Read how to help our grey & harbour seals.
the first place to see the sun rise
The town of Lowestoft has a sandy beach (with a fairly urban centre) and the town of Felixstowe is the most easterly point in England (visitors can go to nearby Ness Point, to be the first people to watch the sun rise).
The Broads (not just in Norfolk)
You’ve likely heard of the Norfolk Broads, a series of manmade lakes (popular with boaters) that support many of our endangered wetland species. But Suffolk Broads are just as popular and important. These interconnected rivers and lakes are now (with Norfolk) a ‘National Park’ (the only ‘unofficial one’, but a National Park all the same). Here you’ll find The Waveney Valley, and Somerleyton (a village with a Victorian hall and gardens, near the largest lake of Oulton Broad). Nearby is the Shotley Peninsula, which sits on both the Rivers Orwell and Stour, and again supports a lot of native wildlife and birds.
home to Constable country
If you grew up with a picture of Constable’s The Hay Wain on your living room wall, it was set here. Inland, the area is still known as ‘Constable country’, named after the artist from the 1700s who was born in a village on the River Stour. The white cottage (owned by a neighbour) still exists.
the main towns of Suffolk
Ipswich is quite an urban town, whereas the more historic Bury St Edmunds houses many independenet shops and art galleries. With beautiful architecture (including the abbey that was built as a shrine to Saint Edmund – it was once a monastery), it also houses England’s only surviving Regency playhouse.
improving welfare in the horseracing industry
Newmarket is home to one of England’s most well-known horseracing courses. However, there are many welfare concerns with many horses used in racing getting injured or dying each year, and campaigners wanting the end of using whips and certain steeplechase courses. Learn more on how to improve welfare in the horse racing industry.