Outfit used
2007 Swift Charisma 620 with 2007 Mitsubishi Shogun LWB 2.5 Di-D Elegance
Driving through Suffolk's charming chocolate-box villages, with their pastel-pink and yellow cottages sitting beneath thick layers of thatch, you can't help but be struck by how wonderful Suffolk is. As I towed the Swift to the Caravan Club's White House Beach site near Lowestoft, I had already had a visual feast. When I pitched up at White House Bay,
I was delighted to find a fantastic sea view.
The county has a beautiful heritage coast, is rich in history and has an art and cultural hub to rival any big city. Sadly, this secluded little gem, the eastern most point of England, is slipping into the sea.
The beauty of Suffolk's countryside has been captured at its best in a textbook work of art by one of the region's most famous sons. The rustic landscape near Flatford on the River Stour that John Constable (1776-1837) painted so accurately is instantly recognisable. The scene has remained unspoilt since the great landscape artist committed 'The Hay Wain' to canvas in 1821. How exciting to be standing before the same scene, overlooking the millpond where the horsedrawn wagon paused while being driven across the river, with the timber-frame farmhouse in the background. I imagined Constable perched on a stool, leaning into an easel while he painted this pastoral idyll. Or so I thought. My reverie was shattered when
I learnt that he hadn't painted it on location. Instead he took some sketches and completed it back at his studio in London. How could he?
Flatford Mill is now in the capable hands of the National Trust. The charity organises guided walks around the sites of Constable's paintings. Despite such interest the tourist impact has been minimal and it remains pleasantly unspoilt. I almost felt as though
I had just stumbled upon it, which made it even more special when I wandered up to the tranquil spot from which he had sketched the beautiful scenery.
With the Charisma in Lowestoft, it was a long drive back. I did research the evening to find out what there was to see within a shorter drive.
A symbol, a place and an idea is how the Anglo-Saxon burial site of Sutton Hoo is described in the tourist literature. It was the country's best-kept secret for 1300 years until its discovery, on the brink of the Second World War. It is also the single richest archaeological find in British history.
Over a 50-year period in the sixth and seventh centuries, a series of aristocrats were laid to rest here. For the archaeologists, the climax of their find came when they unearthed the remains of a 90ft burial ship containing gold and jewelled ornaments, some of which were already antiques when buried.
Many of the treasures from the site are housed in the British Museum, but the National Trust took on the estate in 1998 and, with the support of friendly and helpful staff, it established and now excellently maintains an informative exhibition hall. There is also a life-sized reconstruction of a section of the ship with the furnished burial chamber.
Part of the walk around the estate to the burial sites crosses bracken-covered slopes and deciduous woodlands. Along the way,
you may come across rabbits, skylarks, pheasants and, if you're lucky, red deer.
A couple of miles from Sutton Hoo, on the opposite side of the Deben River, is the sleepy town of Woodbridge. The quayside has resisted commercial development and retains its charm. A little peckish, I popped into the Waterfront Café, a foodie den to die for. The menu changes daily, reflecting what's in season, so you never know quite what will be on offer. After an excellent cup of coffee
I decided on the smoked-salmon sandwich and was served a thick slab of pink, fleshy salmon and a great chunk of lemon. The food oozed good-quality fresh ingredients. All the produce is sourced locally, with the café owners growing their own salad leaves.
Opposite this heavenly eatery is Woodbridge Tide Mill. The site has been used since 1170, and the current mill dates from 1793. The mill houses a modest museum and a model depicting the workings of the mill. The machinery reflects the genius of the Industrial Revolution. It was the last working tide mill in the country when it finally broke down in 1957.
A trip to the coast was now in order. With
the weather fine, I wanted to catch the Suffolk seaside at its best. It helped that the club site where I was pitched, was near the coastal towns of Aldeburgh and Southwold.
Aldeburgh is a formidable town, best known for its annual arts festival. Listed in the Domesday Book as 'Aldeburc', meaning 'old fort', this tough little place has braved the elements. Once it was a sprawling medieval town, but the sea has swallowed up three streets that ran near the beach.
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