BIRD WATCHING

Norfolk is well known for its incredible opportunities to see a huge variety of birds and has some of the best nature reserves in the country.

Mount Amelia is well placed to visit many of these, with RSPB Snettisham only a 5-minute drive away. Here you can see a breath-taking amount of waders and wildfowl. Between the months August to January, (the best time to see them) you can see up to 50.000 wading birds leaving the mudflats and landing in the Snettisham hides. Snettisham is one of the best places in the whole of the UK to see tens of thousands of Knots do their spectacular aerial display. 

Norfolk is perhaps best known for the large numbers of pink-footed geese that visit every year from Iceland. Indeed you can sit out on the terrace at Mount Amelia and watch them fly over, heading west at sunrise to the fields, and east in the evening back to the beach – its quite a sight to behold and you can do so from the comfort of our outdoor seating. We also have two resident Barn Owls that can be heard hooting away as the sun sets over The Wash and can often be seen swooping about over the parkland as they hunt in the evenings. We also regularly spot Kingfishers, Egyptian geese, Jays, Lapwings and many other species of birds.

The winter months are also the best time to view the Starling Murmurations, which really is one of the nature’s most spectacular shows.

Other excellent places to spot birds and wildlife nearby are – 

• RSPB Snettisham - www.rspb.org.uk/Snettisham Tel: 01485 542689

• RSPB Titchwell  - www.rspb.org.uk/Titchwell Tel: 01485 210779

• Holme National Wildlife Trust – www.wildlifetrusts.org Tel: 01485 525406

• Pensthorpe Waterfowl Park – www.pensthorpe.com Tel: 01328 851465

• Blakeney National Nature Reserve – www.nationaltrust.org Tel: 01263 740291

GOLFING

‘Golf is deceptively simple and endlessly complicated; it satisfies the soul and frustrates the intellect. It is at the same time rewarding and maddening – and it is without a doubt the greatest game mankind has ever invented.’ Arnold Palmer

If, like Mr Palmer, you are a keen and devoted golfer, or if you wanted to try it out for the first time, there are a number of fantastic golf courses within easy reach from Mount Amelia.

• Heacham Manor Golf Club www.heacham-manor.co.uk/golf          01485 536030

• Fakenham Golf Club  www.fakenhamgolfclub.co.uk                        01328 862867

• Hunstanton Golf Club   www.hunstantongolfclub.com                 01485 532811

• Searles Golf Club (9 holes)    www.searles.co.uk/golf/green-fees     01485 534211

• Kings Lynn Golf Club www.kingslynngolfclub.co.uk                       01553 631654

• Royal Cromer Golf Club        www.royalcromergolfclub.com          01263 512884

SAILING

• A new and exciting company, Coastal Exploration Company, provide a lovely and unusual way to explore the harder to visit creeks and byways around the coast. With a variety of options for full day or half-day trips on their lovely boats, they also offer sailing lessons – they can provide picnics too. This really is one of the most wonderful ways to explore the area by boat and we can’t recommend the experience enough – there is nothing quite like being on the water, and this is the best way to do it.

• A highlight for children and adults alike is a visit to see the famous Seals of Norfolk, often they can be spotted far up the beach at Brancaster but can sometimes prove to be a little elusive –to avoid disappointment book through Sea Tours and hop on their boat just up the road at Hunstanton.

• If you are keen to learn how to sail, rent a kayak or canoe, or even get your Powerboat license, Sailcraft Sea School, is the best place to start. Find them here

WALKING

• Mount Amelia is set in and around extensive parkland. You can stroll around the park and view some of our magnificent ancient trees - the Cedar of Lebanon at the front of the house is believed to be over 500 years old. For the more serious and adventurous walkers we are lucky to have the Peddars Way right on our doorstep. For more information about this walk click here (map below courtesy of National Trail)

• The Peddars Way follows a Roman road that may have been built along the line of an even older track way. It runs northwards from Knettishall Heath in Suffolk, for 46 miles through the diverse Norfolk countryside to the north Norfolk coast at Holme-Next-The-Sea near Hunstanton. The name of this trail is said come from the Latin word pedester, which means “on foot”.

CYCLING

• Norfolk is a great place to cycle – we often take our children biking to nearby Sandringham. The woods here are wonderfully quiet and it’s an ideal place to take little people as the tracks aren’t too hard, and there is a large selection of ice cream at the Sandringham Café! Bikes are available to hire from here, and they are also available to rent at Bircham Windmill and Holkham Hall.

• For the more experienced cyclist the Peddars Way, as mentioned above, offers a fantastic biking experience, as do most of the coastal roads around us. There are also some great local pubs and sites to stop off at on the way.

• The best place to hire bikes nearby is Wheel Travel - bikes are available to pre-order and they can also provide children carriers should you need them.

For more information about cycling in the area click here

CLAY PIGEON SHOOTING

• Claybusters is a great company run by a local family and they can organises all sorts of clay pigeon shooting events.

• Alternatively, The Big Shoot is a little further afield, but is also a good option if you would like to do some clay pigeon shooting.

If you would like any further information do please get in touch with us, we can arrange to book directly for you, although this will be subject to a booking fee.