So, having done a little fettling over the last few weeks, and having been away myself on my own, I wanted to head off with Jo just for a night to run a few checks etc. Nothing to far I thought – perhaps somewhere near a market town so we could have a good ramble through the shops…. (I always leave the plastic at home – I find it is the cheapest way to go shopping with Jo…..) Anyway, I thought about Needham Market – it looked ideal with the lake to walk around, and a host of antique shops to explore – and, I found a Pub that had its own campsite – GAME ON!

So remembering to set the auto feeder for the cats, and to change their litter box – not that I think its worth the bother as they always express their disgust if we have the cheek to go away. Anyway, packed a few things for the over night visit. But, I have to ask this – and I know I am going to get into trouble But – as a chap I packed a couple of shirts, underpants and socks along with a pair of wellies in case we went to walk at Ickworth Hall. So why Jo needed a selection of shoes, coats, and outfits for one night is…. words fail me! Amazingly we got underway before 1100 and set off.

The first part of the trip was a part I was dreading – since that tangerine faced idiot had decided to bomb Iran, the price of fuel had been steadily rising – and having put on my big boy pants I used PetrolPrices to look and just see…. in this instance the nearest cheap place to me was Sainsburys at Longwater but, knowing that we would be going along the A47 and passing Tesco that was 3p a litre cheaper. We arrived, managed to park Ziggy, and went inside to get a few things for breakfast – more on that later! Then to the pump…. I have a quarter of a tank so filled up. OMFG – £106 !!! Jo handed me tissues as I got in and set the satnav for the Red Lion.

So – that’s a picture of the map for South Norfolk and north Suffolk – and you can clearly see Needham Market just a bit South East of Stowmarket…. you can also see a squiggle just to the top right… yep – that’s the village of Needham…. can you see where this is heading? Yep, Captain Screwup strikes again…. bugger. So, this explained why the Twatnav was trying to take us on a funny route! not quite as good as the Belgium visit to the wrong city but….. Anyway, we arrived at the Red Lion and got ourselves set up – pitch was nice and level and I then set the Starlink up – those results were pleasing. Then we went over to the pub to pay for the night and have a beer and a sandwich.

The landlady was very welcoming – and that was some Ham Sandwich! I supped a couple of pints of Henry Weston’s and we asked what there was to be done locally – The landlady suggested a walk down to the river Waveney and Jo had spotted the church so – that’s the plan for the afternoon then. The walk to the river was short, but stunning – and again we both spoke about the variety of countryside in Norfolk – the river Waveney is the border between Norfolk and Suffolk and I had spent many of my formative years growing up on that border. It was a shame that it was only a short ramble, but it was pretty and great to see.

To explain a couple of the pictures – the fuzzy distance white bird is a White or Great Egret – we do not see those locally, so always nice to see! The shadow outlined bird of prey is a Red Kite – we have so many it is unbelievable that they were near extinction a few years ago. The holes are far more interesting – I think we had managed to walk by a Badger Sett – it could have been a Fox Earth but, there were no bones around the entrance and Fox has a certain odour…. anyway, we returned back to the village and set off to head down to the church.

So – some more wildlife – yes – caterpillar nests! these were in a hedge so were not a concern – the ones found in oak trees are a big warning sign. The large building in the coronation village hall – originally it was the village school, but when that closed it was repurposed. That pink cottage must belong to a “blardy furriner” – from Suffolk! seriously the village is right on the border so….. The church is interesting and it’s a shame we could not go inside. The graveyard was – so far as these things can be – a delight with many old Norfolk Names on display. the flowering cherry tree was certainly eye-catching, and the final thing on our walk. We returned to Ziggy and passed an hour or so before our evening meal – Jo reading and myself investing time in Divinity Original Sin 2 on my Switch 2 – seriously, for those of us who like to game on. the go, that must be the best console choice!

The menu was pretty good – mainly standard pub food with some nice twists – the home made onion rings on Jo’s steak were massive – and as for the deep fried brie pieces…. anyway, the food was well cooked, well served and decent value. We found the pub was a great place to stop at, and the campsite – though the toilet / shower option was restricted – one toilet and one toilet/shower – they were clean, had everything they should have had; I also noticed the children’s play area that looked like it would be good fun. We also saw that there were a variety of machines for assorted things like eggs etc. We paid £25 for the night on hook up – I think that’s reasonable value. Anyway, a good meal and then back to Ziggy to sleep.

For Breakfast I wanted to do something a little different from our standard Full English – so on my last solo trip I had tried Air Fryer Croissant and that was superb. It’s important to pre heat the air fryer to 185 degrees and then do not over fill the air fryer – ours takes two frozen Sainsbury’s croissant. They cook in around 9 minutes – then leave them to rest for a minute – Bloody lovely! And, to go with a lovely warm croissant – what can be better than a decent coffee; in the past I have carried a cafetière but being totally honest I find the Tassimo is far superior – and no coffee dregs to try and clean up!

All in all a lovely relaxing short break – I have no doubts we will visit again