Haddiscoe Island Walk

Distance: Approximately 8–10 miles  |  Duration: 4–6 hours  |  Difficulty: Moderate  |  Dog-friendly: Yes

The Haddiscoe Island Walk is the most ambitious of our four routes from Priory Farm. A full circular day walk, it takes you deep into the tidal marshland landscape of the southern Norfolk Broads. Starting from the park gates in St Olaves, the route follows the flood banks of the River Waveney north before looping around the low-lying grazing marshes of Haddiscoe Island, returning via quiet country lanes and riverside paths.

The island is not an island in the traditional sense. It is a stretch of flat reclaimed marshland enclosed between the New Cut canal (built in 1833 to link the Waveney and Yare rivers) and the main river channels. Walking its perimeter gives you an extraordinary sense of the scale and flatness of the Broads landscape, with enormous skies and uninterrupted views across the grazing levels. In summer this area is alive with lapwings, redshanks, and marsh harriers; in winter, short-eared owls hunt the grass banks at dusk.

The route passes close to Haddiscoe village with its round-towered Norman church, one of the many historic round towers that dot the Norfolk landscape, built using locally available flint when good building stone was scarce. There is limited shelter on the flood banks, so pack accordingly for changeable weather. Stout walking boots are strongly recommended, particularly after wet periods when the riverside paths can be muddy.