Mike Adams
Village Voices
30 November 2009
There are so many wonderful places to explore on foot on the Deben Peninsula that two Hollesley residents have decided to compile a book about them.
Debbie Pipe and Pauline Austerfield know the local tracks and byways better than most. For the past two years they have been walking together, writing and sketching as they go. Their illustrated walks - with instructions, maps and drawings of landmarks and wildlife - have become a popular feature in the monthly magazine, Village Voices. They shared the writing, while Pauline’s sketches enhance each page.
"It seemed like a good idea to bring some of our favourites together in book form for local people and visitors to the area," says Debbie. "I’ve loved this area for twenty years and walking is a great way to get out there and enjoy it."
The trails through an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty take you down tracks and across farmland, along grassy seawalls flanked by saltmarsh, across open heathland covered with heather, bracken and birch and into forests where you might see deer and white admiral butterflies or, on a summer’s evening, hear nightjars churring.
The peninsula boasts amazing views and experiences. It could be the sudden explosion of light and water as, rounding the bend at Bawdsey Ferry, you glimpse the racing tide rushing across the Deben Bar, or perhaps the sight of bronze-coated Suffolk Punches staring at you from their sunlit pasture. It might be the ominous darkness of Rendlesham Forest, the distant views across the Butley River from Burrow Hill or being buffeted by wild winds sweeping along Shingle Street.
Suffolk Coasts and Heaths Unit has helped with funding the book and all the profits will go to ensuring the future viability of Village Voices and local community organisations.
20 Walks on the Deben Peninsula is a handy, spiral-bound pocket-sized book. Printed by Bettaprint of Woodbridge, it costs just £3.99 and is available from Hollesley Stores, local pubs and Tourist Information Centres.