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Walk between Mannington Hall and Wolterton Hall in the Bure Valley.
Distance 7 miles (11.3km)
Minimum time 3hrs
Ascent/gradient 164ft (50m)
Level of difficulty Medium
Paths Public footpaths, farm tracks and quiet lanes, 2 stiles
Landscape Rolling fertile valley, conservation areas and woodland
Suggested map aqua3 OS Explorer 252 Norfolk Coast East
Start/finish TG 141320
Dog friendliness Not allowed in gardens of Mannington Hall; permitted on leads in grounds of both houses
Parking Visitor centre at Mannington Hall (pay at reception or honesty box if closed)
Public toilets Visitor centre at Mannington Hall
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1 From the car park head north, following marked trails and the boardwalk until you reach a junction with a public footpath. Turn right, where the way is marked by venerable old oaks. After Hall Farm cross a stile, go through a gate, and eventually reach a junction of lanes. Go straight across, descending a gentle hill until you reach a second crossroads. Go left, towards Wolterton. At Park Farm, turn right.
2 Follow this lane for about 1½ miles (2.4km), passing the Saracen's Head on your left. The road is called Wall Lane and it is obvious why, with flint cobble giving way to brick wall, keeping the grounds of Wolterton safe from invaders. When the lane bends left, look for the footpath sign on your right. This follows the edge of two huge fields, with Calthorpe Hill Plantation off to the right. At a farmhouse follow the path when it makes a sharp left before emerging on to a lane.
3 Turn right, then sharp right again at the next set of farm buildings. Go sharp left after a few paces and follow the lane around the edge of Fring Wood. When you see White House Farm, take the public footpath along the private drive, going through its yard and continuing straight ahead until you reach a stile and a farm track. Cross to the track opposite and walk through a meadow to Itteringham.
Follow signs to Mannington through the village, going uphill and passing the church. Keep walking along this lane for about ¾ mile (1.2km) until you see a lane to your left, signed to Mannington. Take this to where you eventually turn right into the car park.
Deep in the lovely valley of the River Bure, which winds its way through fertile agricultural land on its way to the Broads, lie a pair of stately homes. These are Mannington Hall and Wolterton Hall, both owned by Lord and Lady Walpole. The grounds are run with a view to conservation and ecologically safe management, so they are a haven for many species of birds, small mammals and plants.
The two houses offer more than 20 miles (32km) of waymarked walks, linking to the Weavers' Way long distance trail and the Holt Circular Walk. Our walk takes you on some of these permissive paths and public footpaths around the estates.
Mannington Hall is the older of the two houses. Licence to crenellate - to beef up the defences - was granted in 1451 to a man named William Lumner and by 1460 a house was underway. It was improved and partly rebuilt in the 1860s and restored again in the 1960s. The house is a glorious sight, with a rippling moat surrounding it on all sides. Inside Mannington Hall there are some curious inscriptions on a door. These are a tirade against women, and warn the readers that 'A tiger is something worse than a snake, a demon than a tiger, a woman than a demon, and nothing worse than a woman'. These are thought have been inscribed by the 4th Earl of Oxford.
The gardens of Mannington Hall are a joy to walk around, whether you prefer the ordered neatness of a formal rose garden or the jumbled confusion of wild flowers nodding in the breeze. The grounds also contain the ruins of 14th-century St Mary's Church, surrounded by fragments of statues and works of art collected by the 4th Earl. Inside the church is the plain sarcophagus he designed - his inscription tells us he was the only one he trusted to provide something suitably grand to hold his remains. However, he is not inside it. His successors buried him at nearby Itteringham.
Wolterton Hall is a complete contrast. It was built by Thomas Ripley in the 1720s for Horatio Walpole, younger brother of Britain's first Prime Minister (Robert Walpole) and a skilled politician in his own right. It has been in the Walpole family ever since. The building was abandoned in 1858 when the family moved to Mannington, but was restored in 1905 when they returned.
For keen gardeners, Mannington Garden Shops are well worth a visit. Plants from the estates, and roses from Peter Beales, are for sale. Those who prefer wild flowers to cultivated gardens should spend a few moments near the lake, where rare and endangered species are encouraged to flourish. Rose gardens trace the history of rose growing, and there is a charming and informative display at the kiosk.
The Rose Tea Rooms at Mannington Hall are open when the gardens are open, and serve tea, coffee and light refreshments. The Saracen's Head, just outside the gates of Wolterton Park, serves lunches and suppers, and has a pleasant, friendly atmosphere.
Blickling Hall lies about 4 miles (6.4km) south east of Mannington Hall, and Baconsthorpe Castle lies about 4 miles (6.4km) north. The castle comprises the ruins of a large 15th-century fortified manor house, while Blickling Hall is often called the finest Jacobean house in England.
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