Sandlings Walk: Sizewell to Dunwich

Sizewell A and B power stations

The small hamlet of Sizewell on the Suffolk coast is famous for its two nuclear power stations. Sizewell A started operating in 1966 and ran through to 2006; it could generate 420MW of power. The building is an ugly grey concrete monolith that seems totally out of character with the area.

In the 1980s work began on Sizewell B power station, the country's first and only (so far) Pressurised Water Reactor. It started generating power in 1995, and has a maximum output of 1,195 MW. Unlike the A power station, the B station could be described as beautiful, with its white containment dome sitting above a squat blue building. The dome can be seen for many miles along the coast in either direction.

In 2010 it was announced that Sizewell was one of eight preferred sites for new nuclear power stations; the current plan shows Sizewell C as being a 1,600 MW unit that could be operating as early as 2020. If it is built, then we can only hope the design is more like the B unit than the hideous A unit.

Minsmere Nature Reserve

The Minsmere Nature Reserve is the most important sanctuary for wading birds in Eastern England. Once farmland, the area was flooded during the Second World War to offer extra protection against a German invasion, and soon became used by wading birds. The RSPB took over the area in 1947 and continue to run it to this day. More than 100 species can be found at the reserve, and there is a visitors centre and tea room.

Some reminders of the Second World War still exist on the dunes in front of the reserve, including long rows of anti-tank blocks and a pillbox hidden inside the ruins of an old chapel. The Suffolk Coast and Heaths Path follows the shoreline south, whilst the Sandlings Walk heads inland to the west of the reserve through Eastbridge.

Dunwich Heath

Dunwich Heath is a spectacular expanse of low-lying heathland situated to the south of the village of Dunwich. Such heathland is a rarity in the UK, and it is much beloved by birdwatchers. In summer the heath becomes a riot of colour as the heather and gorse flower.

There is a family Field Study Centre at the Heath Barn, and events such as warden-led walks are held throughout the year. The old whitewashed coastguard cottages on the cliff top now contain tea rooms and an information centre.

RAF Dunwich on Minsmere Cliffs was home to one of the 'Chain Home' radar stations in the Second World War, providing low-level cover for the central East Anglian coast. Little now remains.

Both the Sandlings Walk and the Suffolk Coast and Heaths Path cross the heath.

Dunwich and the friary

Dunwich is now a sleepy little village, situated where the shingle bank that stretches south from Walberswick reaches the cliffs. Nowadays it consists of little more than a hotel, a few houses and a museum, but once was an important port at the mouth of the River Blyth. The main trades were grain and wool out to the continent, whilst wine, cloth and timber would be bought into the country. A storm in 1286 caused shingle to block the harbour's entrance and forced the mouth of the River Blyth to move northwards to its current position, reducing the village's importance as a port.

Yet the village is famous for erosion rather than deposition. Dunwich was the capital of East Anglia in Saxon times, showing its importance to the area. The 1286 storm also started the erosion that has led to the vast majority of the town being lost to the sea. Of its eight churches none remain (the current church being a Victorian addition that was sensibly built a long way inland). The last to be lost, All Saints, was finally lost to the sea in 1919. Legend has it that its bells can sometimes be heard ringing from beneath the waves.

Perched perilously near the edge of the cliffs are the ruins of Greyfriars, a Franciscan Priory. This was originally much further to the east but was abandoned in 1328, less than a century after it was founded. The current ruins are of its replacement, and it can only be so long before these ruins are also lost to the sea.

Dunwich museum has many interesting displays about the history of the village, including a fascinating model of the village at its height. The village retained the right to return two members to Parliament until the Great Reform Act of 1832, making it one of the infamous 'Rotten Boroughs'.

There is a large car park behind the beach, near which is a good cafe. There is also a hotel / pub in the centre of the village.