Stallode Wash and Botany Bay to Redmere Fen and return

For no particularly good reason, we walked this leg of our Angles Way to Fen Rivers Way link last. It would perhaps be better described as 'from the middle of nowhere to the middle of nowhere and return'. It was a delightful walk on a windy but dry day, and the sun came out from time to time.

We parked at the same place as last weekend, on the road to Sedge Fen to the west of Lakenheath (grid reference 694837). We set off about 9.30am. We retraced our steps along Stallode Bank (also the route of the Hereward Way) and, as was the case last weekend, there were large numbers of deer on Shepherd's Fen to our right - we saw 11 of them in one group alone. And just after passing the railway line, I saw a fox.

We turned left onto a muddy path across Botany Bay, a fascinating and mysterious place, a SSSI which is now part of RSPB Lakenheath. It's difficult to find out more, but it claims to be ancient fen (whilst the rest of RSPB Lakenheath is flooded carrot field). This claim is difficult to square with the dead trees, presumably killed by recent flooding. However its the dead trees and flooded areas which give Botany Bay its beauty and other-worldliness, and it is not difficult to appreciate that it was awarded SSSI status as a result of the rare fenland plants which survive there.

At the far side of Botany Bay we emerged by Lakenheath New Lode and followed this to the Little Ouse River. Lakenheath New Lode is also ancient and apparently it was possible to get to Lakenheath by barge by this route until the early 1900s.

We passed Old Decoy Farm, an odd place with horses, sheep, a car scrapyard, and two hearses! Shortly afterwards we encountered a fallen willow tree which led to a rather difficult section of path. Then we followed the bank to Redmere Fen, turning round when we were opposite the pumping station - the same place we reached on 2nd January. Last time we were here we thought there was a fisherman by the pumping station - he was here again today and we realised he was actually of scarecrow construction!

The Angles Way follows the Norfolk/Suffolk border and the Fen Rivers Way is partly in Norfolk and partly in Cambridgeshire, so this was a highly appropriate place for use to 'join up' the link path. We'd passed from Suffolk into Norfolk just after Old Decoy Farm and now we were at the point at which Norfolk meets Cambridgeshire. There's also a trig point here, at the dizzy height of one metre above sea level.

We retraced our steps and got back to the car about 12.20pm.

Following leg