Happy Holidays At Hunstanton (1)

 Public Transport, Then, Now; And Expected!

fbb visited Hunstanton only once aged circa 6 and he was very excited. It was his first visit to a "big" seaside resort - which is where we begin.

Hunstanton was (and still is) a quaint little village atop the cliffs along the main coast road between Cromer and Kings Lynn. It has quaint cottages on the main road ...

... together with a quaint ex pub and an extant pub opposite.

Down Church Lane are more quaint cottages and a quaint church ...

... beyond which is a quaint gate.

This leads to the "stately" pile of Hunstanton Hall, once the seat of the LeStrange family and now private flats.

It is a right hotch-potch of architectural style and the snivelling forelock touching minions are allowed to walk in the grounds on Thursdays - according to some on-line sources. And, yes, it does have a ghost, the famous "grey lady" (aren't they all?) who haunts with menace if anything ever happens to the LeStrange Persian carpet.

Hmmm?

Aha, we hear you cry, where is the public transport? Lynx service 36 stops near the post office ...

... but where are all those seaside facilities that so excited your author in his youth?

That is because there aren't any!

For all that stuff you want New Hunstanton. To be fair, the names have now swapped round and Hunstanton is "Old", leaving the original name unencumbered with an ageist appellation.

(New) Hunstanton was a "created" seaside resort, developed with huge success with the arrival of the railway in 1862.

Construction of the line to Hunstanton coincided with the rising popularity of north-west Norfolk as a destination for holidaymakers who were arriving in large numbers. Hunstanton was promoted as a seaside resort by Henry Styleman Le Strange (1815 to 1862), lord of the manor and principal landowner, who gifted land and money towards the line's construction. The station had two long island platforms which could take excursion trains with up to a thousand people aboard, and its seafront location meant that passengers were discharged directly on to the promenade and pier.

Note the Sandringham Hotel, operated originally by the Great Eastern Railway. It is now demolished but is remembered for a magnificent "sun lounge" (conservatory) on the opposite side of the building from the station.

The line from Kings Lynn closed in 1969 and the station area is now a car park.

Azan Of Hunstanton, amongst other retail "delights", is the uninspiring (ugly) replacement for the distinguished Hotel.

One small bit of the railway remains, situated next to Bolero Trading.

This was the "Coal Office" at the end of the small goods yard. It is now a small art gallery.

There has been a campaign to re-open the branch from Kings Lynn, served by electric trains from London. The station there is a terminus, but most of the line to Hunstanton, curving away to the north, is either public footpaths ...

... or open country.

There is, however, a large sports centre on the former track bed at Lynn, but probably room to by-pass it!

The highlight of the re-instated line would be a stop at the "Royal" station of Wooferton, used in past times by their various majesties en route to nearby Sandringham.

Nowadays the royals have to catch the bus from Kings Lynn!

Maybe not?

Likewise there are a few modern properties impinging on the route at the Hunstanton end  ...

... but nothing that couldn't be overcome with a smidgen of rebuilding here and there.

But realistically - it seems unlikely. On the other hand, if our nation is serious about global warming, clogged roads and air quality, an hourly battery electric shuttle from Kings Lynn to Hunstanton would be a good move indeed.

Tomorrow we look at buses and face up to some less than sensible plans by the Council.

 Next Hunstanton blog : Wednesday 17th February