Whitnesham

The enterprising Parish Council for Witnesham and Swilland know how to please dogs and their owners. For they have published a superb guide to the walks in this area which is available from the Barley Mow pub at Witnesham and from the internet . The leaflet provides a detailed and colourfully printed A3 map and route directions for three specific walks and it folds down neatly to A5 size to slip easily into your pocket. The walks start from one of three designated public car parks, which are marked on the map, and where you will find poo-bins. Aside from the guided walks, there are plenty of opportunities to roam. The landscape is full of a mixture of footpaths, bridleways and permissive paths, which altogether form the rather romantically named Parish Paths of the leaflet. The paths offer great off lead walking for dogs of all sizes. Cutting through the area is the River Fynn and many spots along the way testify the historical importance of the river to the landscape: Wash Lane, the old Pump House and the Witnesham village well, which has been in existence for over 600 years. Our two hounds took advantage to swim from the low footbridge that crosses a spur of the Fynn and leads back to Church Lane and throughout the walks there are low-lying areas of meadows ringed with drainage ditches for dogs to get muddy in. Walking the paths, you begin to see the landscape as it was in medieval times. With clusters of large oak-beamed cottages now seemingly marooned in wide green meadows. Moreover, as you follow the paths, you can imaginatively hear the echoes of the hustle and bustle of the agricultural economy coming down the ages, when hamlets such as these were largely self-sustaining. But the interest of this area is not all in its past, as one of the properties you pass along the way is now a renowned Llama breeding farm and as such it provides a uniquely modern twist to the local rural economy. Talking with other dog owners at the 2010 Suffolk Dog Day just up the road at Helmingham Hall, we found many people who really appreciate the well kept and well signed footpaths in Suffolk. Many of these people were incomers like us, who love the amenity, and ease of access to the countryside offered here compared say with the West Country or Cumbria. The Witnesham and Swilland Parish Paths are a great example of how in Suffolk the authorities protect and promote the countryside and long may we roam and enjoy it.

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