We bought some food for lunch in Aldeburgh and then drove to Orford Quay and caught the 10am ferry, which we’d pre-booked, to Orford Ness.
Orford Ness is an approximately 7-mile by 1-mile shingle spit, one of the largest in the world. It’s now owned by the National Trust, but for many years was used for military research. Radar was invented here and a lot of tests were done on bombs. Optimum bomb-drop strategies and trajectories were developed, and work was done on nuclear bomb detonators for vibration and temperature and humidity resilience to ensure the bombs didn’t explode in transit.
The place was teeming with birds, including: Spoonbill, Avocets on nests, Marsh Harrier, Lapwings, Linnets, Sedge Warblers, Reed Buntings.
We walked past wetland pools and across a transporter bridge to the vast expanse of shingle.
Some of the derelict buildings were open. One building had information panels and another had exhibits.
Much of the work done here is still covered by the official secrets act so some of what went on is still a mystery.
The buildings where they tested the bomb detonators have thick tapered walls and weak roofs designed to funnel any blast upwards. Apparently there were no accidental detonations.
Hares were loping about in the shingle.
We got the ferry back
We had a look around Orford. There was a nice castle.
Good dinner: sardines, aubergines, crab thermidor, lemon sole, cheese, bottle of Albarino.