The spectacular sunrises and sunsets of Salthouse, North Norfolk

It doesn’t matter whether it’s a 4am alarm in Oslo, or a late summer’s evening in Tallinn. Regardless of the time of day, regular readers will know that we love seeking out special sunrises and spectacular sunsets. The lifting of the UK’s lockdown restrictions allowed us to head to the village of Salthouse on the stunning North Norfolk coast in April. This is an area synonymous with big, epic skies – we couldn’t wait to check them out.

We hunkered down for five nights in a lovely little self-catering cottage run by Liz and Bernard. As locations go, we couldn’t have asked for better. A brisk five-minute walk across the perfectly flat salt marshes took us straight onto a vast pebble beach that stretched as far as the eye could see.

From the very first evening, we knew we’d be in for a treat if we could brave the cooler nights and power through an early alarm or two in the mornings. So it proved, as Salthouse served us up some cracking sunsets and sunrises. Here’s a rundown of our favourites from a wonderful time in North Norfolk.

Amazing sunrises in Salthouse

What a treat it was to watch the sun racing into the sky from the beach at Salthouse. After a quick check of the weather forecast the night before, we set our alarms for 6:30. Doing so gave us just about enough time to throw on some outdoor clothes and race down to the seafront.

The “epic clouds” sunrise at Salthouse Beach

Our first morning in Salthouse treated us to a spectacular cloud display. First, before our eyes, the rising sun transformed the vast Norfolk sky into an artist’s canvas, with an array of colours dancing overhead.

Then, as the sun raced ever higher, it played hide and seek – disappeared behind whispy clouds and created a constantly changing scene.

Sunrise over the Salthouse Marshes

The Salthouse Marshes are a vast expanse of – you guessed it – marshland that stretch for miles down the North Norfolk coast. Along with its sister site up the road at Cley, the area is “specially managed to attract breeding and passage birds”. Unsurprisingly, this wildlife haven is a favourite for birdwatchers, with visitors arriving in their thousands each year to enjoy the site.

The reedbeds and channels which crisscross the marshes are a real treat at golden hour. On a still day, the water appears frozen in time, providing a perfect reflection of the skies above. Luckily for us, this was our route to the beach at Salthouse – a perfect place to stop and admire the sunrise.

Looking back at the village of Salthouse at sunrise

Salthouse itself is a charming little place. Flint covers almost every building here in a style that typifies the towns and villages of North Norfolk.

Once the sun had risen slightly, we were treated to a lovely view back across the marshes to the village. The church of St Nicholas, dating back to the 15th century, stands proudly above the rooftops. It’s a spectacular seaside setting, creating a picture-perfect village packed with character.

Stunning Salthouse sunsets

It didn’t take long to realise that Salthouse is one of the best places to watch the sunrise in Norfolk. To our delight, we quickly discovered that sunsets on this stretch of the coast happen to be pretty special, too.

Our evening routine evolved into a straightforward pattern of wolfing down a late dinner before grabbing a flask of tea and heading to the beach. If we timed it right, we could catch the sun setting directly over the water channels of the Salthouse marshes before enjoying the final colours of the clouds on the pebble beach.

Read next: The best things to do in North Norfolk when it rains.

A bonus sunset from Norfolk’s famous fishing town of Cromer

Cromer is a classic British seaside town. Beach huts line the promenade, which stretches far along the shoreline. Beneath the quaint shops and restaurants, a Victorian-era pier – complete with café and theatre – reaches out into the sea.

A stone’s throw from the waterfront, fish and chip shops do a roaring trade on a sunny day. This was particularly true when we arrived on a warm Friday evening. A queue for the town’s most popular chippy, No.1 Cromer, snaked down the street and around the corner.

We couldn’t resist the lure and grabbed some fish suppers to enjoy whilst watching the final sunset of the trip. The golden hour views from the Cromer clifftops were exceptional – surely one of the best places to see the sunset in Norfolk. The beautiful evening light was the perfect way to sign off our time chasing the sun around the North Norfolk coast.

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