Blakeney

Blakeney is a small village on the north coast of Norfolk UK in an area of outstanding natural beauty and remains largely untouched by the pace and commercialism of modern life.

The village is recorded in King William's Domesday Book of 1086 under the name Esnuterle, later known as Snitterley. By 1240 the haven in the lee of the shingle ridge was known as Blakeney, and this became the name of the village. Blakeney soon developed into an important fishing centre with ships making an annual voyage to Iceland. It also became a port with a north sea trade based on the export of cereals, especially barley and malt ,and the import of coal, timber, iron, roofing tiles and a great variety of other goods.

In 1817 the Blakeney Harbour Company was set up to regulate trade and improve the harbour. Their first act was to construct the New Cut to make it easier for ships to reach Blakeney quay, but the port was doomed by the railways, bigger ships and the continuous silting. Hard to believe when looking at the peaceful channel today that a hundred years ago the quay would have been lined with sailing ships.

Today Blakeney relies on the tourist trade with the Blakeney Point National Nature Reserve, owned by the National Trust, being one of the major attractions. The picturesque harbour is now used for recreational sailing and the daily trips to the Nature Reserve (tide dependant), where many varieties of birds and a colony of common and grey seals can be seen.

Whether visiting Blakeney and its winding streets lined with flint cottages, the Nature Reserve, or the unspoilt beauty of the marshland coast, you cannot fail to be impressed by its rural charm.