Thurne

Thurne is a small riverside Broadland village that either gives or takes its name from the River Thurne that flows directly by. Thurne is not far from the mouth of the river (where it meets the River Bure), with the village located at the end of a dyke with the famous Thurne drainage mill at its head. The village contains a pub, a gift shop and plenty of public moorings for boats along Thurne Dyke. There are many local paths offering good walks - the long distance footpath "The Weavers Way" passes through the village for example. The attractive church is located just out of the village. The nearby small village of Repps is situated halfway between Thurne and Potter Heigham. It contains riverside bungalows and a lovely round tower church.

Thurne and Repps with Bastwick Map

View a detailed tourist information map of the Norfolk Broads

We start our tour of Thurne at the dyke that leads from the River Thurne. Public moorings extend down either side of the dyke and it's a good place to moor up and just relax with a glass of wine perhaps and watch the river traffic float by!

At the head of the dyke is Thurne Dyke Mill. This has been a famous landmark for years and the windmill, once used for drainage, is now owned by the Norfolk Windmills Trust. The mill was built in 1820, but the sails and cap were blown off in 1919 and it needed repair. At some stage, the mill has been highered and this gives the "waist", as the new section was made round to allow the cap to be re-used. The mill is only open by appointment on certain sundays of the month in summer - contact the Wind Energy Museum (see box in right hand column).

The staithe at Thurne has some lovely picturesque cottages on it - what a great place to live! - there is also a gift shop (seasonal opening).

The village pub - The Lion Inn - is a popular stopping point and is located right opposite the staithe. It has a restaurant, beer garden, kids room and the pub doubles as the village shop, located in an adjacent shed!

The Weavers Way is a long distance footpath running for 56-miles (90km) from Cromer to Great Yarmouth and passes through the village of Thurne. You can walk along the river bank from Potter Heigham and then through Thurne village, past the church and then over fields towards Acle. This path is well marked and this stretch gives great views over the River Thurne. There is also a path running south from the village along the river bank, giving good views over Thurne Mouth, Thurne church and Thurne Mill.

The church of St Edmund is a lovely Broadland thatched village church with the tower and chancel dating back to the 13th century. The nave was added during the 14th century and the church was extensively restored in 1853. The tower houses a 14th century bell, cast in Norwich.

Thurne church has a hole through the west facing wall. It was originally thought that this hole was made to allow lepers and other forbidden people to view services. However, some historians have another theory - as the hole points directly towards St Benets Abbey, the hole could have been used as part of some kind of signaling system.

Repps with Bastwick Guided Tour

Repps is a very small village on the River Thurne and is sometimes linked with the nearby residential village of Bastwick (which the main A149 passes through). The village provides access to holiday chalets that line both banks of the river, with the staithe providing moorings for boats. The village has no facilities, although it does have an interesting church with a rounded tower. Good paths, including The Weavers Way, link the village with nearby Potter Heigham and Thurne.

The church of St. Peter at Repps, which has an interesting rounded tower. You will find many churches in Norfolk with round towers, simply because, the main building material - Flint - is very difficult to make into square towers with medieval tools.

Thurne and Repps summary of what to SEE and DO

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