Shotley Peninsula

File:Shotley Peninsula.png

The rivers Stour and Orwell meet at Shotley Gate and merge to join with the North Sea in Harwich Harbour. The Stour and Orwell is a designated Special Protection Area,{{cite web|title=Stour and Orwell Estuaries|url=http://jncc.defra.gov.uk/page-2011

|publisher=Joint Nature Conservation Committee|accessdate=15 April 2012}} a Site of Special Scientific Interest{{cite web|title=SSSI units for Orwell Estuary|url=http://www.sssi.naturalengland.org.uk/Special/sssi/unitlist.cfm?sssi_id=1002511

|publisher=Natural England|accessdate=15 April 2012}} and a Ramsar site for wetland habitats.{{cite web|title=Information Sheet for Ramsar Wetlands – Stour & Orwell Estuaries|url=http://jncc.defra.gov.uk/pdf/RIS/UK11067.pdf

|publisher=Joint Nature Conservation Committee|accessdate=15 April 2012}}

The landscape is predominantly ancient estate farmlands, with salt marshes and intertidal mudflats. The mudflats are an important winter feeding area for estuary birds, wild fowl and waders. The wetlands and estuaries are home to otters and water voles. There are significant areas of woodland, parkland and hedgerows with dormouse and stag beetle populations.{{cite web

|title=Landscape and Character of the Shotley Peninsula

|url=http://www.stourandorwellsociety.org.uk/LANDSCAPE_CHARACTER_.html

|archive-url=https://archive.today/20121224051301/http://www.stourandorwellsociety.org.uk/LANDSCAPE_CHARACTER_.html

|url-status=dead

|archive-date=24 December 2012

|publisher=Stour and Orwell Society

|accessdate=15 April 2012

}}

Trips to places of local interest can be arranged through [http://shotleypeninsulartours.com Shotley Peninsula Tours]

The main crops farmed on the peninsula are winter wheat, winter and spring barley, potatoes and sugar beet. The climate and soil on the peninsula are also suitable for viticulture and a vineyard occupies the valley below St. Mary's church, Shotley.For a period in the recent past the vineyard allowed to stand fallow.{{cite web|title=Shotley vineyard boost – February 18, 2004|url=http://www.edp24.co.uk/news/shotley_vineyard_boost_1_99227|publisher=East Anglian Daily Times|accessdate=23 April 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304201655/http://www.edp24.co.uk/news/shotley_vineyard_boost_1_99227|archive-date=4 March 2016|url-status=dead|df=dmy-all}} Under new ownership the vineyard and grape harvest has increased in size, and won awards for both the Baccus and Pinot Noir grape varieties. {{cite web|title=Suffolk vineyard is a small force of nature|url=https://www.fruitandvine.co.uk/suffolk-vineyard-is-a-small-force-of-nature/#:~:text=The%20first%20Shotley%20Vineyard%20vintage,second%20vintage%20English%20sparkling%20wine.http://www.edp24.co.uk/news/shotley_vineyard_boost_1_99227|publisher=Fruit and Vine Co.UK|accessdate=22 June 2023}}

Footpaths on the peninsula shoreline are at risk of coastal erosion, which is being mitigated by the efforts of the local community.{{cite news|title=Shotley community praised for erosion funding |work=BBC News

|date=19 September 2011

|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-suffolk-14972789

|accessdate=26 April 2012}} In light of climate change and the risk of rising sea levels, a farm in Shotley has been planning to breach the sea wall in a managed retreat (or coastal realignment) to create new habitats and landscapes, supporting tourism in the region.{{cite web

|title=Managing coastal realignment for benefits

|url=http://www.ukcip.org.uk/wordpress/wp-content/Business_casestudies/BCS_Coastal.pdf

|archive-url=http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/20101222155850/http://www.ukcip.org.uk/wordpress/wp-content/Business_casestudies/BCS_Coastal.pdf

|url-status=dead

|archive-date=22 December 2010

|publisher=UK Climate Impacts Programme

|accessdate=26 April 2012

}}

The Shotley peninsular experiences a maritime climate with a narrow range of temperature and rainfall spread evenly throughout the year. The nearest weather station for which data is available is East Bergholt, 7 miles west of Holbrook. See Ipswich Climate data.

There is archaeological evidence of Bronze Age barrows, and late Iron Age or Roman field enclosures. Several groups of Iron Age coins and a small group of late Saxon finds have been discovered on the peninsula. In 1995, an Anglo-Saxon fish trap dating from between 650AD and 1050AD was found on the mudflats at Holbrook Bay.{{cite web|title=The Archaeology of the Suffolk Coast (Suffolk County Council)|url=http://www.english-heritage.org.uk/publications/suffolk-rczas-archaeological-service-report/archaeologyofthesuffolkcoast.pdf

|publisher=English Heritage (Suffolk County Council)|accessdate=6 May 2012}}

Several settlements on the peninsula are mentioned in the Domesday survey of 1068.{{cite web|title=Open Domesday search – IP9|url=http://domesdaymap.co.uk/search/?geo=ip9

|publisher= Anna Powell-Smith & University of Hull|accessdate=8 May 2012}} The peninsula lies within the historic Samford Hundred.{{cite web|title= The Manors of Suffolk : notes on their history and devolution (W. A. COPINGER)|date=November 1905

|url=https://archive.org/stream/manorsofsuffolkn06copiuoft/manorsofsuffolkn06copiuoft_djvu.txt

|publisher= TAYLOR. GARNETT, EVANS. & CO. LTD (1910)|accessdate=8 May 2012}}

Deposits of clay along the shoreline were used by brick works in the 19th and early 20th centuries at Holbrook Creek, Shotley, Hare's Creek (Shotley) and Bourne Hill in Wherstead.{{cite web|title=Suffolk Landscape Character – Rolling Estate Farmlands |url=http://www.suffolklandscape.org.uk/landscapes/Rolling-estate-farmlands.aspx

|publisher=suffolklandscape.org.uk|accessdate=15 April 2012}}

File:Main entrance to H.M.S. Ganges - geograph.org.uk - 1247889.jpg

The peninsula lies within the Suffolk Coast and Heaths Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, and there are many rights of way. The Stour and Orwell Walk is a coastal footpath that starts from the Orwell Bridge and extends around the peninsula to Cattawade, providing links with the Essex Way.{{cite web|title=Stour and Orwell Walk|url=http://www.ldwa.org.uk/ldp/members/show_path.php?path_name=Stour+and+Orwell+Walk

|publisher=Long Distance Walkers Association|accessdate=21 April 2012}}

Towards the tip of the peninsula there are extensive views of the Port of Felixstowe, Landguard Fort, the town of Harwich and Harwich International Port. The dense marine traffic criss-crossing the deep-water channels to the Haven ports comprises container ships, cruise ships, pleasure craft and sailboats.

The attractive riverside hamlet of Pin Mill and marinas at Woolverstone and Shotley Gate make the peninsula a popular sailing destination. Alton Water is a reservoir that offers a variety of activities such as birdwatching, sailing, windsurfing, walking and cycling.

The Old Hall at Shotley is a 16th-century grade II listed building, with evidence of a medieval moat. Erwarton Hall, Crowe Hall (Stutton) and Stutton Hall are substantial Tudor and Jacobean houses that overlook the Stour estuary to the south. The Royal Hospital School at Holbrook is a significant landmark on the peninsula, as is the mast of the former Royal Navy Training Establishment (HMS Ganges) at Shotley Gate.

File:Shotley - rolling fields - geograph.org.uk - 1120722.jpg

The local transport network is limited, with the B1456, B1080 and a number of minor roads linking the settlements, no rail station and restricted bus services. The B1456 road is periodically at risk of temporary flooding along the Strand near the Orwell bridge.{{cite web|title=Lib Dem Councillors warn of flooding threat to essential County roads|url=http://southsuffolklibdems.org.uk/en/article/2010/084570/lib-dem-councillors-warn-of-flooding-threat-to-essential-county-roads|archive-url=https://archive.today/20121224095532/http://southsuffolklibdems.org.uk/en/article/2010/084570/lib-dem-councillors-warn-of-flooding-threat-to-essential-county-roads|url-status=dead|archive-date=24 December 2012|publisher=South Suffolk Liberal Democrats|accessdate=23 April 2012}}

In the summer months a foot and cycle ferry service licensed to carry up to 12 passengers operates between Shotley Marina, Harwich and Felixstowe.{{cite web|title=Harwich Harbour Foot & Cycle Ferry|url=http://www.harwichharbourferry.com/

|publisher=Harwich Harbour Ferry Services|accessdate=14 April 2012}}

The South Suffolk Cycle Route{{cite web

|title=Cycle South Suffolk

|url=http://www.discoversuffolk.org.uk/userfiles/Leaflets/Cycling%20and%20horseriding/Cycle%20South%20Suffolk%20full%20leaflet%20reduced.pdf

|publisher=Babergh District Council

|accessdate=15 April 2012

}}{{dead link|date=May 2017 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }} crosses the peninsula, and there is a campaign to create a dedicated traffic-free cycling route between Shotley Gate and Bourne Bridge, Ipswich.{{cite web|title=Shotley Peninsula Cycling Campaign|url=http://www.spcc.info/

|publisher=SPCC|accessdate=15 April 2012}}

File:Erwarton Hall Gatehouse - geograph.org.uk - 283393.jpg

{{Reflist}}

File:Royal Hospital School, Holbrook.jpg

• {{cite web

| title = Suffolk Landscape Character – Ancient Estate Farmlands – suffolklandscape.org.uk

| url = http://www.suffolklandscape.org.uk/landscapes/Ancient-estate-farmlands.aspx

| accessdate = 21 April 2012

| archive-date = 24 April 2012

| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20120424093944/http://www.suffolklandscape.org.uk/landscapes/Ancient-estate-farmlands.aspx

| url-status = dead

}}

• {{cite web

| title = Stour and Orwell Society – stourandorwellsociety.org.uk

| url = http://www.stourandorwellsociety.org.uk/

| accessdate = 15 April 2012

| archive-date = 22 April 2012

| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20120422055120/http://www.stourandorwellsociety.org.uk/

| url-status = dead

}}

• {{cite web

| title = Royal Harwich Yacht Club – royalharwichyachtclub.co.uk

| url = http://www.royalharwichyachtclub.co.uk/

| accessdate = 22 April 2012}}

• {{cite web

| title = Woolverstone Marina – mdlmarinas.co.uk

| url = http://www.mdlmarinas.co.uk/mdl-woolverstone-marina

| accessdate = 22 April 2012}}

• {{cite web

| title = Shotley Marina – shotleymarina.co.uk

| url = http://www.shotleymarina.co.uk/

| accessdate = 22 April 2012}}

• {{cite web

| title = BBC Suffolk Interactive 360° Images – Shotley Gate – bbc.co.uk

| url = http://www.bbc.co.uk/suffolk/360/views/shotley_peninsula.shtml

| accessdate = 15 April 2012}}

• {{cite web

| title = Walk Magazine winter 2011 – Shotley Peninsula – walkmag.co.uk

| url = http://www.walkmag.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/CEngland_Shotley_Suffolk.pdf

| accessdate = 21 April 2012}}

• {{cite web

| title = Sylvia Laverton. Shotley Peninsula: the making of a unique Suffolk landscape – review by Peter Warner

| url = http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_hb3284/is_293_76/ai_n28946820/

| accessdate = 21 April 2012}}

• {{cite web

| title = East Anglian Film Archive: "Shotley" search results – eafa.org.uk

| url =http://www.eafa.org.uk/search.aspx#&&page=1&navid=&tagid=1527%2c%2c%2c&psize=10

| accessdate =1 May 2012}}

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Category:Peninsulas of England

Category:Landforms of Suffolk

Category:River Orwell

Category:Babergh District