The best hiking routes in The Broads

The Broads is a low-lying landscape of shallow lakes, slow-flowing rivers, and extensive fens. Unlike upland walking areas, this region is entirely flat, where the paths follow raised grassy river banks, wooden boardwalks through wet woodland, or quiet country lanes. The open water bodies you see along the trails are not natural lakes but the remains of medieval peat diggings that flooded as sea levels rose, creating a distinct network of waterways separated by reedbeds and grazing marshes.

Underfoot, the terrain varies significantly between the damp, peat-rich soil of the fens and the firmer gravel tracks of the drier upland edges. Walking here requires navigating these transitions, where a path can change quickly from a solid farm track to a soft, grassy dyke. Because much of the land is waterlogged, access is strictly defined by these linear paths, meaning you cannot wander freely across the landscape as you might on open heathland.

In late summer, particularly during August, the dykes and fens are thick with flowering water plants and tall reeds, which can restrict views to the immediate path. While some popular riverside spots near boat moorings can be busy with visitors, the footpaths leading into the deeper fens and wet woodlands offer a much quieter, more isolated experience of this working wetland.