The Traditional Fisherman's Forum

The lake at Somerleyton hall Suffolk was a secret testing ground for amphibious tanks during the Second World War, it's extremely deep and is the grave of soldiers who tested the tanks that failed and sunk to unrecoverable depths in excess of 100 meters.
The fishing in its deepest parts is restricted but I've personally witnessed unusual swells and disturbances from the bank and the whole lake has a feel that's not what I consider normal.
Haunted? Perhaps strange aura......definitely.

Spooky! Any pics of the lake Steve?

I've had a very strange experience in bright sunlight mid-afternoon at a deep estate lake. At the time I put the unusual feel of the place down to the brooding atmosphere that I think we naturally sense when close to very deep water. But on reflection, I think there was something more intense, possibly even more malign than that. As I beat a fairly hasty retreat I kept looking back over my shoulder as it un-nerved me so much. I subsequently found out that a WW2 GI had drowned there.

Norfolk not Suffolk, I think.

It's Suffolk, but only just, right on the border, I stayed in Somerleyton a few weeks ago, I didn't get to visit the hall though, even though I've stayed there a few times, thinking I should have now! sounds like an interesting lake!

To be more accurate I should have said Fritton lake which is owed by Somerleyton estates, sorry I blame the alcohol.
Here's a link.
http://www.frittonlakeoc.co.uk/lake/fishing/
To clarify, Somerleyton hall is in Suffolk and Fritton lake is in Norfolk, the Somerleyton estate is spread over the two counties.

Did a bit of research and a tank is apparently still a at the bottom on the lake. Also a Mosquito night fighter flown by two American airmen in November 1944 which was chasing a V1 rocket was shot down accidentally ( so called friendly fire) and landed in the lake and sank. One other fighter plane landed in the lake but can't find out anymore about it. Sounds like a lot went on here in WW2. RIP the aircrews involved.

A place of my childhood was Fritton, just about far enough on a bike from Caister it was. Good pike and bream fishing there in the sixties and early seventies...lots of Jacks reported now.

An uncle of mine worked on the Somerleyton estate when he was young. Are you sure on the depth 100 metres is 300 ft. I'll have to look up the mossie story

GazTheAngler wrote:An uncle of mine worked on the Somerleyton estate when he was young. Are you sure on the depth 100 metres is 300 ft. I'll have to look up the mossie story

I've probably got it wrong, I should think it's more likely to be 100 foot.