A once top-secret nuclear testing site on the Suffolk coast is now open for the summer to nature lovers and history buffs alike.
Season tickets are now on sale for Orford Ness, allowing people the chance to visit the unique site run by the National Trust.
The site is open in May on Thursdays and bank holiday Monday, before opening every Thursday and Saturday from June to September.
A spokesman said: "Meander past grazing marshes and lagoons, go bird watching and moth spotting and climb to the top of Bomb Ballistics for breath-taking views across the Ness' lunar-like landscape."
The famous Orford Ness pagodas were built to test the the ability to withstand the accidental detonation high explosives. (Image: Newsquest)
The site can only be reached by ferry on select dates.
It costs £4.50 for National Trust member adults and £15 for non-members.
Outside of the visitor season Orford Ness is home to Suffolk's first breading colony of grey seals, with a record number of seal pups being recorded this year.
National Trust rangers at counted a record 430 new arrivals, which was an 88% increase compared to the same time last year.
Matt Wilson, countryside manager for the National Trust’s Suffolk and Essex Coast portfolio, said: "This year, our peak counts have included 803 adults and 430 pups, which is by far the highest numbers we've seen since the grey seals’ arrival in 2021."
The Black Beacon, built for the Royal Aircraft Establishment. (Image: National Trust)
A large part of Orford Ness was purchased by the War Department in 1913 and was used as a military test site, before the whole of the ness was bought.
Many of the buildings from the World Wars and Cold War still exist, including the Bomb Ballistic building.
The building was built in 1933 to house equipment to record the flight of bombs, which was used to develop the atomic bomb.
Radar was also researched and developed at the sight under the cover of the "lonosperic Research Station".
The site was sold to the National Trust in 1993 after further decades of military use, including bomb disposal by the RAF.
Share