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HighTide's Ness: An Audio Landscape

Step off the boat at Orford Ness, put on your headphones, wander through a world of sound. Adapted from the prose poem by Rob Macfarlane & Stanley Donwood Ness speaks gull, speaks wave, speaks bracken & lapwing, speaks bullet, ruin, gale, deception.

  • Booking essential
  • Free event

****Please note, there is a £5 booking fee for each headset, payable when booking access tickets ******

Ness: an audio landscape is a HighTide production in collaboration with the National Trust.

This is not an audio guide to Orford Ness.

Ness: an audio landscape will take visitors on a specially designed sonic journey, weaving fragments of Robert Macfarlane’s poem, Ness, into a dramatic audio play that reveals itself through the use of geolocated sound.

Starting at Basecamp and ending at The Green Chapel (Lab 1) with a 15 minute audio performance.

Follow the five forms of nature – It, As, She, He, They – as they converge to solve a crisis in this forbidden and forgotten place. Using geolocation sound technology, this story reveals itself in fragments. No two experiences are the same.

Produced by writer-centred theatre company, HighTide, and created and directed by associate artist Zoë Svendsen and award-winning sound designer Carolyn Downing, the production is funded by the University of Cambridge.

Times

The basics

Booking details

Call 0344 2491895

Suitability

Suitable to 12+ years

Meeting point

Arrive on Orford Quay to check in for your ferry crossing. You will be give boarding passes and headsets. We recommend arriving 10 minutes prior to your ferry.

What to bring and wear

Orford Ness is a coastal site subject to changes in the weather. Wear comfortable walking shoes.;

Accessibility

Access to the Ness is via our ferry, Octavia, which requires navigating steps which can be slippery when wet.

Upcoming events

Event

Island of Secrets Walk 

Join us on a walk past the usual 'no entry' signs into the heart of the Atomic Weapons Research Establishment area and learn about these fascinating buildings.

Event summary

on
6 Jul to 17 Oct 2025
at
09:30 to 12:30
+ 7 other dates or times
Event

Orford Ness Half Day Trailer Tour 

Take a leisurely guided tour of the Ness in our 24 seat passenger trailer, including access to the Cold War Atomic Weapons Research Establishment area which is normally 'off-limits' to visitors.

Event summary

on
12 Jul to 26 Oct 2025
at
09:30 to 12:30
+ 7 other dates or times
Event

Snap Skool - Capturing the Ness 

Do you love exploring? Do you love nature and being creative? Why not become a visual detective and explore the beauty, diversity and history of Orford Ness through the camera's lens. Join us on our half day practical photography workshop.

Event summary

on
22 Jul to 28 Oct 2025
at
10:30 to 14:30
+ 3 other dates or times
Event

Overnight Stargazing on Orford Ness 

Join us for an overnight stay to gaze at the stars from Orford Ness.

Event summary

on
26 Jul to 18 Oct 2025
at
17:00 to 23:55
+ 3 other dates or times