An avid rambler who began her literary career alongside her husband on the farm and country pages of a local newspaper has died aged 84.
An enthusiastic walker, Joyce Boldero - known by all as Joy – gave pleasure to hundreds of thousands of Eastern Daily Press (EDP) readers for over a quarter of a century.
With her husband Charles, who died suddenly in October 2011 at the age of 87, the couple produced many walks of varying lengths from around the county, including on their own doorstep in north Norfolk.
Born on March 5, 1938, in the Cardiff suburb Rhiwbina, she spent her youth in South Wales.
She had two children with her first husband; Son Huw (1960) and daughter Gwyneth (1958). The couple divorced in 1974.
Later that decade, she met D-Day veteran Charles during a visit to Somerset, and they married soon after. They moved around the UK spending time in places including Kent, Cambridgeshire, and Wales, settling in Norfolk in 1983, where the family had roots.
The couple walked almost every mile of the rights of way in Norfolk and neighbouring counties, charting their progress with a succession of yellow Labradors.
Since 1986, the husband-and-wife partnership wrote more than 1,500 walks for the EDP. And they were often invited to compile and revise routes and walks for district councils and Norfolk County Council (NCC) over the years.
Their research was meticulous and often included quirky anecdotes. When they encountered the occasional obstacle on walks, which were mainly shorter routes of five or six miles or longer ones extending to about 10 miles, they quietly persuaded the farmer or landowner to resolve the issue.
In fact, the day before Mr Boldero died, they were photographed for the EDP's Farm & Country supplement as part of a campaign to encourage NCC to keep field edge paths and rights of way open.
They started writing for the EDP, initially once a month, but then on a more regular basis. By 1995, they had written 109 long walks and 115 shorter routes for a variety of publications and organisations.
Over the years, they also wrote 16 walks for the AA’s leisure guide to East Anglia, as well as contributing to Marshall Cavendish’s Out and About. They also covered routes in many parts of Suffolk, Cambridgeshire and even in Lincolnshire and many were included in a succession of EDP Country Walks.
While they covered most of Norfolk on foot, they devised cycle rides and drives around the county. And they did not ignore the area around their home as they wrote village walks for Thurning and Hindolveston.
Son, Huw Williams, said: “Together they seemed to have covered every walking path in Norfolk. Her walking career is something to be celebrated. As an individual, she was forthright, friendly, determined, and resilient.”
Paying tribute to her online, friends Liz and Barry Howlett, said: “We have happy memories of our visits to [her] and discussing the many country walks [they] created around Norfolk.
“Joy was a strong-willed lady with firm opinions and good company and could always be relied upon to keep the conversations lively.
“After Charles died, she managed her affairs with her usual confidence. We will miss her. Rest in peace.”
READ MORE: Norfolk walking routes in ITV's Britain's Favourite Walks
As well as being an avid rambler, Mrs Boldero had previously worked in office administration between times spent as a fulltime homemaker.
Mrs Boldero, of Thurning, between Holt and Reepham, died on December 29 at the Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital.
A service will be held at St Faith’s Crematorium on Friday, January 27 at 12.30pm. No flowers, but donations for RNLI in memory of Mrs Boldero can be made online via joyceboldero.muchloved.com or sent to Kevin Cobbold Funeral Services, 109 Cromer Road, Norwich, NR6 6XW.
- To pay tribute to a loved one, email norfolkobituaries@newsquest.co.uk
- To read all obituaries and tributes join the Facebook group Norfolk's Loved & Lost.
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