14th November

Heavy rain all morning. I stayed in the hotel and read. Set off 12:30ish to walk for just 2.5 hours along the cliff tops of Ballard Down. The Pinnacles and Old Harry were big chunks of chalk standing out in the sea. A bus from Studland took me, via the ferry, to Sandbanks and the edge of Poole harbour.

I followed the “Poole Harbour Trail”. It was sunset, with views across the low-tide beach to Brownsea Island

A few seabirds, people digging for bait and glorious sunset colours.

Walk done. Off home tomorrow!

13th November 2023

Blue sky, sunshine and a very, very strong wind. A pity then that little progress along the Coast Path was achieved.

Setting off, after overnight rain, at 8:20, it was a windy battle uphill to realise that I couldn’t continue along the ridge of Bindon Hill Eastwards.

So: long downhill trog, on slippery steps to reach “The Fossil Forest” only to be confronted with more fences and gates. Thus every marked footpath Eastward was impassable; something all the locals know about: the Lulworth firing ranges have limited public access. This time of year it’s only a few weekends.

Unwilling to slog uphill again, I first checked online that the tide was going out, then descended carefully to Lulworth Cove beach.

There was a narrow passage along the pebbled beach between cliffs and the waves. Boots off and crocs on, I was a little disappointed that my feet stayed dry rather than an exciting close-encounter with the encroaching seq. Now 10:00, I walked back to my starting point. A 10:35 bus to Wareham, then a taxi to The Etches Collection Museum in Kimmeridge village.

Fabulous specimens in the museum, expertly prepared by Steve Etches, with some truly unique fossils.

Lunch in an up-market restaurant opposite. An excellent, classy, sandwich, but I should have avoided the accompanying greasy chips.

A short, very windy walk to Kingston in the late afternoon sunshine, then 3 minutes wait for a 15:38 bus to Swanage.

12th November 2023

Walking by 08:20. Overnight rain and a grey sky, some very light showers, then about half an hour of sunshine. Liberal rainfall from 12:30 until I finished 14:20, but I didn’t hang about, especially once the rain started.

I cheated a bit by missing the ups and downs at Bat’s Head and Swyre Head. Just as well because I avoided slogging uphill on greasy-looking paths in the rain.

11th November 2023

Set off 07:50 to sunshine and no wind. The harbour area, with medieval street plan, very pretty in the morning light.

The walk along the causeway wasn’t particularly pleasant because of the busy road. Impressed by the height of the stone pile that is Chesil Beach though.

Up to old quarries, with a view back along the beach

then a “sculpture park” that is only an invitation for those inclined to do whatever they are capable of with the large chunks lying around.

Walked the West coast looking at the cliffs, a couple of climbers visible.

Finally arriving at Portland Bill about 12:20

A walk along the East side, with sea caves and a view across to the white cliffs on the mainland, with the dip at Lulworth obvious

I cut short at Freshwater Bay to walk into Southwell to catch a bus back to Weymouth about 14:00. I regret not doing the Parkrun this morning and this in the afternoon, as I originally planned. I was persuaded by Louisa that Portland was more dramatic than I would have guessed from my map-reading. I have renewed confidence in my map-reading as a result!

10th November 2023

After overnight rain, windy for a while, this became another sunny day! Walking by 08:40, despite the “low UV” forecast, I definitely got a touch of sunburn.

Firstly another climb onto a cliff top above Seatown with great sea views back to Lyme Regis.

From Eype Mouth at 10:15, just 30 minutes past low tide, I fancied walking along the beach because I hadn’t really had the opportunity beforehand.

I reached the sea defences leading to West Bay and looked back.

West Bay’s East Cliff collapsed in the recent storms; diggers on the beach rearranging the gritty beach. I stopped for a mint tea at a cafe that displayed many tempting pastries.

Burton Beach was also clearing up the mess in the caravan “holiday park”; this too was national news. Two pitches obviously had lost caravans, while some “owners” were hand-shovelling grit away from their abodes.

I enjoyed walking along Cogden beach before tiring of the novelty of filling my boots with grit.

I pushed Northwards to catch the Coast Path walking through grassy, slightly muddy, fields before it dumped me back on the beach.

A sign at West Lexington named this elongated feature of pebbles as Chesil Beach; “pea sized” ones at West Bay, becoming “potato size” at Portland.

I had already planned to head upwards to the “South Dorset Ridgeway”, to vary the terrain. I was rewarded with orange-lit rolling hills in the early evening light.

Arriving Abbotsbury at 16:30, waiting for the (late again) bus due 16:57. A couple talking (Brazilian Portuguese it turned out) also waited and Louisa asked me if I was walking. She then recommended the Portland section (I had been considering doing Parkrun and taking a rest!) as being particularly good. She then asked me to recommend areas in the Peak District, which I happily did (to Hathersage, Grindleford, Calver). On the bus I talked with Jean who was having a climbing club reunion in Weymouth, and used to live in Sale!

Louisa recommended the White Pepper restaurant in Weymouth, which turned out to be 2 minutes walk from my hotel. I was warned twice by the waitress that “all meals are cooked fresh to order, so it will take a little time”. 35 minutes wasn’t bad, so I composed most of this entry while waiting. Looking up while eating I realised that the large group sitting at a long table ahead of me included Jean. I had told her of the restaurant recommendation, and she has brought the Thames Valley Climbing group!

A long chat with Fran about the End to End walk that she is doing in stages, wild camping. Clearly the group’s hard walker, she’s a Mountain Leader who would pass as someone’s slightly-built granny.

9th November 2023

Set off 08:50; later than I would have preferred. Despite the forecast of rain in the afternoon, it was a gloriously sunny day.

This sign, about 20 minutes after setting off, was a little intimidating, as I had assumed 3 hours maximum to get to Lyme Regis.

It was accurate though: the path consisted of many twists and turns and little ups and downs; slithery mud in places. All because the route was mostly through multiple-landslides of jumbled rocks and chasms mostly left to natural takeover by scrubland and trees.

There were occasional glimpses of the limestone cliffs above. Hearing gunshots from above, I assumed that the pheasant-shooting season had begun. I surprised a couple of pheasant hiding in the dense vegetation around me. “That’s right, you stay here” I told them.

Dense with bryophytes in places, it seemed like a rain forest. A little odd on the South Coast of England which, I assumed, must have suffered greatly in this summer’s heat. After all the recent bad weather I anticipated the path conditions I encountered on the Cornish Coast path in 2018: vast lengths of mud and standing water. Not so: very easy compared to that!

About 2.5 hours in I met an enthusiastic geocacher on the path with his border collie who warned me of the “very bad path ahead”. It was no worse than I had already experienced.

At Lyme Regis I couldn’t resist partaking of a fish and chip lunch near The Cobb; closely watched by a seagull, which I had to threaten repeatedly with my walking pole when it approached too closely.

My next objective was the museum, specifically for the fossil collection. It comprised just a small section of the museum but had some marvellous specimens, including some very recent finds.

At 14:45, there wasn’t going to be enough daylight to complete the route to Chideock, so I set off, as planned, passing a recent statue to the person whose image has contributed most to bringing commercial prosperity to Lyme Regis: Mary Anning

Cliff collapse has diverted the Coastal path via the golf course, where an alternative interpretation lay; note a geology hammer in the left hand of each representation.

On the way to Charmouth I had to tell myself that a further 2 hours walking would have me finishing in the dark sometime after 17:30. Descending Golden Cap in the dark wasn’t a good idea.

With a bus due in 15 minutes at 16:00, I avoided the temptation to enter this Aladdin’s Cave.

So I was a little annoyed the bus was 20 minutes late, although I am sure time would have passed quickly in there.

Overnight in Chideock and I will do a similar trick tomorrow: target is Abbotsbury, with a bus to Weymouth.

8th November 2023

At breakfast I watched a windsurfer on the lively sea, right in front of the promenade that has plenty of pebbles and stones from last week’s storm.

I waited until the overnight and early-morning rain had abated, setting off 09:15

Sidmouth made National headlines last week with a car being washed from the slipway here. Here it is now, embedded about 100m further down the beach.

My first objective was getting to the path on top somewhere.

Today involved much climbing up from sea level to about 150m, walking along the clifftops, then back down to the next sea-level ‘mouth’. Paths were muddier than yesterday, but I actually met a few other walkers today.

There’s a collection of large dwellings below a steep undercliff near Branscombe;

The last stretch towards Seaton I took along a pebbly beach, a good hour after high tide (I checked online). Rock dancing on the middle bit.

Chinook fly-by on teh beach

The repeated up & down made it feel harder than yesterday. But there was quite a lot more clothes-changing faffs. Finished about 16:15

My September 2023 walk on the Ridgeway (different blog and layout) coincided with “The hottest week of the year”, making it too hot to be enjoyable, so I yearned for another go.

7th November 2023

After a couple of days in Whitby recently, I was enthused to walk another piece of “Jurassic Coast”. I quickly planned a trip from Exmouth to Swanage, only to have last week’s severe storm and flooding give me doubts.

Today started off well, setting off by 07:45 and turned into a Spring day! Warm, sunny and even butterflies (Red Admirals) on the cliff tops.

Comfy hotel room, although I think the person in the room next door probably had a similar room to mine and fell down the two steps between the bed area and ‘ensuite’ at about 1am

When planning, I thought it was smart to travel West to East, prevailing wind behind. I hadn’t reckoned on the low winter sun in the East blinding me as I walked besides the beach.

Practically everyone on the beach had a least one dog …

Notice boards told me that the sandstone here was Triassic desert-created, with the Jurassic rocks that follow bearing sea-lagoon fossils being further along the coast.

Blah

And before long, the walk was done!! Here a stroll along the promenade at sunset, with families (kids in school uniform) playing on the beach.

Today’s breakfast surprise was “croissant waffle”, a never-before experienced production of two croissants that had individually been squashed into a waffle-shape, smothered in maple syrup, liberally sprinkled with whole pecan nuts, separated by sliced banana and a dollop of marscapone. Blueberries would have finished the job, but it was quite the challenge to eat anyway!

To say that it rained all day is not an exaggeration. Beginning shortly after the above was taken; it was a gentle enough fall, from an almost uniformly grey sky and hardly any wind. A march across low-lying moor and pasture, yesterday’s hilltops a backdrop, draped with a few wispy clouds.

A stop in Great Asby, in a bus shelter that served as a book exchange; old cassette-tapes dumping spot and adverts for things like the touring chip shop. After 4 hours of continuous rain, it eased to drips.

Overgrown footpaths and grazing meadows by the riverside, was the order of the afternoon, as well as the return of the rain. Martin continued without waterproofs, reasoning that it wasn’t cold, and he wouldn’t be wearing that t-shirt tomorrow.

With about 1.5 miles to go I stopped briefly to read a notice at a bridge, Martin going ahead. I stepped over a stile, into a field … and he wasn’t there. Oh well, he was there for most of the trip, and very good company too. I know where to look for him if he makes it: https://phreerunner.blogspot.com/2022/09/thursday-8-september-2022-dales-high.html?m=1

Home tomorrow…

The forecast for the past few days has incorrectly promised thunderstorms midday. Fortunately it was wrong once again. Although we started out with light rain and atmospheric cloud on the hills, the day once again developed perfect walking weather with panoramic views as we traversed the Howgill fells.