27th October 2009
Beautiful, beautiful day! Sunny. Warm. £50 just about covred my expenses for the day but that did include the indulgence of a taxi home in the evening.
Redjet from Town Quay in Southampton to Cowes and from Cowes to Newport on the No. 1 bus, which runs every 6 minutes. I got the No. 11 from Newport which terminates in Yarmouth, as I had some idea of walking down to Freshwater Bay along the old railway; then I changed my mind when I saw the Downs from the Bus and decided to get off at Totland instead.
The path I followed is the Coastal Path, joined at Totland up a road and then off at a footpath sign to come up on to Headon Warren - in the 15th Century this was the location of a thriving rabbit-meat and -fur trade.
At the top of the Warren is a Bronze Age tumulus which was raided for its treasures on the orders of Henry III.Down the other side of Headon Warren and you arrive at Alum Bay, a tourist trap, full of permanent souvenir shops selling items ranging from blown glass ornaments to phials of the famous multi-coloured sands. Guess who managed to to choose half-term week to do this walk! There were people everywhere, a fairground and a cable ride up and down the cliffs. After Alum Bay, however, the walk improved.
I followed the Coastal Path on round towards the Old Battery that overlooks the Needles. I was intending to go up on to West High Down through a gate along here but I baulked at the steep climb up to the Coastguard Cottages with the exposed drop behind. So I turned back along the cliff edge - a footpath alongside a tarmac road that you can also walk along - and went back to where there is a stile by a National Trust sign. The path wanders along the lower slopes of the Downs past open fields and a tea rooms in a cottage about 1/4 mile off the track. Eventually the path comes to a gate and out on to Tennyson Down. The great Down climbs away ahead of you, a great green sward, with some trees on the northern slope. From the gate the Tennyson Monument on top of the Down is barely visible. Look behind as you climb to see West High Down pointing its great crooked green and chalk finger out to sea.
I found the climb really weird. Just this sheep-bitten mound curving against the sky - water to the right, nothing to the left - and I kept checking behind because I had the oddest sensation that the ground behind me was falling away after every step I took. Totally irrational!
Arrived at the monument, I sat on the bench that faces out to sea and had lunch. All very pleasant with a book in one hand, something edible in the other and the warm sun on my face.
Then the tide turned and up came the wind, all blowy and chill. Although my legs were well-protected as always in army surplus combats I had on a T-shirt and cotton hoodie that let the wind through! I did, fortunately, also have my waterproof jacket in my rucksack. Did I put it on at once? No.
I walked the rest of the way down the other side of the Down (although not on the cliff-edge path) and suddenly realised there were cows. I didn't realise they have the run of the place. Still there were plenty of other people for them to chase. I even stopped to photograph them before continuing on through a gateless gap , past more cows and down into Freshwater Bay.
Here is a public convenience, and here I finally put on my extra layer.
Freshwater = water - the sea, fresh - the wind, and what a spectacular silver lining! The waves were tumbling and foaming up from the Channel and crashing with a great rumble and hiss on the shingle beach and booming against the cliffs. Eventually and reluctantly I turned away from the sea as time was getting on and I still had the walk to Yarmouth. I wanted to go over Compton Down as well but the increasing wind would have made it unpleasant, so I went off north around the golf course on to the Freshwater Trail. and if I had gone over Compton I don't know that I'd have made it to Brighstone before sunset anyway.
The golf course is a windy links, open to the elements. The Freshwater Trail goes along the edge of the course and down past sheep fields. I took a photo of one particular sheep for its impudent staring as if it objected to my being there.
The path here is grassy and well-maintained. Unfortunately, it ends at a busy road with blind corners in both directions. Once you have taken a deep breath and scuttled across the road, ears on the alert for any whining engine noise bearing down on you, the path continues along a quiet country lane which meanders along between a woodland and fields, eventually coming to a bridge where the path goes off to the right alongside the Yar. This is the disused railway.
I tried to get a photo of a man feeding swans and wanted a shot of one with its head stretched up but every time I went to take the shot, the man thoughtlessly dropped another piece of bread. I put my camera away and went off up the path. The way is lined with trees so that views of the river are patchy. I did manage to get some nice shots of the sunset over the river.
There were loads of people along the path, walking or cycling, out to make the most of the late autumn sunshine.
The path splits off towards the Yarmouth end, one way going on into the town, the other taking a more circuitous route. I chose the latter and got this lovely shot of three swans gliding down the river in the gold of the late afternoon.
The path along here runs between fields full of reeds and emerges at a lane. Turning left from here there is a bus stop on either side of the lane and the lane itself comes to the main road into Yarmouth. I checked the timetable for the next bus to Newport (all buses on the Island go to Newport). There was about 1/2 an hour to the next so I decided to walk into the town.
There are quaint little backroads through the quiet part of the town down by the water. The roads come soon to the quayside and tourist information centre at the ferry terminal.
The sun was down by now and autumn twilight sliding over the water and the town. The bus station is just along from the ferry terminal and the bays are quite clearly marked.
The bus ride was through darkness and occasional little hamlets of cottages on a bus being driven by Jensen Button - he thought he was.
Made Newport and straight on to the No. 1 for Cowes. All through the rush hour traffic. My timing is always impecable! I made the 6.15 ferry, having missed the 5.45 by seeing it pulling away from the quay as the bus pulled into the terminal. Oh well. I had a coffee and read some more of my book.
The ride back to Southampton was pleasant through the dark, as long as I didn't look at Fawley bobbing up and down, and at the far end I got a cab home as it was dark and I was tired, and hadn't brought the bus times with me anyway.
The day cost me just under £50 including cab and I had a lovely time and got some beautiful photos of a memorable day.
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