2nd - 15th October 2024 (Tour 2) Part 4 - Cofton Holidays in Devon to Warham Forest Tourist Park in Dorset

For much of our time in Dorset I think our activities will be taking us over well known ground because we were here for a month in 2021, 12 nights in 2022 and a week in 2023!  However, when well known ground is as lovely as Dorset that really isn't  a problem!!

Wednesday 2nd October - A nice mostly sunny day for our 70ish mile transfer from Devon to Dorset.  We arrived just after 1pm and after setting up it was a quick trip to Aldi in Upton to replenish our supplies for the next few days.  Then once we got back we spent out time sorting out our favorite places here and how we would fill out time in the next couple of weeks 

Thursday 3rd October - A bit breezy but lovely blue sky for most of the day!  For our first outing we drove the short distance to The National Trust's carpark under Corfe Castle from where our  walk started. A short trek along the roadside took us to an overgrown stairway that quickly gave way to a steep hillside  that ascended almost vertically via steps (about 200 of them 😳)  to the top of Rollington Hill.  

From there we trod in our old footprints and walked along the elongated  rolling ridge of 9 Barrow Down which is the northern ridge of the Purbeck Hill on the Isle of Purbeck.  Apparently it is so named for the Bronze Age and Neolithic burial mounds that cover it's summit and according to folklore, the nine barrows are the graves of nine kings who died in a nearby battle!

Corfe Castle from 9 Barrow Down

As we went we had the pleasure of seeing a shy deer pop up over a hillock above us and a few seconds later she was followed by her baby!

Couldn't quite catch the Baby cos he was pinging along too quick

As we walked we also had spectacular views of Poole Harbour and Bournemouth on our left side and to start with Corfe Village and Swanage Steam Railway  to the right.  

Poole Harbour

Corfe Village

A Puffing Billy from Swanage Railway

Later as we neared our turning point where we had lunch we looked down into Swanage and more distantly out to sea. 

Our return hike was mostly via the same route but after a couple of miles we took an alternative path that led us right down into Corfe Village where we stopped to collect drinks and ice cream before returning to our car for a quick nip into Swanage itself from where we could spy white cliffs of the coast of the Isle of White. 

Taken with lots of zoom 

Friday 4th and Saturday 5th October - 2 lovely sunny days but the weatherman says this good spell isn't going to last!  Therefore, we wanted to make the very most of the sunshine and to do that  we continued  on repeat from almost exactly the same date 3 years ago!!

On Friday we took ourselves of to The National Trust's Ringstead Bay for a high level 9 mile there and back walk to Durdle Door!

Above Ringstead Bay Looking left towards Portland 

We could have chosen to walk on the coastal path as we did 3 years ago but we already knew that would entail lots and lots of steep ups and downs so we decided to take what we thought would be the easier route by staying on the high ground but even then we couldn't avoid all the hills!

After a couple of hours we arrived in the Lulworth Castle Estate Carpark above Durdle Door and that was when we were very glad we'd walked because if we'd come by car we'd have been robbed! 😠  The price to park was £10 for 4 hours or 20 quid for the day! 

But maybe it's worth it cos the views there are fantastic and it's a place we nearly always visit when we're in Dorset.

We took a slightly different route back - we followed a track away from Durdle Door which took us to a little cove and my next pic might give you a clue as to it's name!

And if that didn't look no further than my next pic!!

Apparently Scratchy Bottom used to be said to have the worst name in Dorset but it seems that accolade has now gone to 💩 Shitterton! 

From Scratchy Bottom it was up Sweaty Hill - a very long steep trek back up to the path that would take us back to Ringstead Bay for well earned hot chocolate and cake before we headed 'home'

On Saturday our target was to be Dancing Ledge - literally a ledge that has been left behind from quarry workings in the 19th and 20th Centuries!

To get there we parked at Durlston Castle and that was were I had a quick dance with a chap who looked as if he'd been there a while!

From the carpark we followed a popular well trodden trail down to a path above the Atlantic Ocean and it was here that we revisited The Globe.

Durlston Castle

The Globe 

Wiki says  the Great Globe is one of the largest stone spheres in the world!!  It's made of Portland Stone, it's 10 feet in diameter and weights 40 tons.  It's surface is carved and lettered to show the continents, oceans and certain specific land marks of the world!

As we meandered along the rougher Coastal Path took over and we passed by places named Tilly Whim Caves, Boulder Ruckle, Catte Troughs, The Pormenade, Fisherman's Ledge, Guillemot Ledge and our views were of much of the quarry workings from a bygone era!

After about 3 miles of rough ups and downs we came to Dancing Ledge and this was were we paused for lunch - the blustery wind encouraged the incoming waves to crash up onto the ledge sending plumes of seawater high into the air.

Then once we'd had our fill of watching the waves we trundled back to Durlston via the high route that took us through the Castle's nature reserve to complete our walk!

Sunday 6th October 🎶Happy Birthday to me🎶 John says this is the 37th Anniversary of my 30th Birthday so I'm not getting old after all😂 🎶!!!

We woke up this morning to cloud and murk and the weatherman had told us the rain was going to come full pelt by lunchtime - and boy oh boy, he wasn't wrong!!  Therefore we really needed an indoor activity for our entertainment today and for that we choose The Tank Museum at Bovington which claims to be 'The Biggest Day Out in History'!  The museum houses about 300 tanks which represent moments in every major conflict since the First World War.  Exhibitions took us from the mud of the Somme, to the beaches of Normandy, through the Suez Crisis and to the deserts of Iraq and Afghanistan.  

We met the very first tanks that were produced around 1916 - specifically to be used in  France in World War One.

The very first prototypes were much shorter in length but they couldn't cross the mud and blast holes of 'No Man's Land' - they just nose dived headfirst into the craters. The 'bad boy' above (I mean the tank not John) had a longer base so stood more chance of spanning the treacherous ground but for the poor crews inside it must have been horrendous.  The prop shaft went right trough the middle of the tank posing tremendous dangers for the unrestrained soldiers as they were bounced around inside and the fumes from the diesel engine caused intense nausea and that was before you mention bullets and bombs!

It was all a bit mind boggling really!  There was so much information and very sad and often tragic stories along with a huge number of tanks and other vehicles that had been used in conflict that I'm not sure we saw everything the museum had to offer but we definitely saw enough.   

 

A Rolls Royce Converted for action

When we came to leave the rain was teaming down in torrents so although our outing had been  very sobering it was also extremely interesting and a very good thing to do on a rainy day!

Monday 7th October - Well, the rainy theme continued this morning but by 1 ish the sun was almost winning!  However, because we'd lost half the day we chose somewhere nearby and that was The RSPB's Reserve at Arne which we have visited quite a few times before.  The RSPB acquired the Arne Peninsular in 1965 and it now provides lots of areas for all sorts of wildlife, loads of paths for walking  and several hides from where to watch our feathered friends - our favorite one looks out over Poole Harbour which is the 2nd biggest natural harbour in the world.   

Unfortunately, we didn't see many close ups of our feathered friends today because the tide was still high but with our binoculars we could spy them lining up on the far shore ready to dive in for supper when the water receded. 

We did however see this crew of donkeys trundling along the roadside and they weren't a bit bothered as our car passed very close by!

And also a small herd of deer browsing in the grassland.

In all we managed to walk about 5 miles around the reserve so at least we got our steps in for the day!

Tuesday 8th October - Almost an absolute washout with torrential rain through much of the preceding night and from about midday until after bedtime!   However, we had been forewarned so we'd already decided that most of it was going to be a duvet day but we had spied  a bit of a window in the morning when we could nip out for a walk on the Sika Trail that adjoins the campsite!  

Unfortunately, that needed to be cut very short because the flooded paths were trying very hard to over-top our walking boots and rather than a walk it very quickly became a paddle!

But not to be defeated we tried going in the opposite direction and out onto the campsites nature trail - we did manage about a mile along it but we were still dodging huge swathes of water and eventually it led to nowhere!  

Once we were back in the van the rain came tipping down and at times it was just like bullets hitting our roof but we stayed snug and dry and we didn't float away 😂

Wednesday 9th October - Well, the rain mostly stopped about 1am (or at least we didn't hear it after that) and the morning dawned mild and with glimmers of sunshine so after yesterday's forced inactivity we were chomping at the bit to go out!  Poole was today's destination, partly because we needed to restock our supplies and partly because it offered us somewhere dry and not muddy to walk.

We browsed around the shops and managed to pick up a few DVDs to add to our collection - I picked a film but for John it was 'Steptoe and Son' - I can almost hear him roaring with laughter now😂😂😂🦁!

After our shopping we soon found ourselves on the Harbour where hundreds of yachts and super yachts were moored but they all looked a bit forlorn and lonely bobbing about with nobody paying them any attention!

We also met this chap (again) and he looked a bit lonely too so I stopped for a chat!

We lunched on the waterside and then proceeded on into Poole and Balter Parks which we've visited many times before but the walk was very pleasant in the intermittent sunshine and at least we got today's steps in - just over 10,000 and my tracker reckoned 6.5 miles! 

Pool Park Lake

Thursday 10th and Friday 11th September - Cool cloudy days with sunny periods.  On Thursday it was a walk from The National Trust's  carpark at Corfe over high rolling fields called West, Knowle and Ridgeway Hills (all part of Purbeck Hills).  

This took us past the folly of Grange Arch which is also known as Creech Folly.  It was built in the 18th century and is located near the second highest point of the Purbeck Hills, and today it is another acquisition of The National Trust!

Another mile or so from there landed us in  parking area above the Lulworth Ranges which are mostly closed to the public because the Military use the area for live firing practice from tanks and other armoured vehicles and have done so since the 'tank' was invented back in 1916.  

Once we'd devoured our lunch we ambled most of the way back by the same route we'd came but with about a mile to go we picked up a track that went steeply down hill and past a lovely view of Corfe Castle!

On Friday as we stepped out of our door we were greeted by this cute chap!

Today our destination was Studland to visit  The Bankes Arms where we had a delicious lunch and then on to Old Harry Rocks and beyond over Ballard Down!

Ballard Down is the start of the Purbeck Way and from it's lofty heights we had lovely views down to Swanage with it's old Victorian Peer and on the other side more of Poole Harbour.

Then it was back into the very busy town of Wareham to visit our favorite butcher and this will facilitate the yummy indulgence of Dorset Steak for tea on Sunday😋!

Saturday 12th October -  The day started with rain but by lunchtime it had cleared away so that was when we set off for another visit to The National Trust's Kingston Lacy.  Kingston Lacy and it's estate along with Corfe Castle and Studland (which includes Old Harry Rocks) was bequeathed to the National Trust in 1982 following the death of it's previous owner Ralph Banks.  Apparently it is one of the largest  most important acquisitions that they have ever received but at that time much restoration work needed to be done and this took until 1985 so it wasn't opened to the public until 1986.  

As you would imagine the house is full of antiques  but possibly of more importance is it's huge collection of portraits and art work which have been collected and listed over 360 years ago in the 1650s. 

The Grand Staircase

The Library which has a huge collection of old books

A portrait of Marchesa Maria Grimaldi and her Dwarf
Apparently her lavish dress demonstrates her wealth but I did wonder how she would ever
manage to eat wearing such a huge collar😂? 
One of the guides told me she had to be fed with a special spoon!

Eventually we came to the Egyptian Room and in there we found this Nile Crocodile which is said to be the second largest reptile in the world with an average adult reaching 5 metres in length!  He's at the top of the food chain and it often sits in wait to pounce on it's prey - but I think this one was pretty harmless😂.

The use of this crocodile's head was likely to have been as a hunting hide with the head being placed on the front of a canoe and the hunter lying behind it with his gun poking through a hole in it's mouth!

At this point our inside tour was complete but there was still loads to explore outside and we were able to admire the formal gardens that were still full of dahlias as we went.  

At first glance we thought it was a rose garden at the front of the house but no, 
the blooms were dahlias 

Our first stop was by the Obelisk which was one of a pair and it's called the Philae Obelisk which was erected at Philae in upper Egypt in the 2nd century BC.  It was discovered by William John Banks in 1815 and he had it brought to Kingston Lacy. The Greek and Egyptian Hieroglyphic inscriptions on the Obelisk played a role in the decipherment of ancient Egyptian Hieroglyphs and it was set up in the garden in 1830 and 19 horses were needed to raise it into it's position! 

Once we finished admiring that we moved on through the very Autumnal looking Acer Glade .......

........ and past the Japanese Garden .......

The Japanese Garden

....... before continuing on through the woodland walk that was sadly cut short because part of it was closed for tree and path work.  Therefore, we'd completed our visit quite early so we still needed something more to do to complete our day and for that we chose Upton Country Park!  It was there that we were tempted into their coffee shop for a light snack (coffee muffins and tiffin😋) before we ventured down to the parks massive lake where numerous and varied birds were grazing on the muddy foreshore.  Unfortunately we'd not got our binoculars with us so had to rely on the zoom on my camera but even with just that we managed to spot all manner of ducks, oyster catches and several red shanks to name but a few!

Sunday 13th September - a cold night followed by an overcast day but we'd planned a quite one if you can call a 5 mile hike around the Sika Trail!

The Sika Trail

That was followed by a couple of hours catching up with Strictly and that was followed by our delicious steak dinner washed down with a good drop of 🍷🍷😋!

Monday 14th October  -  a bit of a drizzly day but with some nice patches of sunshine!  Today should have been our penultimate day here in Dorset but in actual fact it's turned out to be our last one!  That's mainly because the weatherman has promised lots of rain on Wednesday and also because we are rather looking forward to sleeping in our nice comfy bed at home!

But back to today's outing which was to  Worth Matravers where we found a wooden Stonehenge......

..........and a lovely ancient pond.

After walking down through the village we soon found ourselves following in the footsteps of medieval priests as we walked along an ancient track known as The  Priest's Way.  The route took us between quarries and across open fields with spectacular ocean views as we went!  

However, we did seem to be being followed by some very ominous looking black clouds -  Were we going to get a dousing???

Luckily they sailed off out to sea and missed us altogether 😂

Once we reached the Coastal Path we found ourselves heading back towards Dancing Ledge but this time we were approaching it from the opposite direction and once we reached it we only paused for a quick look before proceeding on to Seacombe Ledge but on the way we had to pass by some terrifying looking cows that were stood right in our path!

Not scary at all -  they just Mooooved over as we passed by!

Once we reached Seacombe Ledge we found a very comfy rock to sit on for lunch and as we noshed we watched the waves crashing up the rocky cliffs and also this old Brigantine passing by.

Seacombe Ledge

Another  mile or so along our trail brought us  to the old workings of Winspit Quarry which provided stone for buildings in London as far back as 1719 and right up until 1940 when it was turned into a World War Two naval and air base.    After the war the caves were opened to the public but they have now been permanently closed due to safety issues and to protect the Mouse-eared and Greater Horseshoe bats that roust there.  Winspit has also been used as a film set for Doctor Who and Blake's 7!

In all our walk was about 6 miles and we only felt a few splatters of rain as we were on the last leg - but did I mention the mud??  I think we were both about 6 inches taller because our boots had collected plenty of it as we slithered along some of the tracks 😂

And that's about it for this Tour!  We'll be winging our way homewards tomorrow but only for about a month cos we've got another little holiday booked in Brixham then!

Bye for now 😘😘