Pondfield Cove again

[puddleshark]

A fresh wind blowing up on Whiteways Hill this morning, and the sun hiding behind the cloud, and it was almost cold. Very pleasant indeed after such a warm, humid week. Followed the path down to the sea at Worbarrow yet again. Too tired to plan new and exciting expeditions at this time of year. This is a walk that even the zombified can manage. Just set your feet walking - left-right-left-right-etc. - and shamble downhill towards the sea.




On Whiteways Hill, hazy views of St Aldhelm's Head.

The Range Warden does not open the gate on the tarmac lane down to Tyneham until 9am, so if you set off on foot early, following the chalk track down into the valley, you can have the deserted village to yourself, for a little while.


A very, very parched landscape. Even for August the fields are unusually brown.


The church at the deserted village of Tyneham.



There were a couple of cars in the car park, which mystified me, as the gate wasn't open yet... until I met a couple of sea anglers, heavily laden with gear, making their way back along the track from Worbarrow after a night spent fishing.


Worbarrow Bay.


I took the half-hidden path through the fleabane, and past the tank traps, down to the little cove behind Worbarrow Tout.



Time to sit and drink coffee, and enjoy the silence. No sound but the waves washing in. Silence is at a premium in Dorset at this time of year. It is very, very busy, and very, very noisy. The usual summer tourist season woes. It would probably be a lot more peaceful if I headed over to north Dorset, but the weather has been too hot inland, away from the sea breezes of the coast.


Low tide.


A marvellous transparent shrimp with blue-and-yellow striped legs - Palaemon elegans maybe?

Then it was time to retrace my steps. Back along the track to Tyneham, busy now with a steady stream of walkers, all of whom passed by with a cheerful hello, except one group of four, walking side by side in grim silence, taking up the whole track, and probably up to no good.

Back up the chalk track to Whiteways Hill. Very slowly. Even more slowly than usual, because a farmer was moving his cattle across the Ranges. At the head of the procession, a tractor with some lovely tempting silage on the forks, and the tractor driver calling an encouraging "Come on!".


At the back of the procession, an elderly gentleman waving a stick. It was very slow progress, because there was a tiny newborn calf in the herd, whose mother kept turning to nuzzle it every few paces. I didn't mind the slow pace. It gave me a chance to inspect the short-grazed grass banks beside the track, in case there were any Lady's Tresses orchids. But I felt sorry for the calf, which was clearly struggling, and wondered why the farmer couldn't wait a few days to move the herd.

Comments

[heleninwales]

Poor little calf. I suppose the field where they had been had no grazing left. Perhaps it's easier to feed them at the field they're going to?

We had a long walk this morning. It's always reasonably quiet going out on the Mawddach Trail and we only saw one woman with her dog in the woods. Coming back all the hordes were out on their bikes or walking in groups, but it wasn't too bad. I shouldn't be churlish because the Mawddach Trail is perfect for cycling as there's no traffic and I can see that they'll probably go home with fond memories of a lovely sunny day.

[puddleshark]

Yes, maybe the farmer is going to start feeding silage up on the hill. I don't think there's much grazing anywhere right now. The fields are all burnt brown.

It's the same here. If I head out early, it's still quite peaceful, but by 10 am the hordes have arrived.

[sartorias]

That sounds, and looks, heavenly.

[puddleshark]

It was very peaceful. And blessedly cool. After all the heat and noise of the last few weeks, it was a much needed escape.

[house_wren]

This walk felt like I was reading a novel. Perhaps a novel with a little mystery in it, but not a scary murder mystery.

Thanks, as usual!

[puddleshark]

Thank you!

My sister has been reading a series of murder mysteries by Rachel McLean, set in Dorset at various local beauty spots, and, yes, it turns out there is one set at Tyneham - The Ghost Village Murders.

Thanks for the brief vacation

[jesse_the_k]

...the colors in the Worbarrow Bay photo match what I've seen from South Pole's McMurdo base. Glaciers are chalky, ice is slate-y. The brown hills in the background just wandered in from a Terry Pratchett novel.

Re: Thanks for the brief vacation

[puddleshark]

After a storm, the chalk from the cliffs does dye the water a peculiar milky white, but no glaciers in this area! The ice sheet never made it this far south during the last Ice Age.

I love the Tiffany Aching books. Terry Pratchett really does capture the magic of the chalk downland landscape.