South West Sea Kayaking - Savage Shores

Great Yarmouth

MRY — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 22:09:35 +0000

Images of Great Yarmouth. Well, why not.

Filed under: East Anglia, Norfolk and Suffolk, Paddling

Muddy Purbeck dawn

MRY — Sun, 05 Feb 2012 10:52:39 +0000

This was the very welcome view that greeted me in the last mile of this mornings’ very gruelling run. Home was at last in sight!

I’d started out under starlight with the intention of running a full 26.2 mile marathon distance around the Purbeck hills, but the going was really heavy after last night’s heavy rain (I even found myself crawling on hands and knees along a streambed at one point) and my legs were telling me that they hadn’t fully recovered from last Sunday’s long run.

I decided to listen to my body (i.e. bottle out) and cut the run short (at c19 miles). Lots of rest needed I think, before I face the real thing in two weeks…

www.everyclick.com/ultramarathon

Now, it’s time for late brekkie.

Filed under: Chris, Corfe Castle, Dorset, Purbeck, Running

Exercise Smash and Fort Henry

MRY — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 18:37:11 +0000

Fort Henry is an imposing concrete fortification overlooking Studland Bay in Dorset, built in 1943. The main building is about 30m long, with metre-thick walls. Several connected buildings are linked to underground tunnels extending backwards from the clifftop.

On 18th May 1944, Fort Henry played host to several VIPs; none other than Prime Minister Winston Churchill, General Dwight Eisenhower (Supreme Commander of the Allied Forces) and His Majesty King George VI. Fort Henry served as their viewing platform for Exercise Smash, a secret practice run of the D-Day landings involving live firing.

Exercise Smash thankfully did not degenerate into a catastrophe such as that which had occurred in Devon at Slapton Sands the previous month. However, the newly invented Valentine tanks were deployed during the exercise. These tanks were designed to travel through the water, being attached to rather flimsy canvas ‘boats’. Several sank to the bottom of the bay, at the cost of six lives. A memorial to these men was unveiled in 2004.

Filed under: Castles and Defences, Dorset, History

Flotsam and Jetsam

MRY — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 20:46:24 +0000

Seen on a quiet Norfolk beach.

Filed under: East Anglia, Norfolk and Suffolk

Misty morning run

MRY — Sun, 29 Jan 2012 18:12:45 +0000

The murky images above and below were taken at around 8 am this morning from the cliffs above Chapman’s Pool, whilst stumbling through a rather long training run. Mist and cloud obscured the hilltops, and (apart from the run along Swanage promenade) this was my only glimpse of the sea.

When I finally made it home, I’d covered about 21 miles and 2600 feet of ascent around the local hills and coast. It wasn’t a particularly speedy run, but I’m pleased to have managed this after only starting running (after a two year gap) back in December. In three weeks, I have the pleasure of attempting to run much further in the South Devon leg of the Endurancelife Coastal Trail Series; 35 miles and 4800 feet of ascent. That’s actually quite a scary prospect, now I think about it. Can I complete this? I honestly haven’t the faintest clue.

I’m attempting to raise funds for the Dartmoor Search and Rescue Team Ashburton, a charity of personal significance to me. Please consider supporting their work; more information here…

www.everyclick.com/ultramarathon

Filed under: Chris, Dorset, Purbeck, Running

Red Sands Fort redux

MRY — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 20:43:46 +0000

Someone mailed me yesterday and asked me about the logistics of paddling to Red Sands Fort, out in the Thames Estuary.

To my shame, I can’t find the email and have no idea what I did with it. If you’re reading, any chance you could contact me again, please?

Filed under: Castles and Defences, Paddling, River Thames, South East England

Gribben Head Daymark

MRY — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 19:37:31 +0000

This striped 25m tower was built in 1832 near Fowey in South Cornwall, to distinguish Gribben (aka Gribbin) Head from neighbouring headlands, hence allowing safe approach to Fowey.

Because this is the internet, absolutely anything is possible, including building your own daymark.

Filed under: Lighthouses, South Cornwall

Out Stack

MRY — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 20:55:22 +0000

The hunk of rock above is Out Stack, which happens to be the northernmost point of Britain. It’s located a short way north of Muckle Flugga Lighthouse, which is a short way north of the Shetland Isles.

I certainly wasn’t on my own, out on the water up there on top of the UK. The skies were full of gannets from the colonies on the rocks of Muckle Flugga, intermittently diving for food. Whenever one surfaced from a dive with a fish in his mouth, he would instantly be mobbed by scores of great skuas (aka ‘Bonxies’) who would harass and even physically assault the gannet until he dropped his food…leading to another ugly scrap, this time amongst the skuas.

Although time and tide dictated that I was supposed to be moving on, I spent a full hour floating in this one spot, watching this extraordinary and unending spectacle unfold around me.

Filed under: Birds, Gannets, Paddling, Shetland Islands, Solo paddling

Enys Dodnan

MRY — Sun, 22 Jan 2012 20:07:50 +0000

This extraordinary granite arch is found on the islet of Enys Dodnan, located off Land’s End in Cornwall. It is a highlight of one of the best coastal trips in Britain.

The murky final image was taken on a rainy misty day last February, but is included here to show the whole isle. The jagged stack behind is the Armed Knight.

Filed under: Geology, Islands, Land's End, Paddling, South Cornwall

In a Flap

MRY — Sat, 21 Jan 2012 13:43:34 +0000

This fellow’s take-off was much more impressive than what followed. He got caught up in the gusty draughts in the cliff gulley and zig-zagged seawards out of control, barely avoiding the walls with manic flapping. In fact, I suspect that was what he meant to do…

Filed under: Birds, Puffins, Shetland Islands

This is England

MRY — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 19:53:28 +0000

No, really.

Filed under: Devon, Islands, Lundy Island, North Devon, Paddling

Lighthouses of the Isle of Wight

MRY — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 21:32:18 +0000

There are only two on the Island; the Needles (above) and St Catherine’s Point (below). Both are spectacular to paddle past, in exposed locations and overlooking significant tide races.

Filed under: Islands, Isle of Wight, Lighthouses, Tide races

Larger than life

MRY — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 22:51:36 +0000

Puffins, gotta love them. These guys on Skomer Island in Pembrokeshire practically came and stared down my lens…

Filed under: Birds, Islands, Pembrokeshire, Wales

Traffic Separation Scheme

MRY — Mon, 16 Jan 2012 18:43:26 +0000

Crossing between the mainland and the Isles of Scilly…

The Traffic Separation Scheme (TSS) will certainly give you something to look at. The TSS crosses the middle third of your voyage, a massive maritime motorway. The two ‘lanes’ that you cross (north going, then south going) are each 4.5km wide with a 3km ‘central reservation’. Despite the wide lanes, the big ships tend to form up in a single line cutting the corner from the Channel to the North Atlantic by the shortest route. The sight of container vessels stretching back to the horizon is pretty memorable.

From South West Sea Kayaking

Filed under: Isles of Scilly, Land's End, Open crossings, Paddling

Gadcliff Dawn

MRY — Sun, 15 Jan 2012 11:55:31 +0000

Note to self: must cease interrupting training runs by stopping to take grainy mobile phone photos.

This morning I ran the local hills as per usual, but went a bit further; I followed the two Purbeck ridges into and out of the military firing ranges (they’re not firing this weekend, thankfully), via the beach at Worbarrow Bay. The highlight was a run along the top of the awesome Gadcliff, a series of epic overhanging precipices. The sun peeked above the horizon just as I was doing this, mindblowing. The lowlight was the gruelling hill from the beach back up on to the second ridge, effectively a 500 foot staircase…

When I staggered back through my front door, I’d clocked 15 miles and about 2500 feet of ascent in 144 minutes. I’m pleased that I survived this, but I do have to remind myself that the Ultra-marathon is just a month away, and happens to be well over twice what I did this morning. Nothing can go wrong (*sob*).

The final picture below shows the Gadcliff on a summer’s day, a few years back. The guy in front pretending to check the map (i.e. posing for the camera) is my friend Chris, who tragically died in a kayaking accident on the River Dart in November 2009. Part of the reason I have entered this ludicrous race and am habitually running around hills at dawn wearing ludicrous tights, is that I am keen to raise money for Dartmoor Search and Rescue Team Ashburton, who gave great and selfless assistance in recovering my friend. I cannot bring my friend back (and he is dearly, dearly missed by so many of us), but I can at least attempt to achieve something positive to honour his name. Please consider supporting the DSRT’s great work by sponsoring me…

www.everyclick.com/ultramarathon

Filed under: Chris, Dorset, Purbeck, Running