Pleasant bimble today, on my favourite river, which gave a National Park its name. I will never tire of it.
Dartmoor Search and Rescue Team Ashburton were out after dark yesterday searching for some overdue paddlers (whom I understand turned up safe), and they were out training river crossings today on the upper reaches. They do great work for paddlers, please consider supporting them. Which reminds me, I have to go out and run now.
The English Channel seen early morning today from Swyre Head, whilst trying out a new toy.
For years I’ve ridden hardtail bikes, and my backside has grown accustomed to incessantly having a saddle rammed into it. However, I recently realised that the front suspension had long since died on my bike, and that the reason my downhill rides were routinely characterised by barely-in-control-white-knuckle-terror (whilst my friends effortlessly shot off ahead) wasn’t entirely down to my riding incompetence. The ‘logical’ solution was, buy new front forks. The ‘bloke logic’ solution was, buy a completely new and exponentially more expensive bike.
He who dies with the most toys definitely wins.
Like the title says.
Perhaps my favourite local spot is the hill of Swyre Head, located a lungbursting 3.5 mile crosscountry run/ cycle from my house. I’ve been seeing a lot of it recently, due to training for next month.
However, I only recently noticed that it isn’t the only spot named Swyre Head in Dorset; the pictures here show another Swyre Head, located just a few more miles down the road near Lulworth Cove. The photos were taken on a wet and windy Christmas walk. The coastal path hereabouts is ridiculously steep, going up and down repeatedly; I’m particularly familiar with this, as it was also the route of the muddy 14.5 mile coastal trail race I recently survived.
Local winds averaged 50 knots, with gusts of 70 mph around lunchtime today. But here is the English Channel on a relatively calmer day, last week.
Testing out the surfing capabilities of the PH Delphin at Kimmeridge, this afternoon. After warming up tentatively on the small waves in the bay, I stuck my neck out further and further into the bigger breakers outside…thankfully they turned out to be relatively friendly in these onshore wind conditions, with few sections breaking steeply. Some very long fast rides were enjoyed! Sadly, there is no photo evidence of this, so you’ll have to assume I’m lying/ exaggerating.
All good.
Taken near Bat Head, Dorset.
Off surfing now…
These photos are of the Roman fort of Gariannonum, built overlooking the tidal lake of Breydon Water in Norfolk. Built in the third century, it originally guarded a much more extensive estuary.
Gariannonum is one of the enormous ‘Saxon Shore Forts’. In cAD 395, an Imperial register ‘Notitia Dignitatum’ described the ‘Saxon Shore Forts’, under the command of the ‘Count of the Saxon Shore’. Remains of all eleven forts survive, located beside river mouths and natural harbours from Brancaster in Norfolk to Portchester in Hampshire. Strikingly similar to castles built 900 years later, they are among the largest and best preserved Roman constructions in Britain.
Their given title seems to suggest that they were built to guard against Saxon hordes from across the Channel, as the Roman Empire began to crumble. However, their construction actually predated any such attacks. Archaeologists have hotly debated what exactly their function was…
The brief few rays of sunlight shown here started off 2012 in a very fine way. The weather shortly after returned to the driving rain and wind that has characterised recent weeks…photos taken around St Alban’s Head, Dorset.
Happy New Year, all.
The mobile phone pic above was taken early this morning with a couple of friends at Old Harry Rocks, halfway through an extremely muddy bike ride. This route screams off the Purbeck ridge directly towards 500 foot cliffs, and then turns to follow the line of cliffs down to Old Harry.
Grim grey seas and skies have a been a bit of a feature of the past two weeks, hereabouts; mild Atlantic weather has made for lots of grey damp windy days. No worries, this has been good riding and running weather…by running up and down Swyre Head and by strictly staying off the Quality Street and Roses, I might just be the first person ever in History to have lost weight over the Xmas break. All part of the Grand Plan…
Best wishes for a Happy New Year…hope that 2012 hold great things for all of you.
The tide race off St Alban’s Head, this morning. A great Christmas Day walk (taking in the Square and Compass pub at Worth Matravers!) but I would rather have been out on the water…
Like the card says.
We’ve had a wonderful and productive year, getting some writing done, sharing some great adventures and embarking upon one or two new adventures also. 2012 looks to be an amazing year too.
We wish you all well and hope that you have a good one, also!
Photo taken here in Purbeck in 2009…no snow right now, unfortunately. I’m now off to surf in the bay depicted, Kimmeridge…
A friend from oop north was visiting today, so she and I had a pleasant paddle out to Old Harry Rocks, to play in the tide race. We chose this spot as it was relatively sheltered from the strong winds forecast. We then got out the bikes and rode up onto Swyre Head and the Purbeck ridges, where the wind happened to be blowing 40+ knots when we arrived. It was all fun, but my only two photos show grey rain on a grey sea, and me looking windswept, wet and muddy, up in a cloud. To spare readers (and myself) from contracting Seasonal Affective Disorder, I dug out some images from last summer instead.
During our visit to the island of Islay, we called in one evening at Kilchoman church, which is not looking too healthy right now. The tall cross in the churchyard dates from the Middle Ages and apparently looks like this when clean. There is also a relatively new distillery nearby, which Heather visited later in our trip.
After visiting Kilchoman, we headed to Machir Bay, a couple of miles down the road. We surfed until after sunset.
This afternoon, a couple of us enjoyed a great paddle from Kimmeridge to Swanage. Having read internet reports of zero surf over at nearby Bournemouth, we were surprised to find a moderate rolling swell. This certainly kept us awake. We surfed a few good waves along the Kimmeridge Ledges, and after rounding St Alban’s Head, paddled amongst exploding surges at the base of the limestone cliffs. Splendid fun.
Naturally, the camera appeared and photos were taken only during the calm and sheltered moments, so you’ll have to take our word for it.
I’ve just been writing about otters, which prompted me to dig out these images.
Britain’s otters are not marine animals. They evolved as river animals, but have successfully adapted to survive and even thrive in UK coastal environments, especially areas with few major rivers. Otters are part of family mustelidae, which includes stoats and weasels. There are nine species of otter worldwide, divided into three tribes. Britain’s otters are Eurasian otters (lutra lutra, tribe lutrini). They should not be confused with sea otters (enhydra lutra, tribe anoychini) which are not found outside the Pacific Ocean.
We saw otters almost daily whilst paddling in Shetland last year. Nevertheless, I didn’t come remotely close to taking a worthwhile photo of one.
Yesterday I launched from Swanage in the rain, paddled in the rain, played in the Peveril Ledge tide race in the rain, rockhopped beneath Durlston Head in the rain.
All good.
Whilst paddling the coast between Mousehole and Land’s End, give thought to the agonising sacrifice made by the small community of Mousehole on 19th December, 1981. The coaster MV Union Star had suffered engine failure and was being blown ashore west of Lamorna Cove by a hurricane. The Penlee lifeboat Solomon Browne launched. The all-volunteer crew had no illusions about the undertaking; Coxswain Trevelyan Richards had refused to allow the son of one crew member to board, saying “No more than one from any family”.
Richards managed to bring the Solomon Browne alongside the Union Star through 16m breakers, the lifeboat actually being flung onto the deck at one point. Four survivors were picked up, but when the lifeboat returned for the remaining crew, it was tossed skyward and pitched into a rocky trough. The Union Star later capsized. All eight crew of the Solomon Browne were lost, as well as all eight crew of the Union Star.
The lifeboatmen were posthumously honoured with medals from the RNLI, and a national appeal raised £3 million to support the widows and families.
From South West Sea Kayaking.
“The greatest act of courage that I have ever seen, and am ever likely to see, was the penultimate courage and dedication shown by the Penlee when it manoeuvred back alongside the casualty in over 60 ft breakers” – helicopter pilot who witnessed events.
The photos are all in horrible colours because my camera phone’s white balance was accidentally set to, ‘fluorescent’.
This morning I left the house at dawn and ran 10.5 miles; up onto the ridge in the photo above, down and across the valley and then up onto and back along the ridge you see behind (top right in the pic). There was about 1500 feet of ascent to huff and puff through, but I loved every moment. It was a glorious frosty morning, the scenery was stunning and the sea was blue.
I’ve just entered an offroad coastal ultramarathon (34 miles and lots of hills), taking place in South Devon in February. I tried a half-marathon version of one of these events a couple of weeks back. Despite no training I somehow survived … based on this, I decided to enter the ultramarathon in two months’ time. I’m a bit overweight (too much sofa time!) and indeed there is no way I can do the kind of proper extended training that such an event properly demands, but basically I’ll just ‘give it a go’ (in true amateurist fashion). Nothing can go wrong.
I’m trying to raise some funds for the DSRT Ashburton, who were among the volunteer rescue groups who came to the aid of my good friend Chris Wheeler and carried him out of the Dart valley on the night of 21st November 2009.
Many of you generously donated when I ran my first marathon for this great cause, last year – I was blown away by peoples’ support.
Please consider supporting the DRST Ashburton, using the link below. In return, I promise that I will suffer considerably for your amusement/ satisfaction!
Any support for the DRST Ashburton welcomed and appreciated.
I just enjoyed a great start to the Christmas holidays with friends on my favourite river, the glorious Dart.
Paddlers judge the water level at ‘The Ledge’, a bedrock slab located just upstream of Newbridge. The Ledge is the put-in for the Dart Loop section (forgiving Grade 2 and 3) and the takeout for the Upper Dart, an outstanding section of Grade 4 in a deep valley.
In the past two decades I’ve paddled the Upper Dart hundreds of times, at levels ranging from ten inches below the ledge (bump and scrape) to 3-5 feet over (frankly terrifying). Today the water was exactly level with the ledge, which equates to a pleasant low-medium level with just enough water to pad out the rocks nicely.
All good.
Passing Sark’s lighthouse early one morning; if I remember rightly, we were due to be at the northern tip of this Channel Island at 0746 am exactly, to begin an open crossing.
