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squiz Member Member#: 6644 Location: Registered: 27-05-2007 Diary Entries: 2882 |
8th September 2019 Hiking - Walking: Bronkham Hill and the Valley of the Stones Wind Direction: Wind Stength: Surf / Sea State: Air Temperature: Sea Temperature: Weather: sunny periods Max Speed: Distance Covered: Sunday 8th September – bike ***** Bronkham Hill and the Valley of the Stones – sunny periods. A better night at the National Trust Hardy Monument car park high above Weymouth with stunning views all around, disturbed for half an hour at two in the morning when the hatch gang arrived with music blaring and then chatted but not too bad. Then at 6.40 Mag wakes and I quickly check out the window to see the sun rising so I quickly put my fleece on to get some pics. So that’s a great sunset and sunrise we have witnessed here enjoyed all by ourselves:) In fact we couldn’t believe how quiet it was up here with only the very odd dog walker or cyclist, in fact the first car didn’t arrive until about 9.30 when I was doing my exercises outside. Wall to wall sunshine with great views, no better way to start your Sunday. After a late breakfast, things were beginning to liven up including a large noisy group of bikers so we decided to go for a bike ride even though we are on the top of a hill and it could be a bit up and down! With a picnic packed and bikes sorted we left the van at 11.20 but with the Hardy Monument now open we stopped there first. A nice young NT lady was at the entrance to the tower and we showed our membership cards thus saving another £5 and then it was a steep climb up over 100 steps on a spiral staircase to a viewing platform offering stunning 360-degree views with our van parked in prim spot far below! We had a nice chat with a couple of locals who took our picture with the only down being some very noisy dirt track motor bike racing going on in the valley below! We left the site, crossed the road and entered Black Down, an area of lovely forest. It was a steep track down until you meet the road again crossing over you join the South West Coast Path with leads to the South Dorset Ridgeway. It was a fantastic roller coaster of a ride up and down with great views of the rolling countryside. Then as we approached Bronkham Hill it was a continuous line of Iron Age mounds and pits just amazing, having made our first destination in double quick time we retraced our track back to the road, entering Black Down again but headed right down through the woods. The bike racing was even loader here and we managed to get a glimpse of the motor bikes racing up and down some very steep track, Peter Cutts would have loved it! The track did a big loop in the forest and for every down there is an up but we managed to bike most of it only having to push our bikes for a short way. We eventually found our way back to the road and having asked directions we found the entrance to the Valley of the Stones where we think Iron Age people got the stones for many of their circles, burial chambers etc. It was a tight fit getting our bikes into the footpath and continued along the top of the valley not sure of the way to go? Then the farm track, well marks in the grass made by a farm vehicle lead us down into the heart of the valley. There was not much sign of any old workings just some scattered stones in the valley floor but the surrounding views were amazing with not a soul in sight:) We sat amongst the rocks in the sun for our picnic before having to push our bikes to the top and back onto the lane. I knew there was a Stone Circle nearby but had stupidly left our OS map in the van and with Mag not keen to bike down any more we returned to the van, shame really as when I checked the map when we got back it was no more than a mile, perhaps we can visit them tomorrow on the way to Lidl if it is not raining too hard! So, a nice 3-hour 16-minute bike ride covering 8 miles, not far but very up and down. Relaxing late afternoon reading with a cuppa and cake as it started to cloud up. Then after tea with only a brief glimpse of the setting sun and all alone in the middle of nowhere the rain started to fall on the van! Photo Gallery Here Monday 9th September – Shop and relax – heavy rain! Peaceful night at the Hardy Monument but woke to the forecast rain, only light to start but turning torrential in the afternoon! Relaxing start in the van surrounded by the small black cows with a white ring around their tummies:) I was tempted to walk down to the Stone circle but in the end the weather was too bad so we set off to Bridport in search of the Lidl as we are in desperate need to restock our supplies. The coast road was very busy, lots of caravan and campers moving about in the bad weather and the supermarket car parks were full. We eventually found the Lidl and spent £72; we must have been short! Mag says we won’t have to shop again till we go home!! We then spent an interesting time looking for the National Trust car parks near to the Golden Cap including one very narrow dead-end lane with nowhere to turn around at the end, I managed to reverse and find someone’s driveway and then stopped a large lorry coming the same way and he had all sorts of problems reversing! We eventually found the NT Stonebarrow car park and were greeted by a large sign saying no overnight parking! We stopped to sort out the shopping and for tomato soup for lunch before deciding what to do, in the end we found a nice little secluded spot with a sea view and as the weather is so foul have decided to take a chance and stay here. We then went to get a £4 parking ticket, free for us as members and then had a nice chat with the volunteers who had just opened the small shop/information hut before returning to the van for a cuppa and cake as the rained turned very hard. Played cards, Mag tried to sort out an insurance claim, our hall ceiling collapsed before we left and made a video of the heavy rain. Tomorrow is looking promising for a Jurassic cliff walk to Golden Cap the highest point on the coast on the Southern coast apparently with Wednesday still looking promising for another windsurf at Portland:) |
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