Not much of a walk, but one with a purpose: to locate the poppy field I had seen in the photos of other island photographers. I gave up on waiting for clear blue skies and headed out to Sandown en route to Yaverland, passing the unseasonably empty beaches and esplanade and the Isle of Wight zoo.
Up ahead are the white chalk cliffs of Culver Down, but here the road bears off left at Yaverland, on the bus route number 8 towards Bembridge.
In fact the field proved easy to find, clearly visible from the main road opposite Yaverland Manor and the church.
This shady avenue of lime trees leads to Yaverland Manor.
This medieval manor house was mentioned in the Domesday Book but was rebuilt around 1620 in the reign of James I, when it passed from the Russell family who had held it from the time of Edward I to the family of a local brewer, Jermyn Richards. Now a private home, the house boasts a fine carved Jacobean staircase, a possible priest's hole and an impressive great hall. Like many an old manor house, it is reputed to be haunted!
I was not the only photographer there that day, and was offered a lift to explore the poppies at Culver Down. Originally sited on the highest point of Bembridge Down, the Yarborough Monument commemorates Charles Anderson-Pelham, the 2nd Baron Yarborough who founded the Royal Yacht Squadron at Cowes. He married into the Worsley family and lived at Appuldurcombe House at Wroxall. Erected in 1849, it is the largest of the island's obelisks, made of granite, with the family arms carved on two sides and an inscription stating that he was held in great affection by Islanders.
From the top of the Down can be seen the blue waters of Whitecliff Bay; the tide was far out, revealing a spit of land.
In the event, there were not very many poppies but it was unusual to find these purple ones. By chance, my visit coincided with the centenary of the Battle of the Somme; purple poppies are worn in remembrance of the animals that lost their lives during the two world wars.
Walk Details
Start: Sandown Library
Finish: Yaverland
Distance: 1.4 miles
Time: 30-40 minutes
Bus: No 6 from Ventnor to Sandown, No 8 if wished Sandown to Yaverland
Refreshments/WC: Sandown Esplanade
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