Walk 46 Luccombe to Sandown - 4 miles

A regular winter walk, so I was surprised I hadn't written it up before. It's an ideal starter for the new year, not too long and fairly flat.

Leaving the bus route at the green known as Big Mead, Priory Rd leads to the steps to Luccombe beach. This end of the beach stays quiet even in high season, free from deckchairs and other enticements.

From here, one can walk along either the beach or Esplanade as far as Yaverland at the foot of Culver Down beyond Sandown to the east. However, the reverse is not true and only at very low tide it possible to head west towards Ventnor, scambling over rocks; really not advisable.

Nothing is more typical of the Isle of Wight than thatched cottages, and there are a fair few thatched pubs, but as far as I know, the Fisherman's Cottage is the only thatched pub on the beach, tucked away at the foot of the natural gorge of Shanklin Chine. According to Historic England, the cottage was built in 1871 by William Colenutt, who created the path through the Chine and set up the first bathing machines on the beach.

Later the pub provided hot seawater baths for Victorian tourists seeking health cures, and the Chine now contains the only surviving example of a Hot Brine Bath, a marble basin dating from c.1845, with wooden handrails, now a Grade II listed building.Generally the pub is only open April to November.

Passing the foot of the Chine, the route follows the Esplanade with its familiar array of beach shops, cafes and pub-restaurants. 

 Note along the way the three ornate Victorian shelters.

 

At the far end of the Esplanade is the South East Beach Cafe with its decking projecting on to the beach, 

Here we come to Shanklin Sailing Club and the beginning of the sea wall walk through Lake to Sandown.

 Plenty of dog walkers were in evidence today.

 Sandown's Esplanade hotels may have seen better days, but a new Premier Inn is being built. The beach, however is a fabulous stretch of soft sand.

At the end of the sea wall we come to the remains of Sandown Pier. A 360 foot pier first opened for the 1879 season, to be extended to 875 feet in 1895. The ballroom at the pavillion end of the pier was at the heart of the resort and paddle steamers called at the new landing stage. In the 1990s, the theatre was replaced with a bowling alley and golf course, and the beach end is still a popular attraction with a cafeteria, shops, kiosks and amusements.

My walk ended with lunch at one of a number of popular seafront eateries, looking out at the view up to the coastguard cottages and monument on Culver Down

Retracing my steps to the beyond the pier, steps lead up to the clifftop path and the WW" defences at Battery Gardens by which I made my way back to Shanklin.

Walk Details
Start: Big Mead, Shanklin
Finish:Lake
Distance: 4.18 miles
Time: 2 hours
Bus: No 3 from Ventnor, Ryde or Newport
Refreshments/WC: South Beach Cafe, various along seafronts

Walk 20 Coastal Path Alum Bay to Yarmouth - 6.25 miles

On a scorching hot day, I set out from the Needles pleasure park to explore the coastal path from Alum Bay to Yarmouth, taking in some views of the purple heather covered slopes of Headon Warren.

Alum Bay is best known for its coloured sands and has been a popular tourist spot since the 18th century, when the tradition of filling glass bottles began. A pier, one of three originally on this coastal stretch, was built to serve visiting paddle steamers but it was feared it would allow enemy invasion in wartime and fell into disuse before being swept away by storms. In 1973 a chairlift was installed to access the beach, giving access to boat trips that tour the Needles.

On the top of Headon Warren is Hatherwood Battery, built in 1859 as part of the fortifications around the Needles to cover and defend Alum Bay from enemy invasion, protect the Solent from enemy shipping and co-ordinate with the Guns at the Needles Batter. It was to house a range of heavy guns and accommodation for two married soldiers, with the remainder of the garrison quartered at Golden Hill Fort. Now all that remains are four gun emplacements and the site is gradually slipping into the sea.

The area is home to  heather, gorse, grassland, yellowort, gentians, orchids and centauries like these. In July, it is alive with butterflies, including the rare Glanville Fritallary.

Like all the south of the island, Alum Bay is subject to erosion and this landslip opened up in the wet winter of 2013/4.

On top of the far hill the Tennyson Monument can just be spotted.

From the top Headon Warren we look back to Afton Down, the scene of the iconic 1970 Isle of Wight pop festival, when up to 700,000 music lovers descended on the area, more than 10 times the number who attend the current festivals, now held in Newport.

Across the Solent is a vie of Hurst Castle, on long spit of sand just outside Southampton. It was one of Henry VIII's device forts, built to protect Southampton Water from French invasion.

Just around the bay, just outside Yarmouth is Fort Albert, one of Lord Palmerston's defences against Napoleonic invasion of the Needles Passage, now converted to private flats.

Among the heathers and willowherb were also patches of wild honeysuckle.

Heading down into Totland Bay, I passed these spectacular hydrangeas.

Following York Lane and Cliff Road, a path leads down to Totland Bay.

The Waterfront Inn and Totland are renowned for magnificent sunset view, but I've yet to be there with a camera to catch one.

At Pelican Pointe cafe, the coastal path heads up inland to avoid the area of broken sea wall.

Totland Pier has fallen into disrepair and plans for its restoration have stalled among legal and planning concerns.

Following a long spell of rain, the sea wall collapsed after a landslip, closing coastal access, amid much speculation as to possible repair options.

After a short stretch inland, the path descends to the little beach resort of Colwell Bay, with its row of colourful beach huts and beach cafes and shops.

The path heads up inland again passing through Brambles Chine and Cliff End holiday parks, lined with thistles and wild fennel.

This pink shrub is Eupatorium cannabinum, commonly known as Hemp-agrimony, and the butterflies sure liked it.

Coming out on the coast again offered closer views of Hurst Castle.

The path then heads into the woods of Fort Victoria Country Park, but I couldn't find the significance of this carving.

Nestling in the undergrowth were these Arum maculatum or snakehead , a common woodland plant species of the Araceae family, later to become arum lilies.

Leaving the woodland we reach the coastal path, passing Norton Grange to reach Yarmouth Harbour.

Along the sandy shoreline were clumps of sea holly.

Walk Details
Start: Needles Pleasure Park, Alum Bay
End: Yarmouth Harbour
Distance: 6.25miles
Refreshments and WC: Alum Bay, Colwell Bay, Yarmouth
Bus: Island Coaster or route 7 from Ventnor or Newport.