Had a good 6.8km walk yesterday afternoon – took a slightly different route and ended up at the viaduct again but still haven’t found the lake that shows up on Google maps. Although I did see a small lake near a business park complex and a duck pond in Collette Park.
From the viaduct I went off in a different direction across a couple of fields and finally back to the main road, through Collette Park and down the High Street, then up onto the hill in time for the sunset and finally followed last nights path in reverse and back to the house.
Always good to be reminded Last night’s path – on my left behind the fence are the manor house grounds Manor House grounds
Did some slip sliding on the muddy paths on the hill, but managed to not fall on either my face or my derrier.
I more or less slid down that path..
The path across the hill takes you beneath what must have been a railway bridge before the 1960s purge of railway lines, its really dark and foreboding, especially in the waning light of night time – I just love it, looks so spooky.
Dark and spooky
Before setting off across the fields I visited the Kilver Court Designer Village. They have some really lovely items, and I’m glad my debit card was at the house 😁😁😁
Kilver Court Designer Village on my way back
In all a really good walk and I’m getting closer to my target for 2020 and making good progress along the virtual Great Ocean Road in Australia. Unfortunately the organisers of the Conqueror virtual challenges haven’t done any virtual postcards yet for this particular route, but I hope to receive them when they are ready.
Great Ocean Road virtual challenge 320.1kms to go by 31.12.2020
So thankfully I start a new assignment today. I was beginning to panic just a bit.
But the agency finally came through and I’m on my way to Somerset to a town called Shepton-Malett, which to my delight is a Domesday Book town.
I’m looking forward to exploring 😃😃
Unfortunately it means that I can’t get out for sunrise walks for the next 2 weeks, so I made sure I got out this morning….and it was stunning. A gorgeous day for walking with clear skies and mild temperatures.
Spectacular lightshow at 06.45amStunning colours reflecting on the wavesGood morning sun 🌞
I walked as far as Dumpton Gap and back to the harbour chasing the incoming tide.
The tide was well in at Dumpton Gap
As with yesterday’s walk I collected 6 big pieces of trash that would otherwise have ended up in the ocean.
Besides these, I picked up a big plastic container and 2 other water bottles
I’m going to have to get back to carrying bags and gloves with me again…there was so much more I could have picked up but no means of carrying the stuff 😔😔😔
From yesterday
I was also attacked by a bloody dog again that despite the owner trying to grab the damn thing, jumped up and tried to get to my face. It took the owner a good few minutes to get the dog on a leash. My verbal commentary was not very polite. I truly wish people who own dogs would just train the damn animals. Thankfully it was a spaniel so not very big or my face would have been slashed. As it is I could smell its breath it came that close 😠😠😠😠 I did manage to wallop the animal with my stick which gave it pause, but as soon as I moved it went for me again.
Ultimately I managed to move off without much more than my trousers muddied. But seriously….
The tide really does encroach pretty quickly, which cut off part of my route along the beach.
On my way out I walked over this concrete slab.. a bit cut off on the way back…🤪🤪 thanks be for the promenade
A lucky morning; I found a real bounty of coloured and white glass pieces on the beach. Yesterday yielded only 2 pieces, today I found loads, especially of the dark green glass that is so beautiful.
I really do love that house…the views of the sunrise must be amazingI cannot resist taking a photo every few minutes, it just is so beautiful. I love how the colours reflect off the waves on the beachI saw another dead shark/dog fish on the beach, a tiny baby this time 😔😔 I do wonder what is killing them…probably the pollution
A magical walk and I’m so glad I made the effort. My kms are adding up, and the deficit going down 🚶🏻♀️🚶🏻♀️🚶🏻♀️👏👏👏
After such a beautiful morning at the coast, clear skies and mild weather, imagine my surprise as we approached Canterbury on the train….the countryside is heavy with mist…looks amazing and I was wishing I had the time to jump off the train and take photos
A complete contrast to Ramsgate…not that far away.Totally spooky 👻👻
My next post will be from Somerset. I’m looking forward to exploring a new town.
Lockdown and the government tiers certainly doesn’t allow for much by way of exploring, except in your local vicinity. If you’re lucky enough to live in a countryside area, close to the sea, or near a river, even if its familiar its usually different and can still be enjoyed every day.
Hands and Molecules – a familiar and favourite sculpture on the clifftop – makes a good frame for the moonI adore this house. Located near the King George VI Memorial Park on the Dumpton Gap side, I used to have house envy till I realised how close to the cliff edge it is 🤪🤪
I live (sort of*) near the sea and even though it’s the same, every day along the coast is different. I’ve found myself with time on my hands due to losing a 6 week assignment so made the most of the opportunity to spend time with my grandson and to catch up on my walking targets for 2020.
Sunrise 23.11.20 @ 7.15amSunrise 23.11.20 @ 7.26amRamsgate Harbour Into the light….Sunrise 25.11.20 @ 9.26amSunset 24.11.20Sunset 23.11.20My favourite sunset to date…23.11.20 across Pegwell Bay Sunset from the cliffs above Pegwell Bay near Cliffsend One of my favourite village signboards – Cliffsend has seen Viking raiders, St Augustine’s arrival and WW2 action
I’ve seen some amazing sunrises and sunsets and had much fun with the kid. He’s developing into a very determined little boy and like most kids his age, he has a strong will. He’s also growing rapidly and requires his Granny to carry him when he gets tired….but Granny is not a bodybuilder and has her limits 😁😁
My favourite swing…he loves it tooFinding a fairy’s front door 🧚♂️🧚♀️He’s going to be a displacement officer when he grows up 😉😁 loves to move stuff Empathy for a dead shark Just a hop, skip and jump on the beach at Margate
I’ve mostly walked locally and managed a walk to Broadstairs and to the Sandwich side of the Pegwell Bay nature reserve.
Looking across the saltmarsh mudflats to Ramsgate The saltmarsh mudflats, a fascinating environment
The mudflats are home to an incredible number of birdlife that visit here during the changing seasons
The reserve has an amazing history and played an important role in WW2.
On my way back from the nature reserve I walked along the beach beneath the cliffs; devastated to see the volume of plastic trash lining the high tide level and he number of dogshit bags piled up. It’ll take a team of 20-30 people to clear that up…it stretched from where I’m standing right along the cliffs; heartbreaking.
We’ve had a couple of family outings and made a special trip for the boobee to see the Christmas lights in Margate
Snowman!! Penguin!! Santa!! His vocabulary is expanding daily 🥰🥰
Ramsgate Harbour offers so many photographic opportunities, you could spend all day there
I’ve managed to increase my kms by 74 this week and passed my original target of 1600kms. I do however still have 375km to walk to reach my 2020 target of 2020kms. Looking forward to seeing if I’ve exceeded my October total 🚶🏻♀️🚶🏻♀️🚶🏻♀️🚶🏻♀️🚶🏻♀️
I’m determined to reach my target
So yeah, I may be walking familiar routes, but every day it looks different.
* I sort of live in Ramsgate but because work all over the country I don’t actually have a home and liveineither a guest house or b&b between assignments. One day…I hope to have a home of my own.
I’m not really a fan of circular walks and prefer to end somewhere I didn’t start. But since I’m walking during my break, I have no choice but to return from whence I started.
Yesterday afternoon could be described as a blue sky day, and since it was my penultimate day in the city I made the most of the good weather and went for a ramble….from Temple to the Millennium Bridge, crossing to Bankside and walking to Tower Bridge, back over the Thames as the sun was setting and ultimately back to Fleet street and Temple.
I saw many of my favourite sights, and covered 7.86 kms in total.
Although I haven’t noticed much change in the volume of traffic along Embankment, the reduction in the city was very noticeable with many streets almost deserted. It was really weird walking past hundreds of shops and pubs….lights off and doors locked, and not manypeopleaboutat all. A bit like it would be after an apocalypse….
Very weird. This is the city of Sundays when everyone is at home and you could meander the streets and lanes and rarely see a soul.
Of course I took lots of photos…I hope you enjoy them
Has the chewing gum man been here?
If you cross Millennium Bridge look down and you’ll see a number of tiny little works of art. These are mostly the work of the ‘chewing gum man’. He creates art out of gum tossed on the streets by neanderthals. Although that’s actually insulting Neanderthals. Ben Wilson (click here for a profile) is famous in London for creating miniature artworks from gum stuck on the streets. His artwork is not limited to Millennium Bridge and if you keep your eyes peeled you’ll find these creative pieces in other corners of the city. I met him once at one of his exhibitions, a very interesting man. Here’s a more recent article about Ben Wilson you may enjoy reading https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/studiomoe/ben-wilson-the-chewing-gum-man-the-millennium-bridge-gum
One of my favourite views downstream of the ThamesWhen you cross Millennium Bridge from north to south, be sure to stop on the south side and look back…brilliant view of St Paul’s CathedralJust off the corner of a side street on Bankside you’ll find The Ferrymans Seat – harking back to when you had to pay the ferryman to row you across the riverThe Globe Theatre- albeit not the original, Globe theatre is linked to William Shakespeare and pre-covid this is where you would come to experience what theatres were like in the 16th century. Not far from here and behind the first row of buildings you’ll find the remains of the Rose Theatre, where Shakespeare did perform his plays.In the foreground is the arch of Southwark Bridge. At this point you can see four bridges crossing the Thames: Southwark, Cannon Street, London Bridge and in the distance, Tower Bridge – often mistakenly called ‘London Bridge’.Beneath the arch of Southwark Bridge are scenes of Frost Fairs on the river from the days when it froze over in winter – specifically Frost Fairs were held in 1683-34, 1716, 1739-40, and 1814. The river is noe narrower and deeper and flows faster; and no longer freezes over.A mural depicting William Shakespeare on the wall near The Clink Prison. I wonder what he would make of London today.A fragment the Great Hall and Rose Window of Winchester Palace in Southwark. Once the palace of the Bishops of Winchester. The prostitutes who plied their trade in this area under the auspices of the Bishops were known as the ‘Winchester Geese’ A short walk from here is a piece of ground where they were apparently buried.Southwark Cathedral circa 1905 – a place of Christian worship for more than 1,000 years it was originally an Augustinian priory built between 1106 and 1897. In 2017 I walked from the cathedral to Canterbury Cathedral following Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales Minerva and The Shard. This delightful sculpture can be found on the river side of the cathedral. The Navigators; one of my favourite sculptures in London located in Hays GalleriaHMS Belfast moored on the Thames since 1971 on Southwark side of the river; the most significant surviving WWII Royal Navy warship. Since her launch over 82 years ago, she fired some of the first shots at the D-Day landings, served in the Arctic Convoys, and in the Korean War.The magnificent White Tower glows in the light of the setting sunToad Hall aka the London Mayor’s Office – many years ago a play; Wind in the Willows, was staged in the open air theater next to the building. It was nicknamed Toad Hall and the name has stuck ever since, and occasionally we have (had) a real larger than life toad working there…#notLondonBridge – Tower Bridge stands guard over The Pool of London – a bastion between the the lower reaches of the Thames and the City of London Looking upstream. One of the many many barges that traverse the waterways on a daily basis; one of hundreds of various craft that ply the river ….The Tower of London viewed from Tower HillThe Tower of London- 6 years ago the moat was covered with ceramic poppies to commemorate the start of the First World War. I was one of the many lucky people who got to plant a few.Remnants of the original Roman City walls located at the end of the pedestrian underpass from Tower Hill stationAll Hallows by the Tower Church – oldest church in London. In the crypt you can see the crows nest from Shackleton’s ship, Endurance. Samuel Pepys stood in the platform of the tower and watched London burning in 1666A poignant memorial located in front of the church The Monument commemorates the area where the Great Fire of London started in 1666. Nearby is a small plaque on a building showing the original location of the bakers shop where the fire was meant to have started. If you ever decide to climb to the viewing platform…there are a lot of steps!! But you get a certificate for your efforts Another of my favourite sculptures – The Cordwainer. Located in the ‘Ward of Cordwainer’, which in medieval times was the centre of shoe-making in the City of London. Only the finest leather from Cordoba in Spain was used, which gave rise to the name of the craftsmen and the WardThe Royal Exchange – London’s first purpose built trading centre. The Royal Exchange in London was founded in the 16th century by the merchant Sir Thomas GreshamA peek at St Paul’s Cathedral My absolute favourite building in London – St Paul’s Cathedral still stands proud amongst all the new. Designed and built by Sir Christopher Wren after the Great Fire of London razed the original to the ground. A tiny grave in the crypt of the cathedral is the resting place of this famous man. His epitaph: si monumentum requiris, circumspice”—if you are searching for his monument, look around. In all Wren designed 53 of London’s churches as well as other secular buildings. St Paul’s Cathedral featured in the famous film Mary Poppins. St Brides Church aka the ‘wedding cake’ church. Urban legend has it that a baker was looking out the window of his shop one day looking for inspiration for a wedding cake he was creating…hence the popular design of the layered wedding cake. It’s named for the saint St Bride and is also known as the Journalists Church due to its proximity to Fleet Street, once home to the newspaper trade.Back whence I started. The spot where I’m standing is actually in the City of Westminster and the City of London Griffin marks the boundary between the two cities. When I step past the sculpture I’m then in the City of London.
I hope you’ve enjoyed your trip around London and some snippets of history.
By the time my walk ended, the sun was setting below the horizon. Across the river is the OXO Tower and the Sea Containers building. Not sure what the two new towers are, but I wish they weren’t there…downstream you can see The Shard, its highest point lit up in blue.Looking upstream towards the London Eye from the same location at the same time. You can see a sliver of the moon just to the right of the tall building on the leftMy walk 7.86kms via mapmywalk
And finally, London by night. Taken at 10pm last night.
The Sea Containers building lit up with a rainbow The Colours of London – still my favourite city in the whole world
Absolutely delighted to have completed the Ring of Kerry virtual challenge tonight.
After I’d updated my Conqueror app kms last night I found I only had 1.1km left to complete the challenge. So tonight after I got back from visiting the kids, I went for a short walk along the clifftop and 1.6km later, I’m done.
Challenge #5 in the bag. For someone who said she was only going to do one….😁😁😁🤭🤭
Total 1194.7kms
A cheap way to travel the world. 😉
Congratulations, you have completed Ireland’s well known scenic route the Ring of Kerry. Before you leave spend a little more time in Killarney by visiting the historical site of the 15th century Ross Castle.
Overlooking the third largest lake in Ireland, called Lough Leane, the castle was built by the local ruling clan, O’Donoghues Mór. Ross Castle was one of the last castles in Ireland to surrender to Cromwell’s forces. Up until the 17th century the castle was surrounded by a curtain wall with towers in each corner. A portion of the curtain wall was torn down to make way for expansion whilst in use as a barracks. Today the castle is open to visitors, retaining the tower house, part of the curtain wall and two towers.
From the castle take a boat ride on the lake to Innisfallen Island, the home to the ruins Innisfallen Abbey. Founded in 640 AD by St Finian, the patron saint of the area, it was occupied for nearly a thousand years. Nothing remains from that early settlement. The current ruins are a late 12th century Augustinian Priory. Over a few hundred years the resident monks wrote the famed Annals of Innisfallen, a chronicle of Ireland’s medieval history. In the late 16th century during Queen Elizabeth I’s reign, the monks were dispossessed of their abbey.
An excerpt from Thomas Moore’s poem entitled Sweet Innisfallen (c1870) describes it best:
Sweet Innisfallen, fare thee well, May calm and sunshine long be thine! How fair thou art let other tell, To feel how fair shall long be mine. Sweet Innisfallen, long shall dwell In memory’s dream that sunny smile, Which o’er thee on that evening fell, When first I saw thy fairy isle…
It’s so easy to get discouraged these days what with lockdown and various crazy things happening in the world, so for me this has been a fun way to keep motivated, and even when I really don’t feel like getting out, the thought of adding kms to my challenge gets me out the house.
I love the milestone postcards we get and the information that comes with them. The plant a tree initiative is fantastic and its exciting to know that my walking challenges have planted 25 trees so far
Virtually – anything is possible
If you’d like to join me on these virtual challenges, you can sign up here via my link.
This is not an affiliate link and I don’t make any money from people signing up, but you get a 10% discount on any walks you sign up for and I think I get a 10% discount as well….which is a moot point really since I’ve already signed up for all the walks I want to do 😃😃😃, although that’s no guarantee and I’m pretty certain that if they bring out more challenges, I’ll sign up 🤣🤣🤣
What’s next you might ask….well I’ve 477.7km to walk to complete my personal challenge of 2020kms in 2020, and next on the horizon is the Great Ocean Road, Australia and Alps to Ocean, NZ. Next year I’ll be walking the Cabot Trail, Canada and the Ring Road, Iceland.
My very 1st postcard along the Ring of Kerry arrived yesterday 😃😃
This is one of the features about the Conqueror Virtual Challenges that I enjoy the most….
Charlie Chaplin- Waterville, Ireland
Waterville
Between Ballinskelligs Bay and Lough Currane (lake) on a narrow isthmus lies the coastal village of Waterville. Flanked by two championship 18-hole golf courses, one to the north and the other to the south, this small town of 496 residents is a bundle of surprises.
Waterville began as a village in the 1800s and although it remains a small village, you will never be short of something outdoorsy to do. There’s a plethora of walking and cycling routes with both easy and difficult levels. The Equestrian Centre conducts pony camps, horsemanship courses and beach rides. The Sea Synergy is a marine awareness and activity centre, with their main objective to educate about marine life and ocean conservation. Operated by marine biologist and ecologists, the organisation runs educational adventure tours and summer camps for kids and teens.
A walk on the promenade will bring you to a statue of Charlie Chaplin who enjoyed Waterville so much that for a decade he returned every year for holidays with his family. Obtaining permission from the Charlie Chaplin estate, Waterville hosts the annual Charlie Chaplin Comedy Film Festival.
When the first transatlantic cable was installed in 1858 between Newfoundland Canada and Valentia Island near Waterville it didn’t come without its problems. Working for a mere three weeks due to weak cables, it took five further attempts across nine years to eventually succeed in maintaining a lasting connection. The Atlantic Telegraph Co. had a monopoly over the industry and as a result the Commercial Cable Company from New York was established to break the monopoly and reduce prices by successfully installing cables in 1884 from Waterville to Nova Scotia. This brought a hive of activity into the village and the need for more housing to accommodate company personnel who settled in the area. Waterville became the European hub for the Company and at its peak was the largest cable station in the world.
Its so interesting to read about places on the actual route of the virtual route I’m following. I lived in Ireland for 6 months back in 2001/2002 and we travelled the country extensively. It helped that my sister and her husband lived there at the time, and loved travelling as much as I did. I went back a few years later (one of 8 trips) and we travelled to Galway and Conamarra where we enjoyed a fantastic holiday. Afterwards my friend and I hired a car and travelled right along the west coast, the south coast and the east coast back to Dublin over 7 days. Along the way we drove along part of the Ring of Kerry and it is stunning. I’d love to go back now, or as soon as, and walk the actual route.
But for now I shall content myself with the virtual postcards and the information that accompanies it, while I explore and walk around England.
If you’d like to join me on these virtual challenges, you can sign up here via my link.
This is not an affiliate link and I don’t make any money from people signing up, but you get a 10% discount on any walks you sign up for and I think I get a 10% discount as well….which is a moot point really since I’ve already signed up for all the walks I want to do 😃😃😃
With just 4 days left in Lewes, today I was determined to find and follow the Egrets Way.
At least now I know where it starts, I didn’t waste 3/4 of my break trying to find the route.
But first I stopped off at Trinity Church, Southover. I’d been past it a number of times but it was always closed – today it was open 😃😃 There’s quite a history attached; “The church of Southover originated as a ‘hospitium’ or guest house to serve the nearby Priory of Saint Pancras founded by William de Warenne and his wife Gundrada in 1077 AD.
The tower was built in stages between 1714 and 1738, after the collapse of the earlier tower with spire in 1698. This may have been caused by hanging a ‘Great Bell’ in the previous year, which proved too much for the earlier structure. The location of the earlier tower is not certainly known, but from what evidence is available probably stood where the Gundrada Chapel is built now.“
I was delighted to find a scallop shell in one of the glass windows with St James right above it ❤❤
After my brief visit to the church I walked down St James’s Street to have a closer look at the house at the end of the cul de sac – it looked like a gingerbread house. Imagine my amusement when on closer inspection I discovered the name of the house; The Gingerbread House ☺☺ Just perfect!!
The Gingerbread House ☺☺
I made my way towards the river via the carpark and soon picked up the Egrets Way. I’m dead keen to walk along the riverside to the little village of Southease, also a Domesday Book village and near to where Virginia Woolf, who at the time lived in nearby Rodmell, committed suicide in 1941 in the River Ouse.
Of course with all the rain over the last few days, and boy has it rained, the river is in full tumultuous flow and the riverside path is mostly a muddy quagmire, placing obstacles of watery pools in the way.
Fast flowing River Ouse
But I trudged along, determined to get as far as I could, zig-zagging from one side of the path to the other trying to find the least squelchy and muddy bits to traverse. Thanks be for my walking poles, as always they kept me upright when the mud was determined to see me on my bottom.
I arrived at one gate to find a pool of water right in the middle surrounded by mud, so balancing precariously on the wooden edges and hugging the upright struts I sort of swung my way around and through the gate….but I didn’t get very much further since the path at the next gate was just too muddy; and so I said “no, just no!”.
I beat a retreat and returned the way I had come.
Once past all the muddy puddles et al, I crossed a grassy patch and picked up the cycle/walking path that is sensibly gravelled and continued on my way.
The riverside path will have to wait for another time – perhaps when I eventually walk the South Downs Way that passes through Lewes, I may just divert for a few days and actually walk along the river to Southease….if it hasn’t been raining!!
Time will tell.
Meanwhile I followed the path, beneath the grim and dreary railway underpass, through a fine, new wooden gate and before too long I recognised the place I had originally seen the signpost for the Egrets Way, near the recycling centre. It also gave me the opportunity to see where I had gone so very wrong at my last attempt
Dreary underpass, fine wooden gate
Once I realized the error of my ways, the what and why became apparent. Instead of turning left, I was endeavouring to find a way through to the right 🤪🤪🤪👉❌👈 which of course would have taken me onto the railway line….clearly I need to do a map reading course 🤣🤣🤣 Even with the help of Google maps I still went wrong. How have I managed to not get lost on previous walks! Luck, I guess 🤭🤭🤞🤞
So now that I know my daft mistake, it doesn’t really matter since its unlikely I’ll walk that way again while here…but I’m glad I resolved the issue.
So whizzing along I made my way back into town, passing some interesting houses, the only surviving section of the Franciscan Friary
Amazing relic from 1224!!
and while chatting on the phone to the relief carer who’d just left due to issues at the house, I once again went off piste….I had planned to go to Tesco for a packet of my secret vice, but since I was so completely not going in the right direction, I gave up and went back to the house.
On the way I passed the castle for another look and more photos 😁😁…wish the weather had been this fine on Saturday!!
Lewes Castle
Next a brief stop to take a few more photos of the 15th century bookshop windows….and spotted another book I would dearly love to buy – bad luck, the shop won’t be open again till Friday afternoon and by then I’ll be on my way….
Fifteenth Century Bookshop 😃😃
I’m on the home straight. Hoorah!!
A little video with some more images from my walkabout today. The weather was fantastic
You know how sometimes you feel like you want to visit a place and it seems like a good idea, then you go and it’s not …..🤣🤣🤣
Well yesterday I did just that..
Mistake #1 I didn’t do any research
Mistake #2 I got off the train at Newhaven Harbour
Mistake #3 I didn’t do any research
So the lessons I learned: do my research and get off at Newhaven Town stop not the harbour.
Anywayyyyy…..I went, I saw, I can tick it off my list – I didn’t get the t-shirt 🤪🤪🤪🤪
So, Newhaven. If I’d done my research, this is what I would have learned.
1. Newhaven Harbour is a grim industrial area, and on the wrong side of the river. In my imagination I pictured a lovely pretty harbour with colourful boats and twee huts. It isn’t. I couldn’t even bear to take a photo it’s so depressing. There is a boat marina on the opposite side.
Found some colourful boats, but obscured
2. It’s a 10 minute walk back to Newhaven Town. Which to be fair, except for the interesting wooden houses close to the riverside, is almost as depressing. I normally like a bit of decay and love old Victorian houses, but seriously…
These houses near the riverside were quite interesting
3. Even town centre is depressing.
Town Centre
4. Ho Chi Minh landed here in 1913? He was a Vietnamese revolutionary and politician. He served as Prime Minister of North Vietnam from 1945 to 1955 and President from 1945 to 1969.
After I returned last night I ‘did some research’ 🤪🤪 and this is what I found:
Newhaven: A channel ferry port in East Sussex.
Looking downstream of the River Ouse
There was a Bronze Age fort on what is now Castle Hill.
In about 480 AD the Saxons established a village near to where Newhaven now stands; named “Meeching” aka known as “Myching” or “Mitching”. The settlement began to be known as the “new haven”.
Part of the Holmstrow hundred until the abolition of hundreds in the 19th c but not mentioned in the 1086 Domesday Book 🤨😒😒
Lies at the mouth of the River Ouse, westward from Seaford, one of the Cinque Ports formed by Henry VIII.
In 1848, the exiled French King Louis Philippe I landed here in disguise after abdicating his throne.
The village was of little maritime importance until the opening of the railway line to Lewes in 1847. The railway reached the port in 1847.
Dredging of the channel and other improvements to the harbour between 1850 and 1878, enabled the port to be used by cross channel ferries. In 1863 the LB&SCR and the Chemin de Fer de l’Ouest introduced the Newhaven-Dieppe passenger service.
The most colourful part of Newhaven was in a pedestrian underpass
The London Brighton and South Coast Railway (LB&SCR) constructed their own wharf and facilities on the east side of the river, and opened the Newhaven harbour railway station. The area then became known as the ‘new haven’, and officially recognised as ‘The Port of Newhaven’ in 1882.
Imports then included French farm products and manufactures, timber, granite and slates.
The present breakwater was built in 1890.
Newhaven harbour was designated as the principal port for the movement of men and material to the European continent during World War I. Between 22 September 1916 and 2 December 1918, the port and town of Newhaven were designated a ‘Special Military Area’ under the ‘Defence of the Realm Regulations’, and the Harbour station was closed to the public.
During World War II, large numbers of Canadian troops were stationed at Newhaven, and the ill-fated Dieppe Raid in 1942 was largely launched from the harbour.
A Poppy Trail
When Lord Lucan vanished in 1974, his car was found in Newhaven, in Norman Road, with two types of blood in it.
Newhaven offers regular passenger services to Dieppe.
All the above research ref wikipedia
I did my best and walked in a huge circle trying to find something really interesting, and some of the little sculptures came to the party, but in all honesty, it didn’t have the magic….that thrill of exploring a new place. In retrospect I could rather have gone to Seaford. Maybe next week. Meanwhile I cut my visit short by an hour and went back to Lewes.
Hoorah! Today’s walk was fruitful albeit shorter than usual. Not only did I finally find the blessed Egrets Way path after going off in COMPLETELY the wrong direction 🤪🤪🤪 and wasting 45 minutes of my break in the process (Passing the railway station should have been a clue…🤔🤔),
But I am once again a ‘Trail blazer’ However, whilst it may appear that I’m a trail blazer, I wish I could tell them how useless I am at reading Google maps, especially when the map moves as I turn my phone to see which way to go🤨😠
And my mileage reached 40% on the Ring of Kerry virtual challenge and so another tree will be planted.
As for the toads crossing, I wonder what happened to the fast toads… 🐸🐸🐸
Alls well that ends well…and another day bites the dust. I only have 7.5 days to go and I’m off, back to Ramsgate. Can’t wait to see my Boobee
This adorable, funny, gorgeous little guy who holds my heart in his hands – my Boobee
His nickname came about from 2 sources….he has loved playing peek-a-boo from when he was tiny, so I started calling him Boo, and now he says “boo” which is just so cute I could eat him…. Meanwhile his parents have been teaching him sign language as a tool for better communication with people who have no hearing. He learned the sign for bee 🐝 and it was so cute I kept asking him to sign it….and one day, I got all muddled when playing with him and called him ‘Boobee’. 😂😂☺☺ so now he’s my special special Boobee…..aka The Blur because he’s never still for one second and I can seldom get a photo of him that isn’t blurred….his Mummy, who sent me this photo, has the same problem…our phone cameras are just not fast enough to capture him in one place ☺☺
He’s a charm; funny, smart, cute, humorous, outgoing, friendly, loves Peppa Pig madly and is just adorable. I am so blessed to have him in my life.
Some other random photos from today, not as interesting as usual as my 6.84km walk wasn’t either….
Walking never fails to throw up a few surprises and today was no exception.
It poured with rain this morning and I thought for sure my plan to walk during my break was scuppered. But by early afternoon the clouds blew away (mostly) and the sun shone bright and by 3pm it was lovely and sunny, albeit very windy.
I decided that today was the day to walk along that disused railway line, and I’m ever so glad I did….there was a delightful surprise in store.
Looking back towards the town from the entrance
It’s a beautiful walk, hundreds of trees create a green tunnel with crispy autumn leaves underfoot, and of course….lots of muddy puddles.
I did some ‘Paul Simon’ as I walked and as usual thanked my walking poles for keeping me upright 😁😁😁 Of course it had rained, ya dim woman. What a day to choose. But never no mind, on I plodded…slip sliding away…the nearer my destination….
About halfway along I noticed a beautiful towering Victorian bridge and just beneath that a group of 6 people standing about. Not at all sure what was waiting ahead, I tried to look confident and in control…as I neared the group I could hear singing
To my delight the group of people was a small choir practising for a concert and enjoying the acoustics provided by the bridge!! They were grouped around a brightly burning fire dancing merrily, it looked utterly cosy and I felt quite envious
Magic.
I stopped to listen to listen and they kindly agreed to my recording it ☺☺ the sound was amazing. After saying my thanks for the impromptu concert, I carried on along the path right to the end and passed a 2nd bridge along the way, but sadly, no further choirs….
As I neared the end of that wide green green tunnel narrowed suddenly and petered out into a narrow path amongst bushes. The whole length of that section of the railway line is 1.216kms 😁
Uninviting…
Walking back I was hoping to hear the group singing again but unfortunately as I neared the bridge I noticed them walking ahead….too bad. Their singing was amazing and I could still smell the fire.
I noticed a few left overs from the days of railways past
The detritus of humans
From there I took a quick walk upstream, on the west side, to the end of the pathway. The river, swollen with water after the downpour had burst its banks. It looked quite amazing; fat and lazy meandering its way downstream.
The path is fantastic to walk along, so I walked right to the end.
Followed right to the end…
I love this view the most
My favourite view, looking downstream
In all a most enjoyable walk and despite not pounding along like I normally do, I managed a decent 7.53kms / 12238 steps. I also noticed that the hill, at the top of which I’m currently working, has an elevation of only 65 meters….it feels more like 650 when I’m trudging back after a long walk 😉
Mapmywalk
And now I only have 8.5 days left in Lewes. Time to conquer that blessed path downstream to Southease….
Oh and please cross fingers 🤞🤞🤞🤞 for a fine day on Saturday. I want to visit the castle, it’s my final opportunity.
Not Just a Granny 
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