Day 2 - Seaton - Seatown (Chiddock)
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Private church on a private estate.
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Author: Dave Statistics:
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Wash day.
A day of diversions !
We once again set off into a bright clear morning with a very slight chill in the air but with the promise of being yet another hot day. We made our way down to the shabby seafront and followed it along to the far east side by a small harbour where we were steered in land for a short way to a bridge over the river Ax. Attached to a lamp post was a small sign informing us of a path closure and advising us to take the bus. As we were on a walking holiday this seemed a little counter intuitive so we thought we would risk it and press on and work our way round the closure when we encountered it. With the potential diversion on our minds we crossed the bridge and headed up on the official route of a rough road that lead up to and through a golf course. We had to dive for cover once or twice when the Mercedes or Audi flew past driven by middle aged blokes who thought 50 MPH was an acceptable speed on a lane not much more than 6 feet wide with two walkers on it. When we reached the top of the hill a sign at the entrance of the course advised us that if we were good enough to be there, we should also be good enough to know how to dress appropriately. Under the circumstances, I was glad I had my socks and kecks hanging on the back of my rucksack to dry !
After traversing the golf course we met our first path closure. The other option according to the map was to head along the track further and then a minor B road and hang a right back onto the cliff path. As we were deliberating an old bloke came along the track with his dog and told us it was passable. On further investigation it seems he hadn't actually walked it himself for about 10 years and since he heard a black panther in the bushes! (don't ask - it's a long story with sub plots of letting some London gangster's lions loose in Longleat from the back of a transit van). We decided to play it safe and go with our diversion which worked out very well to begin with. We came out onto the B road for a couple of miles where we didn't see another sole, walking or driving. We then came to a public footpath that ran through a private estate just east of Dowlands. We continued through keeping an eye open for a track heading off to the right and the cliff path. Every right turn had a sign telling us it was 'private land - no access to coast'. This wasn't looking good as the main road was fast approaching unless we could find a cut through. We could see the sea through the trees - it was less than half a mile away. Just before we exited the private estate there was one final turn on the right which was about 400 meters from the cliff. It had all the usual private signs but I was up for legging it across to the coast - it was only a short distance and tree covered with not a sole in sight - who was going to see us ? And what damage or disruption were we likely to cause ? Jason was not so keen and after a short discussion we agreed to keep it legal and head out on the public footpath to the road.
I suspect after the first few minutes Jason came to regret this decision. The road wasn't busy by south east standards but it was a main thoroughfare between Lyme Regis and Seaton. It was also quite a fast road with a mixture of cars, vans and trucks passing us at some speed. To add to our discomfort, there was no footpath. We diced with death for a couple more miles and then took the first left back down towards the coast. After picking up the official SWCP path again it took us gradually into the outskirts of Lyme Regis. We took the opportunity to make our way along the beach which takes the stress off the feet as constant road walking tends to take it's toll. At the end of the beach we headed up to the town where we had our next diversion of the day. The clifftop path between Lyme Regis and Charmouth had been closed for a while because of a number of landslips. Good for the fossil hunters but not so great for the long distance walker. Before heading out on our detour we stopped for a cuppa in a quirky tea room near the sea front.
What followed for the next couple of hours was what seemed like pointless meandering up and down hills lined with bungalows and short wooded sections of walking which eventually brought us out into the edge of Charmouth where we descended down towards the town and then picking up a small road that took us up hill to Stonebarrow Hill. The day, as expected, had now become very hot. The road was a steep incline that seemed to go on forever. Although the tree cover gave some shade, it wasn't far enough into the season for the foliage to give decent shade as yet. So we laboured up under the relentless heat of the sun.
We once again set off into a bright clear morning with a very slight chill in the air but with the promise of being yet another hot day. We made our way down to the shabby seafront and followed it along to the far east side by a small harbour where we were steered in land for a short way to a bridge over the river Ax. Attached to a lamp post was a small sign informing us of a path closure and advising us to take the bus. As we were on a walking holiday this seemed a little counter intuitive so we thought we would risk it and press on and work our way round the closure when we encountered it. With the potential diversion on our minds we crossed the bridge and headed up on the official route of a rough road that lead up to and through a golf course. We had to dive for cover once or twice when the Mercedes or Audi flew past driven by middle aged blokes who thought 50 MPH was an acceptable speed on a lane not much more than 6 feet wide with two walkers on it. When we reached the top of the hill a sign at the entrance of the course advised us that if we were good enough to be there, we should also be good enough to know how to dress appropriately. Under the circumstances, I was glad I had my socks and kecks hanging on the back of my rucksack to dry !
After traversing the golf course we met our first path closure. The other option according to the map was to head along the track further and then a minor B road and hang a right back onto the cliff path. As we were deliberating an old bloke came along the track with his dog and told us it was passable. On further investigation it seems he hadn't actually walked it himself for about 10 years and since he heard a black panther in the bushes! (don't ask - it's a long story with sub plots of letting some London gangster's lions loose in Longleat from the back of a transit van). We decided to play it safe and go with our diversion which worked out very well to begin with. We came out onto the B road for a couple of miles where we didn't see another sole, walking or driving. We then came to a public footpath that ran through a private estate just east of Dowlands. We continued through keeping an eye open for a track heading off to the right and the cliff path. Every right turn had a sign telling us it was 'private land - no access to coast'. This wasn't looking good as the main road was fast approaching unless we could find a cut through. We could see the sea through the trees - it was less than half a mile away. Just before we exited the private estate there was one final turn on the right which was about 400 meters from the cliff. It had all the usual private signs but I was up for legging it across to the coast - it was only a short distance and tree covered with not a sole in sight - who was going to see us ? And what damage or disruption were we likely to cause ? Jason was not so keen and after a short discussion we agreed to keep it legal and head out on the public footpath to the road.
I suspect after the first few minutes Jason came to regret this decision. The road wasn't busy by south east standards but it was a main thoroughfare between Lyme Regis and Seaton. It was also quite a fast road with a mixture of cars, vans and trucks passing us at some speed. To add to our discomfort, there was no footpath. We diced with death for a couple more miles and then took the first left back down towards the coast. After picking up the official SWCP path again it took us gradually into the outskirts of Lyme Regis. We took the opportunity to make our way along the beach which takes the stress off the feet as constant road walking tends to take it's toll. At the end of the beach we headed up to the town where we had our next diversion of the day. The clifftop path between Lyme Regis and Charmouth had been closed for a while because of a number of landslips. Good for the fossil hunters but not so great for the long distance walker. Before heading out on our detour we stopped for a cuppa in a quirky tea room near the sea front.
What followed for the next couple of hours was what seemed like pointless meandering up and down hills lined with bungalows and short wooded sections of walking which eventually brought us out into the edge of Charmouth where we descended down towards the town and then picking up a small road that took us up hill to Stonebarrow Hill. The day, as expected, had now become very hot. The road was a steep incline that seemed to go on forever. Although the tree cover gave some shade, it wasn't far enough into the season for the foliage to give decent shade as yet. So we laboured up under the relentless heat of the sun.
Not a cloud in the sky.
We eventually topped out to magnificent views and our first glimpse of the Isle of Portland in the distance. It occurred to us both that Portland looked a very log way off still when we considered it was only supposed to be 2 days walking away. The path continued with deep valleys back down to sea level and then back up to high grassy plateaus, culminating in Golden Cap which at 191 meters is the highest point on the south coast - and we felt every leg burning step of it by now. From the top the descent was down some steep, rough steps and through a strip of woodland which brought us down to a small bay.....with a car park, camp site and a pub. So, this is Seatown then.
Our destination for the day was a mile up the hill at a village called Chiddock as the accommodation in the pub was a little out of our league. Looked a fine place to stop though and we thought it would be rude not to stop to re-hydrate.
We managed to stick to our 'rule' and no daytime drinking; I had a pint of orange juice and coke and J went for it's more popular counterpart OJ & L We sat outside and got talking to a fella who was on his third pint. He was also on his sixth week of walking the coast path and due to finish in four days. He had got to the pub, thought it a nice place to stop and owing to it being a very hot day decided to have an early finish, check into the campsite and have a few jars. It was a nice spot and I can't say I blame him. We, however, still had another mile to go and so we headed off up the hill. Jason was flagging a little and I suspected his feet were suffering - which was later confirmed by the existence of a couple of extra blisters.
We reached the B&B and checked in where upon we were sat on a patio area in the garden and brought tea and freshly made (still warm) shortbread. Now this is always the sign of a good B&B! The room and, more importantly the shower, were also excellent. We just needed a really good pub now to make the evening. One option was the pub down the hill which looked really good but Jason wasn't keen on any extra mileage for the day. To be fair, after all the tarmac walking my feet were aching a little too. Upon enquiring, the proprietor informed us that the closest pub had actually burnt down a couple of weeks beforehand. However, there was another one about a five minute walk away and so we made our way down there to find a brilliant pub ! Good beer and cider and pretty decent food. Our planned early night after our hard day evaporated when we saw a folk night advertised. This turned out to be about a dozen locals with various instruments all taking turns to sing various folk numbers. It was a superb evening and we ended up staying fairly late with one or two more pints than originally anticipated...but well worth it.
Our destination for the day was a mile up the hill at a village called Chiddock as the accommodation in the pub was a little out of our league. Looked a fine place to stop though and we thought it would be rude not to stop to re-hydrate.
We managed to stick to our 'rule' and no daytime drinking; I had a pint of orange juice and coke and J went for it's more popular counterpart OJ & L We sat outside and got talking to a fella who was on his third pint. He was also on his sixth week of walking the coast path and due to finish in four days. He had got to the pub, thought it a nice place to stop and owing to it being a very hot day decided to have an early finish, check into the campsite and have a few jars. It was a nice spot and I can't say I blame him. We, however, still had another mile to go and so we headed off up the hill. Jason was flagging a little and I suspected his feet were suffering - which was later confirmed by the existence of a couple of extra blisters.
We reached the B&B and checked in where upon we were sat on a patio area in the garden and brought tea and freshly made (still warm) shortbread. Now this is always the sign of a good B&B! The room and, more importantly the shower, were also excellent. We just needed a really good pub now to make the evening. One option was the pub down the hill which looked really good but Jason wasn't keen on any extra mileage for the day. To be fair, after all the tarmac walking my feet were aching a little too. Upon enquiring, the proprietor informed us that the closest pub had actually burnt down a couple of weeks beforehand. However, there was another one about a five minute walk away and so we made our way down there to find a brilliant pub ! Good beer and cider and pretty decent food. Our planned early night after our hard day evaporated when we saw a folk night advertised. This turned out to be about a dozen locals with various instruments all taking turns to sing various folk numbers. It was a superb evening and we ended up staying fairly late with one or two more pints than originally anticipated...but well worth it.
Nice day for a beach walk.
