South Downs Way - part II

I've just finished the final leg of the South Downs Way (SDW, 30 th August to 4 th September), five days walking totaling about 100 km or 63 miles. Doug and I met in Amberley (West Sussex) and finished in Eastbourne (East Sussex), the end of the route. If you recall we did the first part from Amberley to Winchester last September. To our amazement we had good weather as last year with only one shower of rain over the whole route.

The first night we stayed at Foxleigh Barn near Amberley directly on the SDW. Amberley is a convenient place to get to with good rail connections to London and the south coast of England. From there we quickly gained the heights of the South Downs to follow the ridge east over grassland and sheep country giving great views to the coast and inland over the Weald. After descending to the A24 road we then climbed again to gain the heights of Chanctonbury Ring Fort (about 238 m). Here we found a Dew Pond to have lunch (where the photo below was taken towards the " Ring"). We came across many Dew Ponds on our route as they are watering hollows made in the chalk landscape to store water for animals. They were traditional lined with clay to keep rainwater from permeating through the chalk fissures but today, the modern equivalents have a sandwich of straw and plastic to hold the water. Some had become disused and full of grass and soil whilst others seemed to be well maintained and used by the sheep and cattle. It was near here that we met some Indian tourists who wanted to see and photo some sheep so we were able to direct them to an adjacent field full of sheep; they'd definitely come to the right place!

View to "Chanctonbury Ring" and Hill Fort from near the a Dew pond, our stop for lunch on 31 st August, our first day of the walk.

An example of one of the many Dew Ponds we came across, this one is Burnt House Dew Pond we passed on the 2nd September.

After this we diverted on the Monarch's Way to the village of Bramber staying at the Castle Inn just before the bridge that crosses the River Adur. One of the locals told us it had been very misty for most of the day and they hadn't seen the biplanes from the Shoreham air display that we'd watched from the Downs for most of the day.

The following morning started fine but soon clouded over and began to drizzle as we climbed back on to the Downs and made our way east to Truleigh Hill (216 m) where we had morning tea outside the Youth Hostel. This year I carried a stove and two cups to make Darjeeling tea as we passed the day, such comforts!

Tea break outside the YHA Truleigh Hill just after a shower of rain, the only rain of the trip. There is a water tap here.

The SDW does have marked water points where you can refill with potable water. We managed to have one about midpoint of each of the first four days.

A welcome water tap on route, these are mentioned in the guide book.

Continuing on the ridge over several minor hills we reached "Devil's Dike" one of the larger combes (sometimes spelt coombe or coomb) of the Downs together with a pub connected by road to the valleys and Brighton (with a frequent bus service!). Here we passed a moment with a refreshment in the pub before heading to find a sheltered spot to eat our sandwiches. The SDW then took us down to Saddlecombe to climb over West Hill (211 m) and then descended towards Pyecombe to find a track north to Clayton and the Jack and Jill pub on the A27 road. This track proved very muddy at the northern end but brought us close to the rear of the Inn and within sight of the Jack and Jill windmills above the village of Clayton. The proprietor promised sandwiches for the morning and a cooked breakfast to set us up for another day on the hills.

The following day was a little misty to start with but soon cleared as we approached "Keymer Post", the boundary between West and East Sussex County. From there it was a short walk to the highest point in Sussex, "Ditchling Beacon" at 248 m altitude. Soon after this we got our first views of the white cliffs on the coast that lead to the "Seven Sisters" and also the river estuaries. We met some friends at "Blackcap" who completed the walk for the day, descending to Housedean Farm and our accommodation nearby at Newmarket Inn near the A27.

First sight of the Chalk Cliffs on 2nd September from "Balmer Down" near "Ditchling Beacon", an agricultural landscape and still with lots of sheep grazing.

 The following day was one of our longer days about 16 miles (26 km)  as we again climbed back up to the Downs around Cold Coombe making tracks to the south-east  to meet the road to the village of Rodmel. We continued to Southease and the River Ouse valley. There is a English Heritage Swing Bridge over the Ouse that has recently been refurbished (2010) costing something like £1.7 m. Here we decided to contemplate the mechanism whilst eating lunch sheltered from the slight wind from the east.

Southease village green on the road to the Swing Bridge over the River Ouse. The village once had a thriving fishing trade. The village church, also next to the green, dates back over a thousand years.

Our guidebook warned us that there was a water point in the vicinity of Itford farm on the other side of the railway. It didn't mention that there was a Youth Hostel and canteen (together with water point!) so we were able to get an ice cream as desert to our lunch and take another break! The Hostel at Itford Farm is relatively new (opened by the Queen in October 2013) and apart from accommodation in the buildings, has some camping pods so worth knowing about for any future visits as there is little accommodation in this area so close to the SDW. Anyway, we still had a fair walk to do and climbed again onto the Downs and passed more Dew Ponds near Itford Hill where we watched a rider exercising their horse on the open down-land.

The next section was a great walk along the ridge of the Downs with the Low Weald to the north and of course views to the coast. At the end of the day, it seemed a long walk to descend into the valley to Alfriston and our Bed and Breakfast accommodation ("Chesnuts Cottages"). This is a quaint village with three pubs (I think, although we only went for a meal in the "Ye Olde Smugglers Inne") with plenty of places to stay and eat.

Cathedral of the "Downs" in Alfriston village on the morning of our last day. The early morning sunshine gave promise of  a great walking day.

We awoke to a bright morning and the prospects of our final day on the trail. This was perhaps our most varied day on the walk as it involved a river side stroll along the Cuckmere river towards the estuary, then a climb through woods on the valley side before a stiff climb over the "Seven Sisters" with views of the Channel (and France on a clearer day!) to reach "Beachy Head" before descending into Eastbourne.  The guidebook said it was 10.5 miles in total but the signs on route indicated it was 13 miles. My GPS confirmed it was nearer 14 miles (22 km), this is 3 miles to Exceat and 11 miles for the rest of the way. I reset my GPS at Exceat and when we reached Eastbourne it indicated a total ascent of  560 m (this excludes the hills before Exceat). So beware, all is not what it seems! Above Exceat we had great views of the valley and the meandering river towards the estuary as we drank our morning tea.

The sea at last as we leave the Cuckmere Estuary to climb the start of the "Seven Sisters" cliffs to Eastbourne.

The walk over the "Seven Sisters" was easy enough with again views in every direction reminding me of the South West Coastal Path. We descended at one point to Birling Gap for a drink at a cafeteria before leaving the car park (again serviced by buses from Eastbourne) to ascend to get views of the lighthouses and the final obstacle before Eastbourne. We stopped at "Beachy Head" to eat our lemon drizzle cake supplied with our sandwiches and chat with a volunteer who was watching for possible suicide attempts; I hope she didn't mistake us for them. Here we heard lots of German voices and teenagers enjoying the sunshine and open air, possibly language students resident in Eastbourne.

Looking back over to part of the "Seven Sisters", the chalk cliffs in East Sussex. In the foreground is " Birling Gap" with tour buses and refreshments. We met lots of German students touring the area.

"Beachy Head" lighthouse in the distance and also our last climb of the walk to "Beachy Head"itself before descending to Eastbourne.

The rest of the way was straight forward, down hill over down-land and through woodland before a steep descent into the town to find our bed for the night at "The Sheldon", very pleasant with a good choice for breakfast before our separate journeys home. We finished our trip with  pleasant curry meal and stroll along the promenade. The pier had recently had a fire and was closed but should be open soon. Judging from the evening stroll, Eastbourne is popular with foreign students and pensioners (not to mention hikers and cyclist, probably also in both age categories!).

Our destination and end of the trek in sight as we approach the beaches of  Eastbourne.

Well to finish, this is a pleasant walk, the first section in the west is less frequented than the east (mainly I suspect because of the poorer road access) and there are places where accommodation is not available, so planning can be important. My favorite days were the last two days because they were the most varied, although as I said, the most populated. Weekends can get busy with cyclists so if you have an aversion to being overtaken at speed, avoid weekends! Having said this, last year on the western section at the same time of year, we only met a handful of people on The Way (as we got to call the route) over five days. Needless to say the route is well marked but an OS Explorer map is needed to find accommodation/campsites and paths to and from The Way and also identify distant features inland and along the coast..

A trek through Fish River Canyon in Namibia, Africa

This is a trek Helen and I did in early May 2005 before we starting this Blog. I was recently tidying up some old files and came across the photos and my pocket diary so I thought it would be useful for me to put it together here. The Fish River is the longest river in Namibia (about 800 km) and reaches its confluence with the Orange River in South Africa about 100 km east of the Atlantic Ocean.
We enjoyed the trek and had some special times scrambling the route and crossing the river through rapids and deep sections coming out intact if not warn out. The route is about 80 km with the short-cuts and can take between 4 and 7 days depending on the conditions in the canyon. There are NO facilities in the canyon and once you're down there, its up to you to get out; there is no rescue team waiting to airlift you! Water can be a big issue if the river is low or you have to dig for water or indeed, as we experienced, the river has a moderate flow. Having said that, with the limited number of people allowed in at any one time, you are guaranteed a unique experience of Africa. Obviously over 9 years have passed since we did the trek but I hope, with the aid of my pocket diary, I have recalled things correctly particularly the photos.

Western Crete - a short visit

We've just spent a week on the Greek island of Crete staying in a house in Nopighia (Nopigia) situated on the north coast at the western side of the island. The accommodation was facing Kissamos Bay (also known as Bay of Kastelli) , literally our veranda had steps to a beach with only a few more across sand and gravel to let us cool down in the Mediterranean. The village has a small shop and three Tabernas within easy walking distance. The road to the east terminates after a couple of kilometres and after passing a campsite, becomes a track that leads along the shoreline to a small chapel under the hills. We shared our holiday with Iain and Elaine, Helen's brother and his wife.

"Our Bay" looking from the east towards the town of Kissamos (Kastelli) and across the bay.

The view from our veranda after sunset looking west across the bay towards the mountains; the sun had set behind the mountain.

With our transport, a small car for the narrow roads, we were able to explore the far-western part of the island. One day we did a circular route passing through Topolia to the Monastery at Chrisoskalitisa and then south to the beaches at Elafonisos. This small village was a total surprise to us as we neared the beach to see hundreds of sunbathers with their coaches and cars all over; not a place for us to stay long in the heat of the day! We returned to Kissamos by the coastal road that climbed to give great views over the various bays, scrub and farmland.

As the next day was cooler, we did a walk through the Irini Gorge between Agia Irini and Soughia. We had a few drops of rain in the morning but the temperature soon reached the mid twenties. The path was well marked over fairly rough ground with adequate water points and the luxury of toilets and seats at points along the way. The gorge narrows to a few feet at one point but it was still a pleasant temperature with the shade from lots of vegetation which we were told was particularly lush this year. We only met a few people, mainly towards the end of the gorge, near a Taberna where we had a welcome lemonade. 

Helen making her way along the footpath as it carved a pleasant walk under the cliffs.

Here you can see the narrowest part of the Irini Gorge; just in case you are wondering, the red arrow shows where you have to squeeze through!

We had a late lunch in Soughia (Sougia) overlooking the beach. This is a small village with a bus service to Chania and also to and from the gorge.

The village of Soughia looking from the west of the main beach. The coastal path goes across this section. The beach itself is grit and pebbles and didn't attract many sunbathers in-spite of the sunshine.

After a break, we spent a further few days exploring the areas to the south including the Botanical Gardens near Fournes, the oldest Olive tree in the world (and museum about the Olive industry) at Ano Vouves, a vineyard near Dhrapanias, the Rodhopou Peninsular and Chania city. The Botanical Gardens were excellent with a restaurant and well-marked paths and plant labels, so I have lots of photos to educate myself! We did learn a lot about the main agriculture of the area, olive growing, and were surprised by the quality and variety of the local wines some of which we tasted at the vineyard.

The oldest olive tree in the world reported to be over three thousand years old and still producing olives. Olive trees are fire and drought resistant. However, in the Botanical Gardens we saw several old olive trees that had been destroyed in a fire that swept through the park.

In western Crete it is clear that the main means of making a living for the locals is through tourism with many Tabernas and places catering for tourists that either made their own way around or by mini "trains" or coaches from the main beach resorts or centres. It was very busy in Chania so I dread to think what it is like in the main season in July and August. I think for us either May-early June or September would be ideal as there is little rain and temperatures are usually in the mid-twenties. We had a few days above 30 C but I gather that this is unusual for early June. There are many "gorge walks" and also a long distance E4 path but I understand that this is not too well marked. I used the "Topo 25" Sameria-Sougia 1 : 25,000 map for the walk (not really necessary) and the "Harms-Verlag" 1:100,000 touring map of western Crete which has contours and many minor tracks are marked if you do want to go off-road.

Finally our flight to Bournemouth was delayed for three hours because of the French air traffic controllers actions. Each time we have been to Europe this year they have done something to upset things!!

North Devon in the Wind and Sunshine

We've been away for about ten days in North Devon, on the coast at a small holiday village, Woolacombe, overlooking the coastline and out towards Lundy Island. Morte Bay, probably better known today for it's two mile sandy beach called Woolacombe Sands that stretches between Baggy Head (to the east) and Morte Point, both reknown for their rocks that have caused many shipwrecks over the centuries. We recall this area in particular from visits when walking the South West Coastal Path and also on the Devon "coast to coast" cycle route (27) that passes through Mortehoe and Woolacombe to reach the "Tarka Trail" at Braunton. It is a particularly beautiful section of coastline with numerous coves, sandy beaches and plenty of places to stop and enjoy the sea air and food. The village itself is very dependent in tourism and reading a little about the history of the area, it seems it has been this way since the Victorian era.

Sunset from Woolacombe showing the treacherous rocks off Morte Point (centre right). Lundy is a little to the left but not visible until later on our holiday when the misty horizon cleared. The island is due west of Morte Point.

We met up with Bex, Tony and of course Sam (we're now first time grandparents with Sam now 11 weeks old!!); they shared the apartment with us for part of the holiday. To start with the weather wasn't too good with high wind and lots of wave action and foaming on the beach making walking very refreshing. However, we didn't get the predicted rain during the daytime and later in the week, the sun showed and the wind dropped bringing us some summer weather and enough surf to keep twenty or so surfers in action. We managed several excursions including a coastal walk to Croyd, Heddons Mouth and up a valley to Mortehoe, a nearby village. We also hired a "Tramper" (http://www.countrysidemobility.org/) for Helen's Dad to go between Fremington Quay and Inslow (on the estuary where the rivers Taw and Torridge meet) stopping for lunch at Inslow, about 3.5 miles from Fremington Quay.

Turbulent scene looking from near Morte Point across Woolacombe Sands to Vention and Putsborough in the far distance.

Certainly lots to do around this area and part of the coastline, a place we will no doubt return to many times.

Singalila Ridge Trek, Indian Himalaya

I have just returned from the Indian Himalaya region having completed a trek along the Singalila Ridge from Dhodray to Phalut and then through the forest down to Ramman and finishing at Rimbik. There was four of us on the trek including my friend from Namibian days and the South Downs Way, Doug. Neither of us had trekked this high before so we had come prepared for possible altitude problems. The total walking distance was 83 km with 5142 m ascent and 5082 m descent, reaching a maximum altitude of 3598 m at a peak near Phalut. The whole trip was over two weeks staying in Delhi, flying to Bagdogra and then acclimatising in Darjeeling for a day before driving to the trail-head at Dhodray. At the end of the trek we went to Kalimpong for a day sight seeing and a leisure afternoon.

The drives to the various points were interesting in themselves as they we were on narrow roads and tracks along steep winding gradients that seemed to last forever (the average speed was probably about 20 mph anyway). In many places they were trying to maintain the roads and prepare for the monsoon season which starts in June. It was interesting to see the old short-wheel based Landrovers still in use on the roughest tracks and probably the only vehicle with enough clearance underneath to surmount the steep rock and routed terrain.

Himalayan Mountaineering Institute (HMI) in Darjeeling, established in 1954 with a Director of Field Training, Tenzing Norgay (who with Edmund Hillary first climbed Mt Everest). Darjeeling was the home town of Tenzing Norgay.

Darjeeling still has a narrow gauge steam railway which we visited at Ghum near Darjeeling. The total line is about 78 km long but the lower section from Siliguri has been out of action since 2010. We didn't get to see the railway museum at Ghum but had many glimpses of the "Toy Train" between Ghum and Darjeeling. Darjeeling itself is at about 2200 m elevation and we stayed in the "Little Tibet" hostel conveniently near the main square and a promenade giving views of the mountains and the third highest peak in the world, Kangchenjunga (also spelt Kanchenjunga referring to its five peaks or "Five Treasures of Snow") at 8586 m elevation. Alas, even with early morning strolls to the promenade I didn't manage even a glimpse of the peaks as the mist shrouded the valleys to the north.

The Himalayan Steam Train between Darjeeling and Ghum.

We had a very pleasant day in Darjeeling visiting the "Happy Valley" tea plantation, zoo, HMI, monastery and Tibetan Refugee Centre before starting the trek at Dhodray. After joining our "expedition" of 7 horses, 2 horsemen, 1 cook and 3 assistants, 2 sherpas and a guide, our first day was a relatively easy climb to Tonglu (2900 m). In fact, we didn't meet the horses and handlers until leaving Tonglu. I felt very guilty about all the help we were receiving for the trek which was in complete contrast to my self-sufficiency on previous treks in Europe. My only defence is that we were providing employment in a relatively poor region of India and had to conform to the local customs; I still felt uneasy at times!
Our first camp was in a col exposed to a strong and cold wind. We did get a glimpse of the mountains and Kangchenjunga as snow peaks hanging amongst the distant clouds giving an impression of their magnitude.

Our camp at Tonglu with the mountains in the sky in the early morning mist.

"Lakeland Rover" undergoing repairs in one of the villages we passed through.

The next day of about 7 hours walking was harder as it involved several ascents and descents as we progressed northwards along the ridge to Kalpokhari. We saw lots of Lammergeier or Bearded Vultures, sometimes as many as twenty floating overhead. These are now rare in Europe with the largest populations in the Pyrenees with about 29 breeding pairs in 2008. They are known because of their method of dropping bones from the air onto rocks and then feeding on the exposed marrow in the bones. We also saw our first Rhododendron flowers, the bright red flowers on hillsides as we progressed upwards. The bushes further down had finished flowering and we were seeing the tail-end of the display. I guess you would have to come at the beginning of April to get a more extensive display.

Forested slopes as out path winds into the distance to the higher peaks.

Our horses and  helpers moving on to make camp before sunset

I'm not altogether sure of when we were in India or Nepal as we were following the border ridge. I do know that on two nights we camped in Nepal! and that we had to visit several army posts to register our movements in the hills.

Looking backwards as we start another day on the trail. One of the horses is still resting as we leave camp at eight in the morning.

 The camp involved our tents, a kitchen, a mess tent and a toilet tent all set to give a good view and maximise the impact of any wind. The day for us started at 6.15 am with a cup of black tea brought to our tents and then a basin of water at 6.30 in time to pack our gear before breakfast at 7.15 am. This usually involved a bowl of porridge and more tea. Generally the food provided was excellent and a good combination of carbohydrates, protein and fruit to keep us going. The assistants also gave us boiled water for drinking to which I added chlorine tablets to be sure but the others didn't and were fine as far as I know. To spoil us further, one of the assistants often came to meet us before we made camp and provided hot fruit juice for the final leg (often involving a uphill climb!) The temperatures dropped at night and with the cold wind blowing on the ridge, I needed a base layer and down jacket to keep myself warm at dinner time. Following dinner, we had a briefing about the next day from our leader Rigzin and then we retired to the warmth of our sleeping bags.

Can you spot a Griffin Vulture? A Rhododendron bush is in the foreground.

We soon reached the village of Sandakphu where we stopped for some refreshments and tasted some Rhododendron spirit, probably not a wise move as alcohol and altitude are not good room-mates. Anyway neither of us were affected with altitude problems although one of the others in the group was suffering headaches and had swollen feet, both symptoms of altitude sickness even though we had made a gradual ascent. Doug and I both noticed the effects on our breathing making uphills more of an effort than usual, but nothing serious.

Our tea and spirit stop at the "Sherpa Lodge" where we met a octogenarian  trekker, an American lady who had lived in Nepal for 40 years.

We didn't meet many other trekkers on the whole trip, just five Danish girls volunteering in Darjeeling, a German couple with a guide and an American lady. The Danes left the route at Sandakphu and we didn't see them again. We had hoped for a glimpse of the main mountain range from the hill at Sandakphu but without avail either at night or first thing in the morning; it seemed that Kangchenjunga and her treasures were being coy!

The scenery at high elevation changed as a fire started by lightning had swept through the area in the 1980''s; shrubs or trees had not reestablished, probably because of grazing pressures.

We continued ascending and descending but gradually gaining height and having the pleasure of some "cross-country" off the gravel and rocks paths through Yak pastures bathing in the morning sunshine.

Yaks  and  cross breeds with cows (Dzo and Zhoms). It gets complicated as we discuss this on a hillside, apparently Yaks in Tibet are all male and females are called Dri or Naks. I think Rigzin gave up on us at this stage.

We soon reached the highest point of our travels near Sabargram. Unfortunately the wind increased again and the cloud came down on our somewhat exposed camping spot. Another night with a flapping tent but at least we were all tired and I doubt whether much would have kept us awake. I awoke early to try and get a glimpse of the mountains before the cloud settled and did get a view at about 5 am before the weather worsened. After tea we made a dash to a nearby peak (3695 m) to try and see further but again we were thwarted.

Tibetan prayer flags at the summit and as you can see the view wasn't great but I did get photos of several flowers in an unlikely setting!

We now started a two day hike down into the valleys to reach Samadeen village and then Rimbik, our destination. This was a very pleasant walk on village tracks through lush forests and over small streams in the shade passing a few isolated houses and villages. We endured our first major thunderstorm at Samadeen and took shelter in a local house before returning to our tents through the slush of hailstones. The tents held out well with no leakages.
The following day we called into see a small school that KE Adventure had sponsored and were able to watch the morning assembly and the discipline dished out to the juniors by the prefects, I'll say no more!

Now into forest and streams as we descend from the main ridge.

Prayer flags at the village school. They are arranged in order, blue (sky and space), white (air and wind), red (fire), green (water) and yellow (earth) and are placed in windy places by Tibetans to bless the surrounding countryside.

After leaving the school we passed through the village of Ramman stopping on route for a cup of tea. The owner of the cafe or hostel was down in the valley so a neighbour served us. They made their own tea here from leaves collected from the valley slopes, a picturesque setting looking over the valley north to Sikkim.; foreigners need a permit to enter Sikkim.
 As we descended into the valley to cross the Shiri Stream, we passed many houses teetering on the valley side, the occupants making a living from produce such as cardamom and tea.

The hillsides were dotted with dwellings and terraces like this. We spotted one man mulching his Cardamom plants.

A few more zig-zags and we were at the suspension bridge (Srikhola Bridge) crossing the stream and in sight of our lunch stop. We watched as several loaded horses crossed the bridge and a women below collected forage for her animals from the stream side. To us the stream looked like a river; we knew that the rest of the day would be an uphill climb to the end of our trek at Rimbik and a welcome shower and cabin for the night.

A well used suspension bridge to cross the valley; we had lunch at the side of the bridge.

At Rimbik our hike abruptly ended in the evening and the next day we were whizzed off to the luxuries of Kalimpong high above the Teesta river to the east of Darjeeling. The Teesta is the life-line of Sikkim state flowing the length of the state and then down to join the Brahmaputra. The river was the colour of glacial and snow melt that I was familiar with from my Pyrenees treks. The road up to Kalimpong from the Teesta was unbelievable steep and involved several switch backs that amounted to a road on a screw spiral.

In Kalimpong we had a morning sight-seeing visiting a Buddist temple, local paper making business, cactus garden and finally Dr Graham's Orphanage/ School., and we then spent the afternoon in the central market. During the night we had a tremendous thunderstorm that awoke everyone but had passed by breakfast leaving a certain amount of havoc on the roads as we drove out to catch the plane to Delhi. The Teesta was now a dark brown colour clearly showing the impact of agriculture on soil erosion in the valleys.

And so ends my account. It was difficult to choose the photos as I have so many scenic shots. The only advice I can tender about the trip, for anyone contemplating it, is to make sure you have warm clothes for the nights, preferable a down jacket and also a good sleeping bag (a three season with silk liner did me OK). You may be in shorts during the day but once the sunsets, the temperature drops quickly to near zero and with the wind on the ridge, the wind-chill is considerable. 

What is the best time to go ? It is a toss-up whether you go for the milder weather in Spring and risk the low cloud and poor visibility or go for the colder and less predictable weather in autumn that often gives good visibility. The flowers and birds are more abundant in the Spring as well.
I have the GPX file for the route if anyone wants it.
That's all for now, the next trip is to North Devon and then to Crete in June.

Purbeck Hills in Dorset

It's the first time we've been around in the Purbeck in the winter for a few years so I thought it would be nice to mention one of my favourite walks in the hills around Corfe Castle. The "Purbeck Way" goes near Corfe but stays off the main hill (called West Hill running west funnily!) instead choosing the low, usually muddy ground, on the north side of the hill and continues across Creech Heath. When doing this part of the walk, if you look southwards across the heath, you see a prominent hill stood north of the main Purbeck Ridge, this is called "Creech Barrow Hill". There is no obvious track to the top from the heathland but today when doing one of my favourite walks from Corfe Castle to Kimmeridge and then via "Heavens Gate" to Swyre Head, Kingston and back to Corfe, I decided to do a slight detour. Leaving Corfe and climbing West Hill, I continued along the main ridge onto Knowle Hill, before descending to the road and then climbing up Ridgeway Hill as I normally do. At the top, before my route descends to Whiteway Farm to cross the valley to climb towards Kimmeridge, there is a path north over Stonehill Down Nature Reserve which crosses a minor road and then ascends Creech Hill. There is a trigonometry stone at the top and two seats to enjoy the view of the Purbeck Hills to the south and over Creech Heath to Poole Harbour and Wareham. It's height is a meagre 192 m (SY 92144, 82408), slightly higher than the Purbeck Hills to the south but the top does give great views of the whole area including the now flooded water meadows of Wareham, Poole harbour and over to Poole and Bournemouth.

View from Creech Barrow Hill (192 m) looking northwards to Poole Harbour.

This is not the highest point in the area as later when I reached Swyre Head, the elevation was 203 m. The view of the coast line from Swyre Head is spectacular and one of the best places in Dorset to see a large chunk of the coastline in both directions. The actual coastal path along this section is closed at the moment because of landslides last December but I think if you don't mind the slog up Smedmore Hill past "Devil's Gate" it is a great walk, although muddy at the moment. Today was a fine break in the weather but we're told the deluge continues tomorrow!

The Maladetta North Face in the Spanish Pyrenees, Glacier, September 2013.

I thought it might be interesting to compare the North face of the Maladetta mountians in September 2013 with a picture in the book written by Harold Spencer and published in 1898. In the photo from the Portillon de Benasque taken on my trip last year, the smaller glacier is fairly clear and also the grey moraine left by the glacier of old. This is shown as two "tongues" on either side of the central ridge. This moraine corresponds well with the extent of the glacier shown in the photo from the 1890s. It would be interesting to see some photos taken in the middle of the last century.

Maladetta mountains photographed by me from the Portillon de Benesaque (2444 m) in September 2013. Notice the grey moraine showing the previous extent of the glacier clearly visible in the 1890s

Maladetta mountains from the north, summer 1896 or 1897 (Harold Spender, "Through the High Pyrenees with Illustrations and supplement section by H. Llewllyn Smith", Publisher A.D. Innes & |Company, 1898. Notice the extent of the "tongues" shown as grey moraine in the photo of 2013.

Kuala Lumpur in December

We have just left Kuala Lumpur after three days exploring the city. It has been a comfortable temperature around 29 C with a few showers and no sunshine. It is the beginning of their monsoon (December to January) and they have had severe floods in the east of Malaysia.
We did a city tour on the hop-on-off bus stopping at several places including the Bird Park, Botanical Gardens, KL Menera Tower and Shopping Malls. The aviaries were interesting, some too small for the larger birds e.g. owls and kites, but there was a large selection of ibis and herons but fewer smaller birds than we had expected. The communication tower gave a good view of the city although the smog limited the distant details. The tower is the tallest (421 m) in the city and apparently the place to dine as it rotates so your view continuously changes. We found it difficult to pick out our hotel at KL Sentral  (incidentally, a good hotel well situated for the station and airport shuttle) but you do get an excellent view of the Petronas Twin Towers.
The city was very congested most of the time we were out with lots of road works and building construction.
We also did a trip to see the Batu caves which are about 13 km north of the city. They are part of a Hindu monument and popular pilgrim destination (we were told that 1.5 million attended in 2007) with the largest statue of Lord Murugan (the Hindu deity of war). This was amazingly clean given the number of pigeons around and humid atmosphere but it is protected by 300 litres of gold paint, so I guess this helps together with an annual clean. There were 272 or maybe 276 steps (I started to count but lost track when I met the resident monkeys (Cynomolgus)) up to the enormous limestone caves reported to be 400 million years old, certainly the longest stalactites I have seen! Just below the main cave was a sign to the "Dark cave" but this is closed to the public as it remains untouched, all 2 km of it, stalagmite heaven I assume.
After a couple of days in the hustle and bustle, we were thinking it would be good to get out into the wider country but not this time as the holiday is ending. Until next time, cheers; now on our way home to the storms and cold!

View of the city from the KL Menera Tower; the Perona Twin Towers are in the frame.

A view of the Botanical Gardens in KL.

At the Batu caves. Notice the steps beside the statue that lead into the limestone caves.

Melbourne, the cooler south

Now in Kuala Lumpur after a couple of days touring around Melbourne city. We arrived there in cooler weather, 18 C would you believe but the next day it was hot and back to the Cairns temperatures of 30 C. We used the hop-on, hop-off city tour bus quite a lot as this included all the places we wanted to see. This used to be free but now cost 5 dollars and is good value as the drivers were all enthusiastic about their city and helpful. We stopped at the botanical gardens, "Shrine of Remembrance" (lots of information on the Bomber Command and Australian air force during WWII), South Bank, Fed Square, China Town on Little Bourke Street, the Eureka Tower (the tallest building in Australia) and the gardens near the old parliament building as well as various markets and shopping malls. We can particularly recommend the Eureka Tower because of the 360 degree view of the city, harbour and hinterland that you get from the 88th floor. Its gives you a great perspective of the inner city, river and sprawling suburbs with clear views of the cathedral, cricket grounds, tennis stadium and arts centres.

The botanical gardens were excellent with many plants we associate with spring or summer, flowering together. Being Sunday and hot, there were many families picnicking in the gardens all seeking shade, a sharp contrast to the days before when a sunny spot would have done nicely. We also saw many "marsh hens" semi-tame really wandering near the lakes; when I think of the trouble I had in New Zealand and Spain getting a glimpse of the wilder versions, it seems incredible!

View from the Eureka Tower in Melbourne

Lakes in the Botanical Gardens in Melbourne, another hot day.

More from Cairns and the rainforest inland

It's raining hard at the moment but the weather did allow us the time to go up to Kuranda by train, do a river trip and after lunch return by the Skyrail. This is easy from this campsite as the Skyrail terminal is only five minutes away with parking for RVs. This meant we could get a tour bus to Freshwater station, catch the train up to Kurunda and return by the cable car to the Skyrail terminal.
The train journey gives a great view of the gorges,  Barron river and waterfall along the Macalister Range.  It also highlights the tremendous task faced by the engineers and rail workers (1882-1891) who constructed all the tunnels by shear brute force and labour assisted by a rod of dynamite or two.
The guide on the river tour was a little despondent telling us that since the rains of the last week, there wasn't much wildlife around. To prove him wrong we spotted several turtles, both in the water and resting on logs plus, to his amazement, a freshwater crocodile just lazing on a tree trunk. He told us this was a small Johnson crocodile. He also confirmed that all the "alligator creeks" we've been driving past are misnamed as there are no alligators in Australia..so there.
The journey down above the forest canopy was spectacular giving us clear views to the coast, the Ranges and into the vegetation. One of the board walks on route led us past a Kauri tree; we had seen many in New Zealand and here they are the tallest trees in the forest. I only spotted one bird in the forest but maybe they sensed the weather changing because within minutes of descending, a storm broke loose and the cable cars had to stop. I changed into my swimwear and drove back to the campsite ready for a soaking as I setup camp or should I say, connected electricity and turned on the gas supply.
On from this, we did a trip with "Billy Tea Safaris" up to Cape Tribulation and the Daintree National Reserve including a stretch of the 4WD Bloomfield Track. This was excellent because the guides had à wide knowledge of the riverine and forest environments including the plants and animals, plus they did a delicious lunch BBQ and Billy Tea. We saw several saltwater crocodiles and even a brief  glimpse of the endangered Cassowary bird in the forest. Even though it wasn't a fully grown adult, it stood over three feet tall. After lunch we drove to à creek and had a cooling swim under the tree canopy before heading to Cape Tribulation beach and lookout. Certainly a great outing, this time without the afternoon thunder storm that has characterised the last few days.
On our last day camping we did an organised boat trip to the Great Barrior Reef, part of which is offshore from Cairns, well one and half hours to be more accurate. We had clear weather that allowed excellent views of the multitude of corals and their associated fish plus a Green Turtle and a Hawksbill grazing on the coral. Helen did a helmet dive and snorkel whilst lazy me stuck to a submersible boat and glass bottomed boat, both of which gave good views of the coral lagoon.
After handing the camper in we spent the afternoon in Cairns. The city is full of eating and drinking places intermingled with tourist travel shops where you can book any of the local tours to the reef, outback or forest. We watched the sunset with sunlight reflecting in the harbour and a rainbow. Along the sea front (beware, crocodiles again!), there is a magnificent promenade with picnic spots, a large artificial lagoon for swimming and all sorts of keep-fit apparatus.
It has rained most of the day but remains in the low thirties so it isn't really a problem. Now in our last week and onto Melbourne tomorrow.

Saltwater Crocodile

Storm approaching and rainbow (Pelicans in the foreground), looking towards the harbour at Cairns.

More from Highway 1, Bruce Highway...into the tropics

We are now well past the halfway mark to Cairns and into more lush vegetation and sugar cane country but still seeing lots of cattle. Helen's spotted two kangaroos and I managed to capture a Wallaby on camera at Midge Point. Why would anyone go to Midge Point in the rain forest ? Don't complain if it rains and you get bitten silly; well amazingly  wrong on both counts and they should rename it "Wild Turkey Heaven" as the site resembles a large aviary with a few Wallabies thrown in although judging by the forest, they do get a lot of rain but not now. The photos were taken at Clairview with a great campsite on the beach opposite Long Island and relaxing walking down to a creek along the coast. Judging from notices there are a lot of "stingers" (Box jellyfish)  around so we only paddled at the warm waters edge.
Further up the coast at Bowen, we found a campsite at the waters edge in Queens Bay with temperatures in the 30's but a cooling inshore wind.  We had a pleasant walk to Horseshoe Bay in the afternoon. Just reading that they are starting major new coalmines in this area and so far we have not seen one wind turbine and our travels and few solar panels in spite of the strong sun here. Puzzling isn't it?

Another view of the beach at Clairview

Wallaby at the campground at Clairview

Cairns as far north as we go!

Now in Cairns having stopped at Townsville and Cardwell on route. Townsville was far nicer than we expected with a picturesque promenade, "The Strand", looking out to Magnetic Island and the harbour. We camped about 6 miles from the centre and then drove in to see the "Reef HQ aquarium" with the largest coral aquarium in the world and sea turtle hospital where they treat turtles that have been damaged by predators or the actions of people. Plastic bags are a big concern as, after ingestion, they impede feeding and the turtles loose weight and float unable to dive and feed at depth.
Cardwell is the only place on the Bruce Highway that gives you a view of the beach; the campsite is situated across the road from a promenade and beach, again with lots of pumice stones. We tried a BBQ again but it rained and I ended up cooking under the awning and then eating inside.
Our campsite here is next to Lake Placid although not so placid at the moment as they have released water from a dam and it's been raining all afternoon. The rafters make use of the water surge and we watched as they landed and also a guy swimming in the river that was signed as dangerous because of crocodiles! The next few days we are going on Skyrail and then train into the rain forest, a boat trip to the outer reef area and a day further north at Port Douglas and the interior by 4WD and then on a flight to Melbourne on Friday.

Near the campsite at Cardwell

Low tide near Cardwell on an evening walk. Helen in the distance.

Onwards on Highway 1, the east coast

Hi, Now on route towards Cairns having stopped in Brisbane and picked up a camper or should I say RV as we had a free upgrade. At first I was unsure about it on two counts; it is larger than I have driven for a long time and secondly it does not have a clutch or gear stick! Anyway we are getting use to the room and comfort.
We did not get long in Brisbane itself, just time to see the centre and Botanical Gardens and experience a thunder storm before getting the train out to our hotel.
The roads north of Brisbane were very busy, so we headed inland to see something of the Ranges, the coastal hills. Climbing to Maleny we got great views of the distant hills and unfamiliar trees, bush and farmland (mostly cattle). There are lots of birds around, in fact most mornings we are awoken before six by bird calls. There are no budgies here, they like the drier interior but we see lots of parakeets.
Everyone seems to start early in the cool of the day so the campsites are busy at six in the morning and it is dark by six thirty. The clocks are a hour back compared to Sydney.

 The coastal road here is like an "A" road in UK with some bits of dual carriageway mostly on hills. Unlike further south, they are not busy although there are some very large trucks that seem to regard speed limits as suggestions for the faint hearted!
We have been to the coast in several  places including Coffs Harbour, Port Macquarie, Ballina, Hervey Bay and Tannum Sands. The latter is a great spot for water sports or just strolling the long beach. We are now at Rockhampton the centre of the Queensland cattle country and it has been very hot. This is our first experience of a provincial town and I think we will give them a miss in future, very suburban reminding us of USA towns taken over by international conglomerates, unfriendly to pedestrians and cyclist. The smaller rural villages have much more charm and character and we often stop on route to stroll and take a break from the road.
Tomorrow we continue north to a small place on the coast called Clairview, camping next to the beach. There are no further toll roads and diesel is about 92 p per litre although we have a large fuel tank! We aim to reach Cairns by next Monday and spend a few days there before flying to Melbourne. For now, goodonyu mate

A view across the Ranges near Maleny

A Kookaburra, A terrestrial tree kingfisher.

Helen strolling at Tannum Sands.