Last bimble of 2021 - a day trip to the Isle of Wight to drop some water and supplies to a camp ‘spot’ and have a a good day walk.
The Lymington ferry was very quiet and after a visit to Graces bakery to stock up on supplies (£4.50 meals deal that included a massive Belgium bun) I headed off down the main road to get into the Hamstead Trail.
The day was grey but very mild and despite the mist and occasional drizzle it was pleasant to wander along the track listening to the birds. Some reworked verges and banks had left some good substrate to look for tracks and one area had multiple deer tracks.
Deer are very uncommon on the Island - you see more regenerative woodland and none of the damage to saplings here; there are deer on the Island but the numbers are low and it’s rare to see tracks and sign. The tracks were I think Roe.
The woodland was private on each side of the ROW so I couldn’t trail the deer into the woodland too far.
Eventually I got to Hampstead point and spent 20 minutes with the binoculars looking for sea eagles that are often seen perched in the trees. No sign so I headed across the the low salt marsh paths towards the coast.
Up to now I had seen and heard no one but soon I could hear some birds making a fuss and eventually two people appeared behind me with a dog.
The coast at Hamstead Point sits on the Solent and was very quiet apart from the wading bird calls and the odd boat cruising past. The area had a real sense of isolation and rugged beauty about it.
As a tide dropped I headed along the coast path for a bit and then down a seldom used ‘locals’ path to the foreshore. Here I picked my along past fallen trees and slips to our ‘camp’ spot to leave some water and tins for the next overnight trip.
Campspot looked good and after stashing supplies I spent a couple of hours sitting and listening to the sea and wind in the trees with lunch and a brew.
During the whole walk I saw only 4 people over 6 hours and enjoyed the solitude and time to unwind on the last day of 2021.
Me upside down (the forum software did that) enjoying the quiet!
The Lymington ferry was very quiet and after a visit to Graces bakery to stock up on supplies (£4.50 meals deal that included a massive Belgium bun) I headed off down the main road to get into the Hamstead Trail.
The day was grey but very mild and despite the mist and occasional drizzle it was pleasant to wander along the track listening to the birds. Some reworked verges and banks had left some good substrate to look for tracks and one area had multiple deer tracks.
Deer are very uncommon on the Island - you see more regenerative woodland and none of the damage to saplings here; there are deer on the Island but the numbers are low and it’s rare to see tracks and sign. The tracks were I think Roe.
The woodland was private on each side of the ROW so I couldn’t trail the deer into the woodland too far.
Eventually I got to Hampstead point and spent 20 minutes with the binoculars looking for sea eagles that are often seen perched in the trees. No sign so I headed across the the low salt marsh paths towards the coast.
Up to now I had seen and heard no one but soon I could hear some birds making a fuss and eventually two people appeared behind me with a dog.
The coast at Hamstead Point sits on the Solent and was very quiet apart from the wading bird calls and the odd boat cruising past. The area had a real sense of isolation and rugged beauty about it.
As a tide dropped I headed along the coast path for a bit and then down a seldom used ‘locals’ path to the foreshore. Here I picked my along past fallen trees and slips to our ‘camp’ spot to leave some water and tins for the next overnight trip.
Campspot looked good and after stashing supplies I spent a couple of hours sitting and listening to the sea and wind in the trees with lunch and a brew.
During the whole walk I saw only 4 people over 6 hours and enjoyed the solitude and time to unwind on the last day of 2021.
Me upside down (the forum software did that) enjoying the quiet!
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