Ministry of Propaganda - 17/Feb/2008: "February Afternoon at Hurst Castle"
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February Afternoon at Hurst Castle
The second February weekend with brilliant weather. After driving north to Oxford for a visit to Otmoor Nature Reserve last weekend I decided to go the other direction this weekend. The south coast was my destination today. I looked at the map and picked Milford on Sea, which would give me the possibility to visit Hurst Castle while also providing a nice drive through the New Forest to get there. My walk started with this view:
Initially walking on the top of the shingle ‘wall’ I soon dropped down to the waterline, where it was a bit more sheltered from the cold wind. The sun was bright and warm despite the quite cold wind. Nice views over to the Isle of Wight and in particular The Needles all the way to Hurst Castle, approx a mile to walk.
I walked all the way around the castle, stopping here and there for better views. Approaching the entrance I noticed the remains of a narrow gauge railway, presumably to transport supplies when the castle was still in use. It was too close to closing time and the entrance fee was fairly high, so I didn't go inside, may be some other time.
Next to the castle is quite pretty white lighthouse, helping the ships on The Solent with their navigation. Well, in times of satellite navigation may be not that much any more. Still looks nice though. Heading back I walked the same way, dropping down to the waterline again and enjoying the still bright afternoon sun. Later on I climbed back to the top of the shingle.
The view back from the top of the shingle towards the castle and over the Solent was very nice. As I had some time left I walked towards Keyhaven a bit, hoping for some birds to come in to roost. Some did come in, but nothing really worth taking a picture of.
Finally I enjoyed a brilliant sunset over the Isle of Purbeck, a fitting end to a very nice afternoon at the coast. Then it was back to the car for an uneventful drive back to Swindon.
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Entry trivia
- When writing this entry the weather was: clear and cold
- When writing this entry I was listening to: nothing
- I'm currently reading/have just finished reading this book/publication: The Economist
- I recently visited this website/-page: none
- The last drink I had was/is: milk
End of entry trivia
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