A day trip to the Isle of Wight





Earlier this week we took the ferry over from Lymington to Yarmouth, it was noticeable that the ferry was going slower than expected - I suspect due to the price of diesel, but the weather was good and we were able to sit out and take in the wonderful views.

As we have joined the National Trust recently we checked out the four floors of the Windmill at Benbridge - on the East coast of the island. The Windmill was built around 1700 and is the only surviving windmill on the Island and it has most of its original machinery intact, though it was suffering with a bit of wood rot, which is not surprising considering its age.

After that we went to Hanover Point / Compton Bay on the South coast - again owned by the National Trust - so we are certainly getting our moneys worth from them.

Here the coast is eroding so quickly - even part of the car park has been washed away and I suspect it will not be long before much more goes into the sea. See the pictures taken, which show where the car park was and also the nature of the rock formation around this point which is soft shale and sandstones.

And there were supposed to be the imprints of dinosaurs on the beach but we did not see them - maybe they had been washed away.

Kingston Lacy

Is a wonderful country house and estate near Wimborne Minster,Dorset which is not far from us.

It has some lovely gardens and some interesting
Egyptian antiques in the world.Most notable is the large Obelisk which stands prominently in the grounds of the house.

The Japanese Garden has recently been replanted, when it matures in a few years it will be even better.

The house and gardens are now owned by the National Trust, but from the 17th to the late 20th centuries it was the family seat of theBankes family, who had previously lived nearby at Corfe Castle until its destruction in the English Civil War after they sided with Charles 1 and the Royalists.

We had a very enjoyable day out, unfortunately the house was not open to the public on the day we visited but we will be returning now we have joined the National Trust and we get free entry.

David and Martin join us for the weekend



Sudi enjoys the climb up from Lulworth Cove - to be seen in the background.







A few pics taken on our short trek from Lulworth Cove to Durdle Door.






















































On the way back we pop into a PYO garden centre where we sample the lovely strawberries.







In the evening we enjoy a BBQ in the back garden.




A good and enjoyable weekend.

A short trip to Devon & Cornwall

Suri and Sudi climbed to the top of the hill at Ilfracombe to get a wonderful view of the town and the rugged coastline.

Throughout the trip we were very luck to have such good weather with very little rain and the rain we did have was mainly whilst driving or overnight.








In the gardens at Ilfracombe.





After a lovely meal in Bude we wandered past the golf course and watched the sun go down, it was a little breezy but the sun on the coastline was magical.






Here Sudi and Suri pose in front of a rather unusual statue in Eden, where we spent a very enjoyable day.








I would highly recommend anyone visiting Cornwall to call in at this amazing old quarry.















The lovely fishing village of Polperro - just a hint of rain on this day - so we took appropriate clothing.







Sudi and Suri on the bridge at Looe.






Posing with and old gun on the banks of the river Dart in Dartmouth.









Sampling the Guinness at the Barbican Quay in Plymouth.







Near Torquay is a lovely village and country house - Cockington - what lovely scenery.









The view over Babacombe was something special









What a decision to have to make - should we take the coastal path for a beer.










Posing at Lyme Regis.









Strolling along the coast at Babacombe.