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LIFETIME of WALKS by DEREK HARWOODDerek Harwood's Walking Records If you have any queries about the pictures or descriptions e-mail me at: derek@harwoodonline.com | ||||
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| 'AA' - NO THROUGH ROAD - WALK St Catherine's Down - No. 58 Monday 4th September 2006 ...............................Walk No. 678 |
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'AA' No Through Road No. 230 Total 1027.5 miles Time Taken: 2.5 hrs Distance: Enjoyment: Weather: Sunny Periods 11:15 am - 1:50 pm 5.5 miles 90% Beautiful Lunchtime Walk Temp: Cloud: Rain: Visibility: Ground Conditions: Wild Life: Spiders 23oC 70% None Good Excellent Underfoot Mushrooms Total AA: Total MH: Total LD: Total AW: Other: Total Distance: 1027.5 mls 931.5 mls 1823.5 mls 162 mls 941 mls 4885.5 miles Companions: (Derek) Ken, Larry & Dennis Points of Interest and LINKS: Isle of Wight Blackgang Chine St Catherine's Hill St Catherine's Tower St Catherine's Down Hoy's Monument Niton Down Niton Village The Undercliff West Cliff St Catherine's Point St Catherine's LighthouseDescription: 205 of 205 'AA' Walks completed. Fifteen walks duplicated to give a grand total of 230 'AA' walks finished. The whole of the 'AA' walking book done and dusted. What do I do now? Parked at start of walk, the viewpoint at Blackgang by Gore Cliff, just off the A3055. The weather was so good we couldn't resist the temptation of the ice cream van in the car park. My ice cream rolled off the cone and into the car park gravel. Good start. We crossed the main road, A3055, and climbed the steps leading to the fields rising up to St Catherine's Tower, locally called the Pepper Pot. At the top of St Catherine's Hill, the Oratory (or Chapel) has now gone, leaving only the unused lighthouse or Pepper Pot. From the lighthouse & adjacent Ordanance Survey (OS) Column, we followed the walk description precisely, but with difficulty. The stile at point '3' does not exist, but a stile exists close to point '10', rather than point '4'. The unofficial route and easy path to follow to cattle grid at point '5', is on the left hand side of the fence from the tower. That is, do not cross style at point '2', but follow track and fence, on right, down hill to point '5'. Broad track along ridge of 'Down' to Hoy's Monument with good views in all directions. We found several clumps of toadstools and muchrooms on the ridge, some huge and some minute. Stopped at Hoy's Monument for a snack and to absorb the fantastic views, especially towards the Needles & Tennyson Down. From the monument, we continued down the steep bridleway to the gate, noticing the fungi on the tree trunk on the right and most importantly, the huge wall on the left towards the bottom of the slope. Ignor the good track to the farm and turn right at the new gates along a path slowly ascending to the point '8' and the point '9' on the top of the ridge passing between huge ferns. We retraced our steps with the outward walk to the cattle grid at point '5', but this time following the bridle path around St Catherine's Hill to the high hedged sunken lane down to Niton Village, having to break numerous spider webbs spanning the whole width of the track. At the 'T' junction with the main road in Niton, instead of walking along the narrow main road, we passed through the Lych Gate and the church grounds to a small gate back onto the footpath alongside the A3055 main road. Before turning left at point '13', we passed a picturesque thatched cottage and a neglected Morris Minor car. Steady ascent to West Cliff, scaling stiles and passing through kissing gates. More magnificent views along West Cliff to the 'Undercliff' and St Catherine's Lighthouse, before finally reaching Gore Cliff and the Blackgang Chine Amusement Park. Sharp right turn from the Blackgang views, to the car park, the finish of the walk and the finish of all the 205 'AA' No Through Road book of walks. The boyz asked me to wait while they prepared for my last few steps. To my delight I had to walk through a bright red ribbon stretched across the path, no carpet, to a multitude of camera lenses. Then, to my surprise and delight, I was presented with an engraved pint glass and plinth. What a wonderful day, weekend and twenty four years walking the complete 'AA' book. Everyone a GEM. I started to grade the walks according to my level of enjoyment. To my joy and amazement, all the walks scored 80% to 90%, with the very odd exception, what a fantastic achievement from the 'AA'. I have travelled thousands of miles by car around Britain to each walk and I didn't call out the 'AA' once. Happy walking & travelling, with a very big thank you to the 'AA' for many days of pleasure and enjoyment. Location: www.streetmap.co.uk , - Start & Finish: from Blackgang 449050/076695 , - via: Hoy's Monument 449570/078780, - via: Niton Village 450550/076755. (Click on location and use Zoom). Hazards: Care required while crossing or walking along the busy main road (A3055). Take the track with the fence on the right between points '2' and '5' on St Catherine's Hill. Click Here to Return to 'Lifetime of Walks' Homepage | |||||
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Derek Harwood: Copyright 2006 Devised: November 2006 | |||||