The lost walks, part one

As I finally cleared away the debris of my old blog I came across two walks from that last October weekend. Walks taken when I was blissfully unaware of what lay ahead. There were no words, I never got as far as writing about them, just photographs and hazy memories. My hand was paused over the delete button but, the more I looked at those photographs, the more I remembered of those lost walks. It seemed a terrible shame for them to stay lost so I am going to do my best to recreate them now. I can’t vouch for the accuracy of what follows, it was almost three years ago after all and sometimes I struggle to remember what happened last week. Still, with a little poetic licence, here goes. This is the first of the lost walks… Continue reading The lost walks, part one

Hurst Spit, struggling back – first published 12 May 2014

My May 2014 Milton on Sea Adventure wasn’t quite over. There was still the getting back to the other end of the spit to get through. As soon as I left the shelter of the castle I knew it was going to be an ordeal. The shingle stretched ahead of me seeming twice as long as it had on the walk out. The wind was so strong in my face every single step was an effort with very little reward in terms of distance covered. As I struggled forward Commando, waiting back at the car park for me, was on my mind. Continue reading Hurst Spit, struggling back – first published 12 May 2014

The Power of the sea – first published 6 March 2014

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In early March 2014 the sea had called me and I’d answered with a walk down to the shore. There were signs of Spring everywhere, along with signs of the terrible winter storms. Parts of the path were crumbling and, as I passed West Lodge I wondered what the damage would be along there. What I found makes quite an interesting tale, mostly about the amazing power of the sea. Continue reading The Power of the sea – first published 6 March 2014

A little Boxing Day walk – first published 26 December 2013

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Boxing day 2013, the sun was out, Commando was out on a run, it seemed like a good time to go for a little walk. Apart from anything it might walk off some of the Christmas food I ate before it had a chance to settle on my hips. At first I thought about trying out a new route but the river was calling and my feet were listening even if my head said try something new. Continue reading A little Boxing Day walk – first published 26 December 2013

Going to sea in large vegetables is a bad idea – first published 28 October 2013

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October 28 2013 and the world outside my morning window was a scary looking affair, trees blowing all over the show, rain hammering down. The news was full of it, the worst storms in decades had finally hit the south of England with ninety mile an hour winds, torrential rain and flooding. I say finally because the weatherman had been warning us about it for days and I was beginning to think it was a bit like all those barbecue summers they promise us, not going to come to anything. Continue reading Going to sea in large vegetables is a bad idea – first published 28 October 2013

Ancient stones, builders and getting distracted

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5 April 2016

The building work was almost finished. There was a shed base at the end of the garden, the wall was built and the boring repointing was all done. We were still waiting for a skip to be delivered and the potting shed hadn’t even been ordered never mind built but still, patience is a virtue, right? Anyhow, all that is another post altogether. With no builder and no skip due today I could get out for a walk. It was sorely needed. Unfortunately, as I had an appointment in town, it wasn’t going to be a very exciting one but you can’t have everything eh? Anyway, it was probably time I checked out what was happening with the repairs to the Bargate. Continue reading Ancient stones, builders and getting distracted

Just a little further

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28 March 2016

“Just a little further,” CJ said, still looking at the pigeons surveying the storm damage. Usually that’s my line and I wasn’t sure of the wisdom of going much further when the storm seemed to be gathering all around us. “I’d like to see the greylag geese.”
Despite my misgivings, we carried on. Maybe our luck would hold. If not I could blame CJ, although that wouldn’t be much use when we were both soaking wet. Oddly, the sky over Portswood, where it had been black and dropping rain earlier, was now blue, probably because this black clouds were now in front of us. Continue reading Just a little further