Appley to Seaview

The teenager and I have decided to go for a walk every Sunday afternoon for the foreseeable future, come rain or shine. I'm not sure about the last bit as we are essentially creatures of comfort who prefer to stay in the dry, if not the warm. However, we have made a start.

 

We drove to Ryde and parked in the car park behind Appley Tower, a folly on the seafront, then strolled through the soggy park and down to the promenade. From here we turned right, headed past the tower and stomped along the seafront past the wintry, sandy beach full of dog walkers, and avoided small children on bicycles and scooters. The wind was behind us, and the drizzle was upon us, but we carried on, chatting amiably about films, books and school. Very pleasant. The promenade took us past lots of fading Victorian and early 20th century villas, and as far as the beginning of Seaview, a lovely village, and its extremely nice beach houses. When the path turned towards the village proper, we turned back, and detoured through Puckpool Park, built in the remains of a 19th century coastal fortification.

 

On the way home we made a minor detour and stopped for a cuppa and a slice of cake at Bluebell's Café at Briddlesford Farm. Very nice it was too, and I highly recommend the lemon drizzle cake!

Wet Winter Walks

As the weather has been so awful this winter we haven't wanted to take the kids on country walks where their boots are likely to get sucked off and we'd all get cold and wet.  Instead, we have been walking along the promenades of Cowes and Ryde.  

On Boxing Day I joined up with a different friend, left my child with her Granny, and set off into the cold and rain and headed to Gurnard. The wind howled and the rain lashed, but we eventually arrived at the door of The Woodvale hotel; we leapt inside and slurped coffee until we felt warmer and drier. We reluctantly left a while later, and headed back into the rainstorm.  Luckily, the rain didn't last too long and the wind was behind us so it didn't take too long to get back to Cowes.  Christmas cake and hot tea awaited us!

Between Boxing Day and New Year the usual crew headed for Puckpool Park on the outskirts of Ryde. I'd never been here before and was amazed to see the remains of a Victorian Battery - lots of gun emplacements. We walked across the top of some fortifications then joined the coastal path and strolled towards Appley Beach, avoiding splashes from large waves.  The weather was cold and damp, but not raining for once.  We headed for Appley Tower, a Victorian folly on the seafront, and discovered it was open.  As we hadn't been before we assumed it was just a tower and we could have a look around.  However, the one room open contained a shop selling crystals and ammonites. As we had three children with us who love these things, we failed to escape without buying something. Ah well, I should learn to say 'No' more firmly!  Afterwards the kids played on the beach while the adults sat on the sea wall and got cold bottoms, then we walked back to Puckpool, played in the playground for a bit then went home.

On New Year's Day we had a family walk from the top of Cowes along the seafront to Gurnard and back.  It was a cold day with a blustery wind, but the sun was shining most of the time. More tea and cake when we got home!