We had quite a few places on our 'hit list' for this week in Dorset, four of which were roughly in the same area between Weymouth and Poole, and all within a few miles of the coast. The last two, were actually on the coast but more about that later.
Today was an earlier start as we had a lot to squeeze in, so we left the cottage at around 9:30am and headed the 40 or so miles east; to Corfe Castle. I'd not read a great deal about the place, just seen loads of photos with the castle peaking out of the mist that is common in the valleys around the village. And we were quite surprised, the castle is much bigger and more complete than expected, ok it is still a ruin as are most castles but there was just much more of it that expected. And you could clearly see why the location was chosen as it sits high on a rocky outcrop with steep slopes all around it - you could close your eyes and just imagine the hordes trying to scale the walls all those hundreds of years ago.
Obviously being in such a position the views over Dorset were stunning, in fact I waited about 20 minutes to try to get a photo of one view but to no avail, it was just so busy particularly with noisy primary school children. Before heading back to the car we had a walk around the quaint village that sits beneath the castle, and enjoyed viewing the picturesque cottages that adorn the village.
Our next port of call was around 20 minutes away, Lulworth Castle. We parked up and headed to the tea-room as it was around lunchtime, but it was very limited and only drinks and cakes on offer. I had a cream tea (that was very disappointing) and Donna just had a cup of tea as the scones were plain ones and not favoured by my good lady.
The castle was not what we had expected, a result again of not reading about it beforehand; well I had, bit not that much. What was amazing about the place is that it is effectively a burnt out shell. There is very little in the building other than examples of what it would have been like, and lots of bare stone and brickwork; very unusual though and actually really enjoyable. Donna did notice though that you could tell it is also used as a wedding venue as all around the place you could see the signs; not literally of course!
Early afternoon now so we drove the 10 or so minutes to Lulworth Cove. And it was.....packed. So many groups of school kids of all ages, loads of tourists, I can only imagine what it must be like in the summer holidays. Yes it's a tourist spot so I suppose you have to expect it.
The cove is stunning, I managed to get some decent photos although having seen some on the internet I was mistaken to believe that you could actually get a shot of all the cove, when to do that you need a helicopter....duh. The crystal clear waters look stunning in the sunshine, but that was not to last.
Our last port of call was Durdle Dore, a 1.5 mile walk over the top of a 350ft high hill. It was a steep climb up the rocky steps, a challenge for the best of us but we made it as we're made of tough stuff up in Yorkshire. The walk down the other side wasn't quite as steep so easier on the knees. Yes more groups of school kids around, many of them on trips, geology I assume.
We got some great views of Durdle Dore and the coast around it, they would have been much better had it not have clouded over so much but they were still glorious views. Donna stayed at the top of the cliff whilst I took the walk down to the beach to grab a few more photos; when in Rome and all that.
So back over the hill and a last walk around Lulworth Cove as it was now much quieter, a few more photos and then the long drive back to the cottage. We arrived back at around 7:30pm, and time for tea.
Today was an earlier start as we had a lot to squeeze in, so we left the cottage at around 9:30am and headed the 40 or so miles east; to Corfe Castle. I'd not read a great deal about the place, just seen loads of photos with the castle peaking out of the mist that is common in the valleys around the village. And we were quite surprised, the castle is much bigger and more complete than expected, ok it is still a ruin as are most castles but there was just much more of it that expected. And you could clearly see why the location was chosen as it sits high on a rocky outcrop with steep slopes all around it - you could close your eyes and just imagine the hordes trying to scale the walls all those hundreds of years ago.
Obviously being in such a position the views over Dorset were stunning, in fact I waited about 20 minutes to try to get a photo of one view but to no avail, it was just so busy particularly with noisy primary school children. Before heading back to the car we had a walk around the quaint village that sits beneath the castle, and enjoyed viewing the picturesque cottages that adorn the village.
Our next port of call was around 20 minutes away, Lulworth Castle. We parked up and headed to the tea-room as it was around lunchtime, but it was very limited and only drinks and cakes on offer. I had a cream tea (that was very disappointing) and Donna just had a cup of tea as the scones were plain ones and not favoured by my good lady.
The castle was not what we had expected, a result again of not reading about it beforehand; well I had, bit not that much. What was amazing about the place is that it is effectively a burnt out shell. There is very little in the building other than examples of what it would have been like, and lots of bare stone and brickwork; very unusual though and actually really enjoyable. Donna did notice though that you could tell it is also used as a wedding venue as all around the place you could see the signs; not literally of course!
Early afternoon now so we drove the 10 or so minutes to Lulworth Cove. And it was.....packed. So many groups of school kids of all ages, loads of tourists, I can only imagine what it must be like in the summer holidays. Yes it's a tourist spot so I suppose you have to expect it.
The cove is stunning, I managed to get some decent photos although having seen some on the internet I was mistaken to believe that you could actually get a shot of all the cove, when to do that you need a helicopter....duh. The crystal clear waters look stunning in the sunshine, but that was not to last.
Our last port of call was Durdle Dore, a 1.5 mile walk over the top of a 350ft high hill. It was a steep climb up the rocky steps, a challenge for the best of us but we made it as we're made of tough stuff up in Yorkshire. The walk down the other side wasn't quite as steep so easier on the knees. Yes more groups of school kids around, many of them on trips, geology I assume.
We got some great views of Durdle Dore and the coast around it, they would have been much better had it not have clouded over so much but they were still glorious views. Donna stayed at the top of the cliff whilst I took the walk down to the beach to grab a few more photos; when in Rome and all that.
So back over the hill and a last walk around Lulworth Cove as it was now much quieter, a few more photos and then the long drive back to the cottage. We arrived back at around 7:30pm, and time for tea.
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