Tag Archives: dorset

Exploring The Purbeck Way: A Coastal Adventure

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There was quite a cold wind as we walked along The Purbeck Way from Sutdland to Old Harry Rocks at Handfast point.

My human wouldn’t let me get too close to the edge and held on to my dungarees to stop me blowing away.

I couldn’t even sit down without the human holding on! You can probably see the gloved hand, and might notice one of my shoes is missing! I found it in the bear carrier later.

As we walked along the coastpath the wind subsided and we could see Swanage in the distance.

I enjoy coastpath walking as you never know what might be round the corner or over the nxt hill.

On getting closer to Swanage the decision was made to turn back towards Studland. The days are short in November and we didn’t want to be out walking in the dark!

We had reached Ballard Point and had 1.5 mile to get back to Old Harry Rocks.

The sun was shining and I was feeling quite hungry (I like my food) so we stopped for a picnic with views of the sea on both sides of the headland.

As we made our way back again I noticed how very tall the humans looked in their shadows.

We arrived at South Beach, which turned out to be quite fascinating.

The beach huts were all brown colours which is unusual!

A pill box left over from war times was at the end of the beach, and behind it very colourful sandstone cliffs.

I was quite fascinated by the colours in the cliffs.

There were also lots of tiny holes that are thought to have been made by bees.

I had a climb on the rocks to look in the pools but the tide was on its way in so didn’t hang around there for long

The good thing about wearing dungarees is that they get wet instead of my bottom if I sit anywhere that is a bit soggy. I sat for a few minutes before it was time to leave.

The Purbeck Way from Studland to Swanage is an excellent stretch of coast path for those not wanting to clamber over too many rocks etc.

After getting back into the car at Studland, which was left in a National Trust Carpark, we headed to Corfe to call in a the tea room there for a cream tea, which is an essential part of any UK holiday!

Horace the Alresford Bear 4/12/2024

A Winter Getaway at Durdle Door: Bear’s Experience

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The mobile home at Durdle Door Holiday Park was just the right size for a small bear (and some humans)

My first job on arrival was to unpack my suitcase, which didn’t take very long…

Then I settled into a comfy chair to relax and read for a little while.

It wasn’t long before supper time. We were self catering and the mobile home had an enormous range cooker to prepare meals on.

The humans don’t spend too much time cooking when on holiday. Our first supper was a Charlie Bigham Red Thai Curry, with brocolli and carrots. It was very good for a ‘ready meal’.

The next morning the humans got me up very early to go and see the sun rise at Durdle Door.

To begin with there didn’t seem to be much sign of the sun, it was hiding behind the clouds.

Then all of a sudden it appeared through the ‘door’ in the rocks and was a wonderful sight to witness.

I didn’t look at it for very long as staring at the sun isn’t good for a bear’s eyes.

After climbing back up all the steps I stopped to have another look at the wonderful view.

Back at the mobile home I tucked into some bran flakes followed by marmalade on toast for my breakfast.

Later in the day my human took me out in the bear carrier to Lulworth Cove, which is just over a mile away from Durdle Door along the coast path.

Stair Hole is next to Lulworth Cove, where there are more cliffes with interesting holes in.

Lulworth Cove has lots of geological history going back millions of years, and the different layers visible can be seen. When the rocks were all underwater continents collided and tipped them up sideways.

A huge river of glacial meltwater was thought to have cut the gap out to the sea which can be seen in the photo below.

I sat for a while on the beach somewhat in awe of the forces of nature.

Later back at the mobile home I looked up ‘Lulworth’ in the Douglas Adams book that I have been reading, ‘The Meaning of Liff’ which gives meanings to many place names. I was delighted to find Lulworth mentioned there!

After so much exploring I was very tired and had an early night.

The next day I spent watching the world go by and left the humans to go out walking on their own.

When the humans got back, with tired legs, I cooked a meal for them. I used what I could find in the fridge and started off chopping up leeks.

I fried up the leeks in olive oil and added cherry tomatoes and spinach. While this cooked I put some pasta in a pan to cook.

After adding the tin of red salmon, some pepper and some mascarpone cheese I mixed it all together.

I decided to grate a little cheese to be sprinkled on top.

The result was delicious and the humans enjoyed it too.

The following day it was time to go home, so I packed up my little suitcase and made my way to the car.

I had a lovely few days at Durdle Door, which I think that although the weather was a tad cold, winter was a good time to visit as the holiday park was quiet and there weren’t lots of humans everywhere as there can be there in summer.

Horace the Alresford Bear 4/12/2024