Was in the neighbourhood and visited Herstmonceux Castle and the Observatory Science Centre (the site of the former Royal Observatory at Herstmonceux).

Built originally as a country home in the 15th century, the moated red-brick Castle is most impressive. As is the avenue of sweet chestnut trees that date from the 1700′s, the walls of the Elizabethan walled garden, and a number of sundials in the formal gardens.

In 1946 the Admiralty bought the estate for the Royal Greenwich Observatory, and it became an important scientific institution for the next 40 years (until 1993 when it was acquired by Queen’s University of Canada, and is now an International Study Centre attracting students from around the world).

The Observatory Science Centre occupies the buildings that were the site of The Royal Observatory. The tour of some of the domes and telescopes highlighted how it was a world leading astronomical site for many years, though nowadays it is at the forefront of making science accessible with an excellent range of hands-on exhibits, activities and science shows. While children need to be accompanied by adults, thankfully as an adult I was able to play with the exhibits quite happily unaccompanied (it looked like all adults, parents and grandparents were having a great time too).

I had such a good time visiting last month, I was really pleased to be back again now. I had only ever spent time down ‘in the pit’ but I was curious about the wider estate. Having a look at Google Maps and Microsoft Live Search Map gave a real insight into the evolution of the site.

Having tried to find shelter from the strong northerly wind yesterday on The Lizard, the promise of better weather today coaxed me out onto Bodmin Moor…

I started from Churchtown, just north of the town of Bodmin, and headed off east across fields and then up onto the moor. The first objective was to find King Arthur’s Hall – a rectangular earthwork lined with stone slabs, surrounding featureless and marshy centre. The views were fantastic and I could see 3 peaks in the distance further east and to the north that would provide an interesting circular walk.

The weather was a bit mixed and I got rather wet – from both the top down, and from the bottom up! Walking across the marshy moorland did slow me up, and I had missed lunchtime when made it back to Churchtown – thankfully I was just in time for an afternoon cream tea, which was most welcome after just over 12 miles of moorland walking.

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More photos from the trip to Cornwall can be found here.

Setting off from the lighthouse car park I planned to walk along the coast to the east, then find a path to walk inland to cross over the peninsula to the west coast before heading back south towards Lizard Point. The walking along the coast would be on part of the South West Coastal Path (SWCP) – which I might try and complete in full one day.

Heading eastwards I soon found out why the SWCP is such a challenge, the path quickly meandered from the top of the cliff to a small bay and then back up the other side, though the views from both the bottom and top were superb and the visibility meant you could see for miles.

I came across a very unassuming wooden building, owned by the National Trust, and had I not read the small plaque I would have missed that it was the Lizard Wireless Telegraph Station built by Guglielmo Marconi in 1901. It is still fitted out with working equipment and looks as it did in 1901, when Marconi received the distance record signals of 186 miles from the Isle of Wight.

More striking in the large white building that dominates Bass Point, with huge letters identifying it as the Lloyd’s Signal Station. As such a prominent landmark 2 miles east of Lizard Point it is often used as a finishing line for such activities as trans-Atlantic or round the world yacht races.

Reaching the small village of Cadgwith, having skirted around the Devil’s Frying Pan (a spectacular collapsed blow-hole where the seaward arch still remains, and through which incoming waves are funnelled – sometimes with some force – best viewed on GoogleMaps), I headed inland across the Lizard Downs to crossover to the western edge.

This bit of the coast was just as spectacular, but had none of the buildings or features. Thankfully it was easier walking and I was back to the car park sooner than I expected – having walked just over 8 miles.

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More photos from the trip to Cornwall can be found here.

I spent a really interesting day at the Eden Project, and had a very sociable time. There was not much time to take many pictures, and the weather was pretty lousy with heavy rain, sleet, hail and strong winds – I was glad to be hunkered down in an old china clay pit rather than on top of a moor.

The last time I had visited the Seed sculpture by Peter Randall-Page had yet to be lowered into place within the central space of The Core education centre. To see it in situ was great – it is quite a piece of stone!

More photos from the trip to Cornwall can be found here.

Heading down to Cornwall for a few days and stopped off at Stonehenge to stretch my legs.  The weather was cold, but the sun was out and I managed to get a couple of photos from over the fence with the henge in silhouette.
If only the catering was up to scratch I would have stopped for a nice cup of tea.

Went for a short walk along Chesil Beach near Abbotsbury, and visited Hardy’s Monument, on the way to visit Maureen.

Chesil Beach is one of the finest pebble beaches in the world – formed in the Holocene period over 6,000 years ago when it was pushed onshore by rising sea levels. The actual origin of the beach though are still a matter of scientific speculation. Some believe that the pebbles were gathered up from the floor of Lyme Bay, while others think they originated from landslides that formed in the West Dorset and East Devon cliffs during the last Ice Age. Either way it is an impressive beach, 29 km long and up to 15 metres high it is calculated to contain 100 million tonnes of pebbles. The pebbles grade in size from pea gravel at the western end to potato sized cobbles at the eastern end – and it is said fishermen can tell their position on the beach by the size of the shingle.

Hardy’s Monument was erected by public subscription in 1844 in the memory of Vice Admiral Sir Thomas Hardy (Flag Captain to Lord Nelson on HMS Victory at the Battle of Trafalgar). It is open during the summer, and the views from the top (22 metres up) are said to be superb. Perhaps next time.

Ditchling Beacon is often the sting in the tale of many organised events from London to Brighton – be it classic cars or cycle races / ‘fun’ rides – for me it would be about half way along the circular route.

I made it to the village of Ditchling in good time, and in good weather. The route to the top of Ditchling Beacon leaves the village to the south, and when the climb starts it is less than a mile to the top – what makes it such a challenge is the particularly steep northern face which rises 213 metres from bottom to top. It did not matter how many times I stopped, I just had to make it to the top – as an incentive I promised myself lunch at the top and an ice cream (if the van was there).

I am not sure I could have walked it without stopping. Cycling it I stopped 6 times – and had quite a social time too, with other riders overtaking me and then flashing a wry smile as they passed me again going back down. Lunch was devoured, along with an ice cream, and I head back down toward Ditchling – I then realised that the journey up really was just the half of it, the speeds I reached on the way down were quite hair-raising and for me not that enjoyable.

I headed back via Burgess Hill, where I stopped for a cup of tea and a piece of cake – kentish apple cake. Note to self: this cake must be further tracked down – it was delicious.

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The Long Man of Wilmington, Europe’s largest representation of the human form at 235 feet high, nestles under the steep northern slope of Windover Hill at Wilmington. It is large enough to be seen clearly in Google Maps, though it looks stretched from the air.

This giant figure has said to have baffled archaeologists and historians for hundreds of years. More about it can be found here on the Sussex Past website.

As I was near Alfriston, I thought I might try and catch up with Archie (the first person to give me a job!) but unfortunately he was out. Then cycling back through Alfriston I hear a familiar voice of ‘Auntie’ Hazel – and was invited back for a cup of tea and a scone (delicious!). There were several possible routes back, but as Becca was at home I felt another cup of tea might be had so made my way via East Hoathly.

This was my longest cycle ride to date, at 49.3 miles. It was fairly uneventful with no punctures, and no additional padding required – though my knees and bottom are slightly tender!

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