Walking holiday in Lulworth Cove

Lulworth Cove

I'm still recovering from a four night break. Too much food and lots of uphill climbs. This was a three day walking holiday with the wonderful HF Holidays in Lulworth Cove. I went with a friend and we shared a premium room and found a house guest in the bathroom - a Cricket we named Jerry! On the second day I almost stepped on him as he'd made it into the bedroom. I put him back into his own environment and wished him well.

The first walk almost did for me. Having been dropped in Corfe Castle (time for a quick look) we headed off into the countryside. It was the steps that had me. There was no space to pass and the steps in places were deep. About three quarters of the way up I felt sick and dizzy. I really thought I wasn't going to make it. I tried to calm down. Then I saw the obelisk we were heading for poking up in the sky and I pushed on. I made it! The views from the top were superb. After a well earned collapse into the grass we set off along the ridge which seemed to dip into the sea at the end. Swanage bay was on one side and Poole on the other. In the distance we could see the Isle of Wight. We walked down to Studland with thought firmly on cups of tea and a decent loo stop for some. Ah that tea was nectar!

On the second day we walked inland on a circular route around Cerne Abbas, famous for its hillside giant. This was a fairly uneventful walk, though some were having mirages of Costa or Starbucks on our coffee stops! We entered the hamlet of Minterne Magma and had a nose round the church. We had lunch in a bit of a ditch (well, it was shady) before the big ascent, but though it was steepish, it was nothing like the one the day before. We got to Cerne Abbas and another church before we headed to the tea shop just before it closed. Phew! I had time for a quick photoshoot before we walked back to the coach through some lovely shady trees and a river. The coach broke down on route to pick us up and we had to wait for another one, so by the time we got back we had an hour to make ourselves presentable before dinner.

I opted out of the final walk and decided to do my own thing. The morning started overcast and I spent some time just wandering around Lulworth Cove and visiting the Heritage Centre. I went back to the hotel to change as it was feeling a little cool. I'd spotted a sign to a short walk I thought I'd try so off I went. It was a pull uphill but relished that it would all be downhill coming back. Then I followed the track down steps (yes, I'd have to walk up those) with shoulder high foliage. then I hit the view. Wow! Eventually the pathway stopped - basically it went over the cliff edge! The sun peaked out now and then and I sat down to read my book. Could you want for a better setting? On the way back mist rolled in so fast and I thought of the other walkers coming from Durdle Door back to Lulworth. Back down in the bay the sun was strong. I went to sit on a bench in the hotel grounds to read for a while and then went to my room to eat my packed lunch and watch the news on TV. By 1.30pm the group of easy walkers were back. They'd made great time. In the afternoon my friend and I headed out for an ice cream and then a stroll into the village. We visited the church before returning.

That evening we had a banquet to highlight all the local produce the hotel use. We could barely move afterwards. I feared I may want to eat again but do you know come morning I was well into the toast!

Evening entertainment was mainly quizzes, including a national HF Holidays quiz - across the UK all the HF houses were doing the same one - the winning groups going through to national finals. We didn't win that round. Our group did come 3rd in the quiz on the second night though. My specialty in music and entertainment came into its own!