64. Bournemouth Beach

Everywhere we went, we took great weather with us, usually heralding achange after days of rain. Bournemouth was no different. But while the beach was sparkling, and some hardy souls (in heavy wetsuits) were surfing, you'd have to pay me a lot to put even a big toe in the 16 deg waters of La Manche! I didn't when I lived there, and I wouldn't be booking a beach holiday there now! Still, from Aruba, a pub/bar/cafe overlooking the pier and beach, absolutely delightful!

Over winter 2006-07, the Bournemouth Borough Council spent ₤ 4 million replenishing the sand on Bournemouth Beach. You can watch a video on You Tube (great music too! Beyond The Sea sung by Bobby Darin)

The next project is an artificial surf reef (Europe's first, apparently). There's a video and info about it at this site.

Below: Open up the beach hut, set up a wind break, and sit looking at the sea. Good for the soul.


Below: Oh, dear, maybe he forgot to pay the rent or mortgage on his hut and it got towed away? Still, you can pretend...



Below: Here's what the beach looked like in April 2005

Below: And here's what it was like in May 1993

Below: Jan proudly shows off her medal ('winners are grinners') from the Cancer Research Run for Life she had just participated in.

65. Bournemouth - at home

66. The Dorset Coast Path

The Dorset (And Devon) Coast is UNESCO World Heritage Site, with good reason. The walks along the cliff tops are wonderful. We walked from Durlston Hed to Dancing Ledge.

Below: Seamus and Ben on the Sandbanks Ferry across to Studland.
Below: The path along the cliffs



Below: Dancing Ledge.
Below: Worth Matravers . We had a late lunch here. This village turns up in television shows from time to time. There was a film crew due the day after we were there.

73. Leaving Bournemouth

Time once more to say goodbye to our very dear friends.