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After a 9AM breakfast we packed and checked out of the hotel by 10AM. The weather had dried out so the Yaverland Beach plan kicked in. After driving along the Sandown sea front we parked up at 10:20AM. For the next hour we explored the beach under the cliffs. I wouldn't have minded walking all the way to the chalky Culver Cliffs and back. The tide was going out so it was safe. However we reached a point where we decided that was far enough and about turned to return to the car. I couldn't resist looking out for fossils and did pick up a couple of pebbles to look at more closely. If nothing else their patterns were quite intricate. There were also slabs of concrete and bricks half buried in the sand where cliff top buildings had succombed to cliff erosion and fallen down. A large piece of building could be seen teetering over the edge too. So I was keeping aware of the possibility of any sudden rock fall. However the day was gentle and there were no such dramas. Just a pleasant stroll along the beach. I did note how soft and crumbly the brown cliffs were not far from the car, and then transitioning to much harder brown rock where the cliffs were higher, before transitioning to the white chalk Culver cliffs in the distance.
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| Yaverland Beach. | The walk East starts alongside low crumbling soft cliffs. | Two shots of a Rock Pipit bird. | Renée enjoying Yaverland Beach. | |
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| Further East the cliffs get bigger and evidence appears of buildings that have fallen off the cliffs onto the beach as erosion takes its toll. | Further along the low cliffs get prettier with interesting layers. | Up ahead bigger harder cliffs can be seen. | ||
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| More evidence of erosion with the weathered remains of a brick wall on the beach. | High above us the remains of a wall or building can be seen teetering over the edge. | 360 degree panorama as we near our furthest point along the beach before we returned to the car. | |
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| More views of the beach under the large harder rock cliffs. | Waves crashing on the beach. | Renée posing under a large cliff. | Up above a Buzzard is spotted. Two long range shots perched and then in flight were anough to ID it. | ||
We decided next to check out a local zoo called Amazon World. A nice narrow back road drive took us there in 10 minutes. We spent just over an hour exploring the zoo before moving on at 12:40PM. There were some nice indoor tropical gardens with birds flying freely around. There were also monkeys and other animals too. The outdoor enclosures were quite extensive too. A pleasant surprise as the animals looked well cared for.
TODO: Captions coming soon.
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Once we left Amazon World we generally headed Northwards towards Fishbourne. We tried the Pointers Inn pub first but alas it was full. Then we stumbled across The Garlic Farm. We decided to stop and take a look. After a look around the garlic themed shop we managed to get seat at 1PM. Of course Garlic bread was a must, as well as chips, diet coke and Renée really enjoyed her Ale of Wight beer. The main menu didn't suit me that well but these snacks were fine for me for now thanks to a large filling breakfast.
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| Entering the Garlic Farm. | A garlic sculpture in a bed of garlic. | Renée enjoying beer and chips. | |
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| 360 degree panorama from the road outside the Garlic Farm. |
At 1:35PM we drove on to ferry terminal and joined the queue. We were allowed onto the 1:55PM ferry, which was several hours earlier than planned. However that meant we were crossing in daylight which was much nicer.
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| Boarding the ferry. | Leaving Fishbourne behind. | Fishbourne panorama as we move away. |
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| The view of Ryde pier is much better in this clearer air than during the outbound journey. | A group of cormorants or shags on some rocks. | More views of Ryde as the sun gets low. | ||
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| Approaching Portsmouth, landmarked by the Spinnaker Tower. | Entering the channel between Portsmouth and Gosport as we approach the mainland. | A nice view of the Spinnaker Tower and Gunwharf Quays as we prepare to return to the car. | |
On other side we decided, since we still had daylight left, to go up the Spinnaker tower. Just round the corner from the ferry terminal was Gunwharf Quays where we parked up. We got straight in and were soon whisked up on a lift to the top. It was a nice view over Portsmouth in cloudy but clear and good visibility conditions. It was nice to finally see inside the Spinnaker Tower having first spotted it from above in a glider over 10 years ago and having used it as a waypoint as recently as 2015. The main lower floor was a great viewing platform and also had a glass floor looking down to the base of the tower. Above was a café area and then a small outdoor platform at the top. When we'd had enough we descended and had a short wander around the shops before returning to the car.
TODO: Captions coming soon.
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We then headed home after a petrol stop. With no traffic we got back to North West London in good time, soon after 5pm, which gave us the evening to take it easy and enjoy our fresh memories of a brilliant and enjoyable trip.
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