Our first full day, indeed all our days, are planned and we’re raring to get going in a westerly direction today. One curious and seemingly random decision is to take breakfast in the hoof. Or at least, not in the hotel anyway. We figured we would pop into a local cafe instead in a sort-of continental way, and today it worked perfectly as we had breakfast on the prom just five minutes or so from our hotel.
As we walk we see the five ships moored in the bay, four are Royal Caribbean (RCI) and one is P&O. One of the RCI was for some time the largest cruise ship in the world but she has recently been relegated to fourth place by three of her sisters that have gained an extra percentage point on the scales. At 225,000 tonnes this is seven times the size that we prefer, although I’d quite like to try a week sometime just to experience the spectacle!
We continue along the prom as far as our little legs can go, which is about six miles, before the pavement runs out and it’s just beach, so we head across the spur to the other side, all of about 80 yards, to save getting sand in our shoes for the rest of the day. Continuing onwards this spur takes us onto the part known as Sandbanks which is an uber-smart area with multi-million pound houses. It’s a lovely walk round ogling the fine pads, and also some splendid cars queuing to catch the chain-link ferry across to the equivalent headland on the other side of the Poole harbour channel, which will save a 26 mile journey.
We are quite impressed with a Rick Stein restaurant we walk past, but it’s too early - and the £53 each lobster would escalate Iunch to £200 by the time champagne is added so probably not a good idea! The hover-boards are a nice divertissement - Marty McFly eat your heart out!
We find an interesting board detailing how Poole Harbour wasrge flying boat division during the war - even had five runways delineated around the harbour. Fascinating stuff indeed.
We then head back around the Sandbanks spur and continue going anticlockwise around the bay until we reach Poole. Here is a very nice looking harbour area with many yacht builders on show with incredible super-yachts moored around, a pretty town centre and far too many people, so apart from raiding M&S for our lunch we head off on our return, stopping in a lovely park to consume said lunch overlooking the harbour.
Our return journey crosses a golf course, but relatively flat compared to our beloved Yorkshire. Indeed in six hours of walking we’ve climbed 400 feet, a height we usually manage in the first half an hour back home!
Next are the beautiful gardens set in the chines leading down to the prom, so tasteful and well-kept by local residents.
After 19 miles we’ve earned our stop for ice-cream and also for me to fix a problem I’ve caused miss-typing a class time, hopefully it’s been noticed and there is no lasting damage.
We return home to our hotel and catch up on some work for a couple of hours with a Peroni shandy before it’s time to shower and dress for dinner. We take an hour to FaceTime blithe friends and enjoy a nice bottle whilst doing so, and then it’s time to head back into town for dinner. Tonight’s choice is 1805, a very impressive Chinese restaurant we noticed on our recce last night.
1805 lives up to expectation and we enjoy an excellent set dinner at £36 per person plus a very acceptable Malbec.
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