The Wednesday Walk 24th February 2016

The Plan

The Boscombe seashore

Who Turned Up

Wendy, Trisha (newly returned from a tour of South America) Sue, Trudy B, David

(Joined by Beatrice and Tony at lunchtime)

The Walk

It was a good day for a walk, dry, sunny and not too warm. We parked at the Southend of Knyveton Road and walked down through Boscombe Gardens to the shore at Boscombe Pier. At one point we stopped to watch a group of white doves in a leafless tree.

The history of Boscombe pier goes back to 1884 when it was proposed as a visitor attraction. In 1888, a contract to build it was priced at £3,813. The approach roads would cost a further £938. The original pier was two hundred yards long and there was a landing stage at which steams could berth. The pier was opened by the Duke of Argyll, probably because the architect was closely connected to the duke’s family. The pier head was not added until 1926. Like most piers, it was partially demolished during the Second World War to prevent enemy invasion. It remained derelict for some years and was not fully restored until 1962. The building at the end of the pier was reopened as the Mermaid Theatre, then a roller skating rink, and then an amusement arcade. It closed in 1989. In 2005, the whole pier was declared unsafe and closed. It reopened again in modified form in 2008. A surf reef was built alongside it, but the less said about that the better.

Today, we noticed that a lot of activity was taking place, not at the pier, but on the beach. There appears to be some great effort being made to replace the old wood in the beach groynes.

After lunch we returned along the cliff-top path. We stopped for a while to watch diggers having fun building sand walls on the shoreline. Great fun, obviously, but what was it for? We couldn’t decide.

Our thanks go to Trudy for the excellent photographs.

The Pub

The Spyglass and Kettle at Southbourne. Most of us opted for the lunch special – two courses for £7.95. It was okay, but nothing special. And the value-for-money didn’t match last weeks’ three courses for £8.50. The waiting time didn’t impress either.

Next Week

A Bere Regis walk. The meeting place and time still to be decided.