The Mileaters

The village walking group began nearly 35 years ago with the aim of walking the Dorset Coast Path, in sections, from the Devon border to Sandbanks. Subsequently the reverse route from Sandbanks to Devon has been undertaken.

We are a friendly group of local residents, ex-residents, and colleagues from the area, who meet on a fortnightly basis to enjoy the diversity of the wonderful Dorset countryside. We take it in turns to lead a walk with most members being allotted a fortnight's slot twice a year. The choice of distance, location, and day within that fortnight is at the discretion of the fortnightly leader, but walks (anywhere in Dorset) are usually between 4 and 8 miles. 

Walk details are distributed by email. A picnic lunch is often carried in the Summer, but a pub lunch in the Winter is the norm - rehydration is de rigueur! Generally we meet on the Village Green at 10.00 a.m.

Contact:
Nick Priddle tel: 01305 889189

Mud, Stones and Beers

The first Mileaters walk of the year, and after some gloriously sunny days earlier in the week, Friday 12 January was grey and cold. But at least it wasn’t raining and the previous dry days had given the mud time to thicken a bit.  Some 17 walkers, plus dogs of course, set out on a circuit of just under 5 miles, starting from the car park near Hardy Monument, and taking us down the Valley of Stones, up Crow Hill and back along the South Dorset Ridgeway.

It was a walk through the pre-history of the area.  Last year a very rare Neolithic polishing stone or polissoir had been discovered in situ in the Valley of Stones and it had been featured a couple of days previously on the BBC series Digging for Britain.  Just an ordinary looking boulder until you see the smoothly polished concavity, and fascinating to think of our early ancestors gathering there to gossip while polishing their stone axes and knives over 5,000 years ago.

After avoiding a rather disinterested and elderly looking bull, we made our way up the hill and along a track to the Abbotsbury road and a welcome coffee break.  Then back to our cars along the Ridgeway, passing the Bronze Age Hampton Stone Circle and the Hell Stone, a reconstructed Bronze Age burial chamber.  There was a final climb back up through Hardy Coppice to the car park and our walk was done. 

And there was mud, plenty of it, along the Ridgeway.  The dogs loved it, some of the walkers less so.  We celebrated the walk with lunch in our local pub, the Brewers Arms, open that day for the first time since the New Year.  Ben and his team made us most welcome as always.

Linda Scotts