Shoreham harbour estuary in December

The weather forecast on Sunday 9 December 2007 was grim.

What was it like when the Vikings first appeared in these waters, I wonder?  This picture is by Werner Karrasch by kind permission of and copyright of
The Viking Ship Museum in Roskilde, Denmark
www.vikingshipmuseum.dk
Some years ago I visited the Roskilde shipyard in Denmark specifically to sail in a replica Viking longboat. I was there early on a Saturday morning to beat the crowds of tourists.... but there was only me. It was necessary to wait until afternoon when I could join a hen party, whose idea of fun was the same as mine. So we rowed out of the harbour -- a group of young Danish women, me and the skipper at the helm. Life can be hard but someone has to do it. The skipper explained that the pride of the Danish nation depended on our coordinated rowing skills. Camcorders were running on the quayside as we slipped our mooring ropes! So I pulled with this clutch of lovely Danish ladies... for the sake of Denmark. What bliss. Once out the harbour, we hoisted the sail and we got a real feel of these magnificent vessels under sail.

By now, an experienced Viking, the skipper asked if I would do him a favour and crew with 3 Americans who wanted to sail later that day. A minimum of 4 oarsmen were needed to take a boat out. With already blistered hands and full of Viking adrenaline I willingly agreed and later found myself in a replica Icelandic whaler. Deep joy.

Such Viking longboats must have been sailed and rowed with the tide, up to Bramber castle. The Normans were Vikings remember. They just happened to speak French, having lived in Normandy for a hundred years or so.

With such thoughts in my mind and despite the weather, Shoreham resident Sally and I enjoyed a light lunch at The Sussex Pad (by the traffic lights on the A27 on the West side of the estuary), after which we braved the elements and set off down the side of the estuary to Shoreham.

Shoreham has a rich history. It is fascinating and I refer you to Andy Horton's extraordinarily comprehensive site about Shoreham at; http://www.glaucus.org.uk/Shoreham.html

But just look what the modern explorers in boat living have done! Click on these pictures to expand them.

These Houseboats are awesome.
The extraordinary creativity to consider splitting a coach in half and mounting it on a boat is amazing enough. How do you manhandle such a thing into place and make it fast?

And then the rest of the artwork/architecture is beautiful and looks functional.

There are other historically very interesting ex-military boats on this stretch of estuary, which I didn't photograph on account of the poor light. I clicked these few shots when there was a fleeting shaft of sunshine.

This is the view across the concrete pedestrian bridge to Shoreham.

The weather was overcast and far from ideal for photography. So my photos are sparse on this day. There is a fine picture of the church at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:ShorehamChurch%28BobEmbleton%29Apr2006.jpg

Thanks Sally, for leading a great walk on this rainy day.

Chichester Harbour, Saturday, 1 December 2007

This is a lovely walk from East Head, West Wittering to West Itchenor.

After an enjoyable lunch in The Ship pub, West Itchenor, I had planned a circular route back. The harbour coastal path is so interesting though that we retraced our steps in the face of squalls and gale force winds, despite the weather and lack of shelter on this exposed path. This is a very fine walk to do - especially in winter when the Brent geese and Lapwings are here.

This is a bird watcher's paradise; middle ground, the lovely Ann, a shy bird, rarely photographed and top left a little egret. Egrets are very common here.

Irish setter having fun and wearing the fashionable fragrance of winter 2007, namely dead seagull after liberally rubbing herself in it!

Butcher's broom, Ruscus aculeatus is common on this path at the base of old trees in this ancient wood. My apologies with the poor quality of this photo. I was being battered with gale force winds!

Portsmouth Millennium tower is clearly visible - especially through a zoom lens! The lovely views towards Bosham church, the burial place of King Canute's daughter are shown here. Click on any picture to expand it.

This panoramic view captures something of the harbour. I zoomed in for closer shots of Shell ducks. According to http://www.conservancy.co.uk/learn/wildlife/birds.htm some 80 pairs of Shell ducks nest in rabbit holes or dense undergrowth near the harbour. We saw every bird shown on this link and more. It is worth clicking on.

Hundreds of Brent geese were feeding on this grassland by the car park at West Wittering. Chichester and Pagham harbours are important wintering sites for these birds. They arrive in October and leave in March. So you have time to view this great flock.

Views of Jack & Jill in late November

This is a panoramic view looking west towards Wolstonbury Down, (my favourite hill) in late November.
It is a delightful walk from the Jack and Jill windmills to The Chattri and I thank Pippa for this one.

The Chattri memorial commemorates Sikh and Hindu soldiers who died in Brighton Hospital from the first world war and were cremated at this site. The memorial was unveiled in 1921 by the Prince of Wales. see http://www.black-history.org.uk/indian.asp See also the September entry (in the index at the end) of this blog of a walk with Sussex Pathfinders where your can read the memorial text.