Guest post by Ordnance Survey’s Richard Cully

Many of us like to walk near the coast.

The beach at Barton on Sea on the south coast, with its terrific view of The Needles is right at the centre of a stretch of coast which the wide open arms of Hurst Spit and Hengistbury Head helps make feel protected and special.

I am lucky enough to own one of the string of beach huts waiting at the end of the long gravelly slope which starts near the seemingly always open Beachcomber Café. The huts are very much the ordinary type, celebrating every seaside cliché from stripy blue and white and full of carefully purchased bleached wood and seashells to rarely visited sheds home to a couple of tired deckchairs.

A gentle slope brings you on to the beach where, on a calm day, the silky water makes an almost metallic sound as it sloshes through the huge chunks of stone bought from afar to stabilise this piece of coast – the very evident erosion of the cliffs once the rockwork ends is startling.

Some might think that a winter visit to a beach hut is not exactly a sensible idea, but with the low sun streaming in, the kettle on and a good book to hand, deep contentment is easily found. That said, the months with a chill in the air can’t quite compare with arriving at eight in the morning on a summer day when, for a serene hour the dog walkers with their yapping and wave-leaping charges have gone, and the crunchy gravel is silent before another day of visitors head beachwards.

As the day passes and groups ebb and flow, all arriving with essential towels and melty ice cream, one of the other constants is the passing stream of buckets and spades soon to be abandoned once their five- year- old owners realise that sand is not exactly plentiful at Barton. In recompense, many visitors love to watch the paragliders whose pterodactyl like shadows swoop along the paths as the updraught works its magic, the bright canopies gorgeous against a deep blue sky.

Whilst a visit to Barton on Sea maybe isn’t best undertaken as part of a longer coastal walk; erosion having removed easy access from east and west, its has a feeling of ‘place’ and security that makes it a much loved part of the coast.

Visit Barton on Sea using OS Landranger Map 195 and OS Explorer Map OL 22.

One Response to “Barton beach hut walk”

1. Viv says:

   14, February, 2012 at 8:10 pm

   Great blog post. Reminded me why I love to be beside the sea!

   Reply