Just when you think you’re used to living somewhere amazing, you discover a whole lot of new things. Look at this, for instance, https://www.bournemouthecho.co.uk/news/23568052.underwater-photos-reveal-dorsets-fascinating-marine-life/ I’ve never dived and I probably never will either, but I can snorkel and have over at Kimmeridge Bay, (which you may remember popping up in Second Chances as a really cool place to visit, and which will play a major role in the new Amy Hammond, No Retreat, No Surrender, which is due out in September.) I’ll never forget seeing what I thought was a long piece of seaweed swim off and realising that I’d seen a pipe fish. Or the day that an apparently empty and very beautiful shell that my daughter collected turned out to be the home of a very annoyed hermit crab.
We spent a lot of time rock pooling when the children were small, and I assumed we were out of that phase, but, pretty much as usual, I was wrong…
Getting back on point; or as close as I ever get to it, which’ll have to do, yesterday was too nice a day to stay indoors, so my student daughter and I declared a bear day. And what, I hear you asking, is a bear day? Well, my father believed that life could be summarised by the old song about the bear going over the mountain to see what he could see. (I'm sorry if I’ve given you an ear worm because I’ve given myself one.) But anyway, at the top of the mountain, he saw another mountain and so on and so on. He reckoned that it was very important to sit at the top of the mountain, look down and celebrate what you’d achieved, and then plan how you were going to tackle the next mountain. (A lot of Peter Cunningham in the Amy stories comes from him, just as Ruth in the Windy Bay stories owes a lot to my Mum. And I’d better make it clear that Laura in the Amy stories has NOTHING AT ALL to do with my big sister or I’ll be in even more trouble than Amy finds. So, we’re quite clear on that? Good, then back to the point again. What can I say, it’s early morning after a hot night so my brain is meandering rather than working.)
So off we went for a lovely long walk to see what we could see at the Harbourside Park because we've been meaning to walk the other way to the way we usually do and head down to Poole Quay for a long time. Not the shopping and pleasure boats and tall ships and museum-y bits that we normally go to, beautiful though they are, but the fishermen’s end and the RNLI museum.
In my defence, this park is new, and still evolving, and it is a long walk from home, but we’d never been there before, and oh my! The views were amazing, even by Poole Harbour standards. There was a lovely little beach with a bench on it that was the perfect spot to sit and dream and rest my toes after I’d dipped them in the sea. The museum looked fascinating so I’ll be back for that, and we stood and watched the crabbers fishing at the far end of the Quay. My daughter asked what they’d caught and he tipped out a little green and very cross crab who was scuttling sideways towards us snapping his pincers and generally using his body language to say ‘I’m going to have you…’ (Don’t worry, we put him very gently back in the sea because he was far too small to keep.) But we're definitely going to get a crab bucket and a long length of line and see what marvels we can find ourselves. Just to photograph though and not to eat. I know it's daft, but I couldn't do that...
In the fishermen’s haven the fishermen were unloading their catch. Lobster pots were stacked high and it was so incredibly beautiful, and I didn’t know it was there. I’ve lived in Poole for more than forty years and I’d never been there before, which leaves me wondering what else I’ve missed, and reminding me of all the fun I can have being a tourist in my own town rather than travelling. And, of course, it will pop up in a book, because the last Lavender House is will under way…
So, till we meet again, do you go exploring? If so, then please tell me what you’ve found and if not, then why not try? It doesn’t have to be a long explore, and I hope you find something magical…
Today’s picture is one of the prettiest views I saw and I promise I’ll tell you about the egret we saw as we walked back another day…
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