More from Lyme Regis, Dorset

Above are the lamp posts that adorn Lyme Regis.  The symbol of the ammonite reflects that the town is slap bang in the middle of the Jurassic Coast.  The town is also home to Mary Anning, a Victorian Paleontologist, remarkable particularly given she was a woman and was a carpenter's daughter from a working class background. Both factors which meant she didn't get due credit from the scientific community at the time, which, as in much of Victorian England, was dominated by "English Gentlemen". Pah!  But she rose above all that and made some fantastic finds in Lyme.  She was out in all weathers hunting for fossils.  She discovered the first ichthyosaur skeleton when she was just 12! She also found the first plesiosaur and pterosaur skeletons (outside of Germany apparently), as well as lots of other important finds.

The author, Tracy Chevalier, based her novel "Remarkable Creatures" on the life of Mary Anning and her friends the Philpot Sisters. According to historians in Lyme Regis, most of the story is true. Though Chevalier has Anning with her father still alive but her mother dead, while in reality it was the other way around. Not sure why such artistic license was necessary but there you go.

The town Museum was built on the site where Mary Anning was born, right next to the town jail! We went on several history walks organised by the Museum, which, despite having to go up and down the hills rather a lot, were very interesting and gave another perspective to the town that you wouldn't get otherwise.  The guides really bought the place to life.

The town is limited from development as it is surrounded by cliffs that are unstable geologically and liable to landslip. This is great for fossil hunting but probably not so good if you live near the unstable ground!  There was evidence of recent land slips along the shore when we were there.  The cliffs around range in geology and colour and are stunning.

These cliffs are along the coast from Lyme.

These were just outside the town, some sea caves spotted on a boat trip

This was just along from the museum - Mary Anning would have hunted on this beach for fossils.  You can see the brown mud coloured stone - this soaks up water and then collapses on the shore, bringing the yellower sandy coloured deposits above down with it. You can just see some tiny figures at the base of the cliffs - these people are hunting through a new landslip for fossils. Probably a bit foolhardy as the cliffs are still unstable from the recent slip.



One of the most famous beaches on the Jurassic Coast is Chesil Beach. It stretches for 18 miles around the coast and for most of the length of the beach it's separated from the shore by a lake full of brackish water (water that is has more salinity than fresh water but not as much as sea water). It's an amazing site.

And walking on it is amazing too - it just goes on forever......

So that's it for another day. I'll share more photos soon. Meanwhile, here are the harbour lights of Lyme (a not-very-good TV series called "Harbour Lights" was filmed here too some years  ago).

Lyme Regis, Dorset.....

OK folks, those wanting to hear tales of life on a small island might want to skip the next few posts! I'm just back from a lovely holiday in Lyme Regis in Dorset (England) with tales and photos of the place Jane Austen wrote about in "Persuasion", John Fowles in "The French Lieutenant's Woman" and Tracy Chevalier in "Remarkable Creatures" (the story of the most fantastic Mary Anning).

Above you can see part of the town along the beach (the sandy beach is man-made, it would normally be shingle). You can see the wee coloured sheds that act as changing rooms on the beach.

There are lots of old buildings around the harbour, some dating back to the time when Jane Austen spent a holiday in the town. She stayed with her family just up from the Assembly Rooms in the main part of the town. (Sadly the Assembly rooms were pulled down some years ago to make a car park!!!).

 These buildings are at the start of "The Cobb" where she had Louisa Musgrove falling down the steps and missing the arms of "Wentworth" (forever in my memory as Rupert Penry Jones from the TV film!). And of course where the main character of the French Lieutenant's Woman, Sarah, is staring out to sea.

 Here are the steps that the "Jane Austen Society" think are the very ones Louisa Musgrove is said to fall down. Though our history guide on the tour we took read out the part in the book and felt they didn't fit the bill.  These particular steps are known locally as "Granny's Teeth"

Our guide thought these were more likely to be the steps - read the passage in the book again and see what you think!  But I can imagine running up and down THESE steps in an 18th Century gown more easily than "Granny's Teeth", however "spirited" I might be!

There are lots of wonderful houses and buildings around the town - it's like walking on a film set!  Here's just a small selection of them

Lots of winding streets, mostly UPhill.

This is called the Weaver's Cottage - there were several mills nearby.  The white stones at the base of the house can be seen around the town (and many other towns in England). They were designed to keep the old cart wheels away from the base of the houses along the streets.

These houses are along the river Lyme that runs through the town down to the sea.

Now, have a nice cup of tea and a scone with some jam and clotted cream (a traditional English Cream Tea") and take a break. I'll be back tomorrow with more about Lyme Regis and the amazing Mary Anning.....

Interlude....

Just back from a holiday in Dorset (UK) so while I catch up, here is a short interlude....

This film by local film-maker Raymond Besant has won the Wildlife in HD category of the British Wildlife Photography Awards.  The film is called "Hoy, the High Island" - take a look, it really shows the beauty and wildness of Hoy.  (I might have put a link here before but it's worth watching again!).

Click here

Of sunsets, chickens and eggs...

.... or should that be "Of sunsets, eggs and chickens"??!  Above is the sunset last night. Beautiful after a couple of blustery and rainy days.  Though sadly it now sets behind the point of Graemsay, rather than over on the West Mainland. Autumn approaches.  I should rejoice in the changing of the seasons, but we haven't had the most wonderful of summers in Orkney, nor indeed the UK, so it's sad to see the approach of autumn and winter in the sun. Ho hum......

Now to the hens...... I was out inspecting wind damage in the garden today, and of course the girls had to come along too and give their opinion!

I found both these eggs in a nest today.  I think the wee one was laid by mistake!  Although hens lay one egg a day they will have several smaller eggs inside which increase in size before being laid. Not sure what happened to this one!  Sometimes a young hen coming into lay for the first time will lay a small egg, but I've never seen one THIS small!

I mentioned a walk in the garden. It's been a battle this summer what with the cooler temperatures, less sun, and quite a fair bit of wind and rain.  I'll post pictures of the garden in a few days time. But for now here is one of my favourite plants - I've forgotten it's name! But it is just starting to flower. It's a bit like a thistle but not!

And this is a Blackbird - not sure if this is a juvenile or a female. I love the lichen on the garden wall, and there's a fuschia and a willow tree just peeping over from outside the garden.

Meanwhile, Thursday evening is time for the Stromness Sailing Club to take to the water. It was a bit breezy last night so they didn't stray far from the harbour.

And yet more archeology!!

Here's a link to the artist, Nicki MacRae, who was the artist at the Ness of Brodgar dig this year. I think I had a photo of her among those of my visit to the site. I wondered what she was doing !

Do take a look - Nicki Paints: Artist Residency

More archaeology.....

Photo copyright Historic Scotland

There's been great excitement in the archaeology world in Orkney as another hand carved figure has been discovered during excavations on a site on the island of Westray. This adds to the collection - there were two other similar finds in recent years.  In 2009 what is known locally as the "Westray Wifey" was discovered - believed to be the earliest artistic representation of a human form ever found in the UK.  All of the finds will be on display at the Westray Heritage Centre.  The dig is ongoing so who knows what else they might find!

Here's the three "finds" - photo copyright Radio Orkney

The island of Westray has a new website "Westray's Living Heritage" which is worth a look. It's just been set up but already contains some interesting photos

Meanwhile, if you can't get to Orkney, take a "virtual tour" of Maeshowe on the Historic Scotland website : click here to see it. Maeshowe is a chambered tomb thought to date from 2700 BC. More info on it can be found here

Back to school.....

No....not for me but for the island school children!  There are two young boys who have started school for the first time this August. (The Scottish terms are different to the English school terms). The children  join three others from the island who go to the primary school and teenager J. who attends the secondary school in Stromness. All of whom go over on the ferry each day.

The ferry schedule is designed so that they have a fairly short journey time of 15 minutes on the boat each way. Though obviously there are times in the winter when the boat is cancelled. I'm sure many of them are praying for a stormy winter so they get more days off school!

There used to be a school on Graemsay - see the picture above. This was a one classroom school with cloakroom and toilet, and playground. It was a primary school (up to age 11), the children would go over to the Mainland for their secondary level education where they would stay during the week and come back to the island at the weekend.

Then in 1996 the island got a daily ferry service with the MV Graemsay. Previously the ferry had not run daily during the week.  So it was now possible for the school children to travel back and forth to Stromness each day.

With just one pupil remaining on the school roll and probably for economics and "inclusiveness" reasons,  the local education authority decided to close the school. Shops, schools and churches make small communities, and the island was very upset at the proposed closure. However, despite valiant efforts by the island folk to keep it open, the decision was made and the school closed.  Irene Mathieson was the teacher at the time having moved up here some years before from just outside Glasgow. She loved Graemsay so much she decided to stay and she and her husband Bobby still live on Graemsay.  Irene has lots of stories and many happy memories from her time as the island teacher.

As for the rest of Orkney - most of the isles have primary schools, and some secondary level education up to age 14. Then the children go to either Stromness or Kirkwall schools for the remaining time. Some of the children from the North isles still have to stay in a hostel during the week.  Again with a recession and falling school rolls small communities around the county are fighting to keep their schools. It's not an easy battle.

But for the Graemsay children, it's a daily "commute" to and from Stromness via boat. Which might seem a bit daunting (and in bad weather it IS!). Up to the age of 12 the children get a "minder" supplied by the council, who gets them on and off the boat and sits with them during the journey.  There are also a number of children from the neighbouring island of Hoy who are also going over to secondary school each day.  So the boat can be quite lively in term time!