IOW erosion

 I think we chose the wrong week to go to IOW. More rain fell overnight, the wind picked up and as luck would have it, the bloody cassette full light came on just as we were getting ready for bed. Ian was sent out to change it. I had a very good excuse for not doing it, I had already got myself undressed, the PJ's were on and Ian had yet to get ready for bed. Stood to reason then don't you think?

This time we managed to sleep through it all. Nothing at all like the monsoon conditions of two days ago, both of us were, nevertheless, very glad we had not returned to the woodland car park. There was some   concern when we woke this morning about MB getting off this site. On a slope and MB facing uphill, the amount of rain on an already sodden field had us wondering if the tyres were man enough to get us going and not start spinning. Ian was again sent out with a brief lull in the rain about 7 am to go and check ground conditions and to take the full cassette (left under MB last night) to the elsan to empty. He came back reassured that the ground felt firm, and didn't expect any difficulties. 

Just before we left, in the field opposite, three Llamas came careering over the brow of the hill. Took us both by surprise!

No problems at all in leaving the site, first stop was Asda for a food shop, followed by a stop at Matalan in Newport for me to purchase a new hoodie, (my old faithful had started fraying at the sleeves and although it broke my heart to part with it, just had to be done). Then it was off to Shanklin Chine to walk the gorge to the waterfall.

Very evident on the roads was the amount of rain that's fallen over the past few days. Partly run off from the fields but also some blocked drains,

If we had no luck, we wouldn't have any luck at all! Due to last night's bad weather, part of the gorge had been closed to the public. Something to do with falling debris on the footpaths (trees, branches?) This was told to us by the lady manning the kiosk at the Old Village entrance, although there was a way to see part of the attraction if we went to the second entrance by Shanklin Esplanade. I suppose we could have done that, but the part we really wanted to see, the waterfall, was inaccessible. What was also really annoying, we had paid for 3 hours parking, £6 was not too bad but in these hard times, every penny counts.

We decided to walk up to the tea rooms by the park. There was mention of Red Squirrels, that got both of us interested. But did we see any? Did we heck! We also had a cuppa, and Ian nearly went for an ice cream. Crikey it was only 8 degrees which actually felt like 3 with the wind. Nothing ever stops that man from wanting ice cream! A crazy golf course was by the tearooms, well that would kill a bit of time we thought.

Ian won, and I started so well too!

With the park on the doorstep and another mention by passers-by that squirrels could be seen playing on the ground, of course we went on high alert. Necks craned looking up to the canopy, eyes also peeled looking at the ground, there were still no sign of any. We did notice worrying signs of bank erosion, All the bad weather has had a detrimental effect on this island's cliffs, in fact there are some amazing photos on the County Press website. Click HERE to view. The main road from Shanklin to Ventnor was closed beginning of this year due to a landslide. To view that photo from the Island Echo click HERE

 Ian checked to see how much time was left on the car park ticket. 75 minutes, so to kill even more time, it was into the gift shops for a browse. Neither of us like shopping, so it was surprising that I came out with a serving spoon holder (saves putting a dirty spoon on the work surface when one is cooking) and a small container for used teabags. Another 20 minutes killed, this time we did go back to MB.

Drove down to Shanklin with the hope of parking on the esplanade. Because the sun had finally put in an appearance, Shanklin was packed. We called it quits, making our way the long way round to Ventnor. Here we found a lovely NT car park overlooking the sea. This will do nicely for tonight.

A path near the car park led down to the beach. It was decided to go for a walk and guess what, more cliff erosion meant this path was closed. Oh well, back to MB for a well-earned cup of coffee.

A giant towers over the village and MB is injured.

 OMG...Never have we had rain like it! The noise woke us in the wee hours, the drumming on the roof sounded like us being under a waterfall. The roar was something else. It came in waves, we could hear it coming over and over again, So dark outside, impossible to see what was happening and at one point, did wonder if we were anywhere near to a river!  Needless to say, very little sleep was had until after 4 am when as suddenly as it had started, it stopped. More rain is forecast for the next few days. Looks like wet weather gear will be worn a lot from now on.

By the time we stirred, it was after 7 am and the dog walkers beginning to arrive. Breakfast was had and as the car park was filling up, thought it best to move on. With the iffy weather forecast, we made for an indoor attraction, Butterfly World nr Ryde.

Cost with a voucher was £15 for us both, quite a good price considering what was to see. The one disappointment was the butterfly house, very few were seen and those we did see hung from the netting mesh under a perspex ceiling.  But a small Italian garden with fish ponds and then into another Japanese style garden, with huge koa carp all waiting to be fed (feeding time was at 11.30 am) all helped to stem the initial disappointment. 

n

 

I got to hold a corn snake, love the feel of snakes and no, contrary to belief, they are not slimy. The tarantula, though, I kept well away from, photographing it in its glass container where I felt safe. Other mini beasts were present, from stick insects to illusive frogs, leopard geckos and bearded dragons. 

 

We returned through the butterfly house in the hope that more butterflies would be seen. But nop, the numbers were poor, so I don't recommend going this time of year. It might be that it was just too cold, even though the house was heated, or not enough caterpillars. Either way, even with a free return in seven days, we won't be going again.

The next stop was to the model village at Godshill. Now that was definitely a great time waster. The entrance fee was £13 for two seniors, and we were given a quiz sheet to fill in. Well, kids at heart we took the sheet and for anyone visiting, young or old, it certainly makes you see things you would otherwise have missed. It was great fun, I think Ian really enjoyed it, especially as he wouldn't rest until the answer was found.  As per usual I took loads of photos but this one put the whole village in perspective. A giant among the little people.

That could be Ian and me on the bench. 😂

This was our favourite.

It was to a proper site for tonight, Borthwood Caravans, near to Sandown. More heavy rain and winds were forecast, and we felt it better to be somewhere a lot safer than under a load of trees. It also gave Ian the chance to have a look at the damage he did to MB. Leaving the car park this morning, he failed to notice a huge muddy mound and as he turned the wheel to reverse out, a horrible scraping noise was heard. Consequently, the bottom panel of MB (is it called the sleeve?) was pushed in, the back wheel arch also affected. It meant the rear wheel almost touched the arch, not good for the tyres, and occasionally a horrible sound was heard. Anyway, before we left the Butterfly World, Ian had a go at trying to pull the panel away from the arch. He did succeed to some extent, but maybe a panel beater will have to be found.

 

Osbourne house and the donkeys bring up the water.

April 26th

 Now, why don't we ever follow our own advice? A lesson learnt when FS was moored under trees and a night of torrential rain followed. The constant drip drip from the water droplets from those leaves were enough to drive one insane. We vowed never to do that again if rain was forecast. So I asked myself, why do it with MB. Oh how easily one forgets, but rest assured, after the night of rain we have had...NEVER again!

Today it was to Osbourne house for the second time of trying. The first was way back in December 2010 when thick snow stopped our visit. It was one of those coach Turkey and Tinsel holiday. This time it was still cold but thankfully no snow in the forecast.

Having arrived before 10 am, we were one of the first to take the self-guided tour of the house. Queen Victoria and Prince Albert had vision with this house and wow, what an impressive building inside and out and for those that are interested in the history click HERE

j

This painting hung above Queen Victoria's bed

Queens bedchamber. Also where she died in 1901

Prince Alberts bath. (I thought it was a chest freezer!)

Queen Victoria's lift h. No electric in them days, so it had to be cranked by hand.

We did the tour of the house and gardens in a couple of hours, longer could have been spent walking down to the beach but at over a mile, and the knees starting to give out, we called it quits. 

So where to go to now? Well nothing is very far away on this island  and Carisbrooke Castle was about 10 miles away.  A glimpse was caught of it as we drove to Carisbrooke and my heart sank. Was it really way up there on the hill? Well of course, where else would a castle be put! Anyway we drove up as far as we could, parked MB and walked a short distance up to the entrance.

You may have guessed by now that lots of steps had to be climbed to get to walk the walls. To do the keep, even more, and both decided that was not going to happen. We managed the walls, going up was okay but coming down was bad. It was at one particular bad moment that I realised why I hurt so much. Forgotten to take the painkillers!

At 3.30 pm a tread wheel demonstration of how buckets of water were brought up from the well. The well house and tread wheel were built in 1587 to get water to the castle. At first, the wheel would probably have been turned by prisoners. By the 1600s it was turned by donkeys. This well was 49m deep and holds water up to 12m. Today, during times of drought on the island, it is determined how much water is left in the well that decides whether a hose ban is put in place. Two donkeys taking it in turns do the demonstration. Now they work for no more than 5 minutes. In the days gone by those poor donkeys would have to work for 16 hours a day without rest, food or water. To check out the history of the castle and the donkeys, click HERE

 

And some of the gravestones where past donkeys have been put to rest.

Inside one of the rooms was a small museum telling the story of King Charles 1. He spent a year at Carisbrooke, had two failed escape attempts, and finally lost his head at Whitehall in January 1649. Click HERE to read the story

Trying to find a park for the night was a bit of a challenge, so it was decided to return to the woods. From memory, we knew a few parking areas that were free from overhanging branches and on our arrival, found one that would do. If it did rain overnight, at least we wouldnt be woken by those drips..