Walk 51. Prinsted to Emsworth

 Today I’m back at the little car park in Prinsted to start my walk around yet another peninsula!

At least, it looks like a peninsula, but technically the lower two-thirds are an island. There is a narrow body of water called the Great Deep (oooohh, scary name) that runs from one side to the other, but both sides are connected by short causeways.

The path leaves the car park through this wooden arrangement…

A couple of minutes later I pass through a marina…

The path then runs along the top of an embankment alongside marshy farmland…

Shortly I arrive at Thornham Point. There is an information board here telling the visitor about the wildlife and so on. There is also a stern warning in red print that there are no facilities on the island and you are on your own from here!

Undeterred, I head onwards!

Now the sharp eyed reader may have spotted a reference to a ‘guard room’ in the warning message. This is because the whole of Thorney Island (i.e. the actual ‘island’ bit!) is a military base and strictly off-limits to the general public. So how am I going to walk around it without getting shot? Well luckily there is a public footpath all the way around the edge - hence the lack of ‘facilities’!

The MOD have helpfully provided their own information board…

I have now reached the Great Deep, although it doesn’t look all that…

To cross it, and access the island and base, I have to go to the gate and press a button. A few seconds later it buzzes and I push it open and go through. I hope they let me out on the other side!

The path continues along the shore but the landward side is now fenced off! Through a gap in the bushes I can see the runway of the disused airfield…

About halfway down the eastern side of the island is West Thorney (named by someone in need of a compass!). I can’t see much of the medieval church from the path and I have to hurry past as it is nearly high tide! 

Just enough beach left…

The rest of the way down this side of the island offers great views across the Thorney Channel and Chichester Channel…

Eventually I come to Longmere Point at the southern tip of the island. Here Thorney Island has a bit of a surprise - a sandy beach complete with sand dunes!

According to the map this is called Pilsey Sand and at low tide is apparently quite extensive! Just across the water to the south is the spit at West Wittering which is similarly sandy and duney, so I suppose it shouldn’t really be that much of a surprise!

West Wittering beach is just over there…

I am now heading back up the western side of the island. The water to the left is now called the Emsworth Channel and I have to walk on pebbles as the coast curves round a very gentle bay.

By the time I have reached Marker Point the path is once again on top of a grassy embankment. From here the coast zig-zags northwards…

About an hour after leaving the dunes I find the west gate blocking the path. 

I press the buzzer and a few seconds later I am let out. Not that I was worried about being trapped…

Anyway. Moving on.

The Great Deep looks a bit more impressive from this end…

Ahead of me is a long, straight causeway…

There must be a culvert between the Great Deep and the sea under the causeway because there is quite a mini whirlpool on the seaward side…

…and an obvious outflow on the other side…

About a mile on I arrive back in civilisation in the form of the marina at Emsworth.

Once through the marina, I just have a short walk to the road bridge leading into Emsworth and the end point of today’s walk. 

When I get here I am a bit miffed. This is the border with Hampshire - another county finished! Hooray and all that kind of thing! BUT. There should be a ‘welcome to Hampshire’ sign on these two grey posts and I was hoping to get a nice photo of it. But the bloody thing has fell off! Sort it out, Hampshire…

Walk 50. Bosham to Prinsted

 This walk will be around another peninsula - the Chidham Peninsula. This is bounded by the Bosham Channel to the east and the Thorney Channel to the west, which both flow into the Chichester Channel. It’s a complicated bit of coastline, the technical term being ‘very squiggly’…

I start back at my finish point from last time. I have decided to follow the road for about one third of a mile to the next public footpath. There is no public right of way along the waterside for this stretch, and last time the mud didn’t look passable!

It only takes a few minutes to reach the path heading south…

This section of path is an easy walk with the creek to the left and farmland to the right.

There are even some swans to look at…

Halloween must be coming…

I soon arrive in Chidham, which seems to be the only settlement on the peninsula apart from a couple of farms. They have a pond and an info board…

The coast path heads down this private road…

At the bottom of the road there is a gap in the bushes…

This leads back to the creek and a nice view of Bosham across the water…

I continue for about a mile or so, then the path cuts inland to skirt the Cobnor outdoor activity centre where there are some kids on a boat and others shooting arrows (at targets, obviously - not at the boat!).

Once past the activity centre, the path runs along a causeway to Cobnor Point at the southern tip of the peninsula. It’s a nice walk but a bit breezy!

Since passing the activity centre I have been seeing notices nailed to the footpath signposts warning of path closures ahead. The start date is today - if I had done this walk yesterday I would have been OK! I ignore the notices and continue on anyway. Maybe they haven’t started in any kind of serious way yet? Or maybe I can just bypass the path? Or blag my way through?

So I’m pleased when the causeway ends as I round Cobnor Point and I find that there is a thin strip of beach to walk on. They can’t fence off a bit of tidal beach! I think?

To the left are lines of rotting wooden stakes - apparently the remains of an unsuccessful Victorian land reclamation scheme…

About three-quarters of a mile up the beach from Cobnor Point the public footpath leaves the beach and runs parallel to the coast a few yards inland along a raised bank. It is here that the maintainance is happening. Or rather, not happening! There are a few cones, a ‘closed’ sign that has blown over in the wind, and a couple of shovels!

So, stay on the beach or try the path? I can’t see how passable the beach is ahead so I step over the shovels. A few yards further on are some bushes and a mini digger. On the far side of the bushes is a pickup truck with a couple of blokes wearing hi-viz and drinking tea. They ignore me and I ignore them. Hurray! I’m through!

Potential problem sorted, the path ahead is an easy walk into the distance…

But ten minutes later there is a noise in the air, getting louder! Oh no, the Council have called in helicopter backup…!

Fortunately the chopper crew fail to spot me and I continue along the embankment. Soon afterwards, it rejoins the water’s edge.

A few minutes later the path turns to the west and I leave the Chidham peninsula. I follow the path for nearly a mile more…

…until I reach a small place called Prinsted, my finish point for today!

Walk 49. Fishbourne to Bosham

 Today’s walk will take me around the Bosham (pronounced ‘boz-um’ I believe) peninsula. Unfortunately there is a long stretch of coast that is private land with no public access, some of it farmland and some residential. So today will feature a fair bit of road walking!

I start on the southern edge of Fishbourne and head down the path that takes me down the other bank of the Chichester Channel.

After only three-quarters of a mile, the path turns inland through the trees…

…before emerging onto a lane.

To the left, the direction the coast is in, is a sign by the gates…

So I turn right and set off down Hook Lane…

About half an hour of walking down the lanes brings me to Bosham Hoe. This little settlement is on the southern tip of the peninsula about a mile and a half from Bosham itself, but I can’t tell you much more about it…

So I continue along the road for nearly a mile further. Here, the road turns to the right and there is a footpath to the left…

The short path takes me back to the shore opposite West Itchenor. 

A little ferry runs between here and West Itchenor. It appears that it also takes bikes, judging by the people queuing up to board…

Now that I’m back on the shore, it seems I am fortunate that it is low tide and I can stay here!

I follow the beach path up the western side of the peninsula towards Bosham. The water to the left is now the Bosham Channel…

After a little while the beach turns into mudflats and the path turns onto a road.

The road goes the rest of the way to Bosham, although I can save myself a couple of hundred yards because it is low tide…

The tide seems to be pretty central to life around here…

Bosham Quay is a nice spot for a quick snack

I’m actually going to end my walk today back at the main road just under a mile north of here. To find the footpath entails going into what looks like someone’s driveway! I’m not certain I’m going the right way, but then I see a sign…

Down here…

And I’m back on the beach!

The path runs sometimes on the beach…

…sometimes on an actual path…

…past some modest little homes…

…until I reach the Colner Creek…

The main road is only a couple of hundred yards from here. The footpath crosses a field, goes up some steps…

…and here we are, today’s finish. It’s a bit of an anonymous spot but it’ll have to do!