Walk 53. Mengham to Hayling Bay

My walk today begins with a bit more road walking…

Ten minutes down the lane I arrive at a boatyard and a sailing club. There is a public footpath that threads between them hidden between two brick walls…

Once through the bushes I am beside the water and discover that the high tide is very high indeed! A bit of a contrast to the low tide last week!

The view ahead…

A few minutes later I pass a WW2 pill box. It’s been a few walks since I last saw one!

I come to a holiday village and the path turns back ‘inland’. There is a small creek here and I have to follow the north bank until I can cross the water.

Some bits of path are in need of maintenance…

Nearing the head of the creek the path disappears below the water completely. This is a bit of a pain. Going back will be a long detour! Beside me is a tall chain link fence with a mobile home park on the other side. 

Then I’m saved! A nice lady on the other side of the fence asks if I’m trying to get to the road. Yes, I am! So she opens a gate and points the way out of the park to the road. That was handy!

The south bank of the creek is lined with houses and there is no public access, so I have some more road walking to do…

Nearly forty minutes later I arrive here…

Despite the number of times the word ‘private’ appears on all these signs, this is actually a public footpath! Through the gate I turn north along a spit of land called Black Point…

I walk up to the PRIVATE sailing club at the end, then turn around and come back down. The beach at West Wittering looks very close from here - it’s only taken me, what, six walks to get here from there!

Anyway, the scenery is getting better…

I pass the lifeboat station…

…and walk along the beach round Sandy Point Nature Reserve. There are anti-erosion granite boulders here and the sea is splashing over them in dramatic fashion!

Round the point the prom along South Hayling starts…

The South Hayling coast is very straight. Sometimes I walk along the prom, sometimes along the pebbles. I admire the views, sun glinting on the water, Isle of Wight in the background…

A pleasant half-hour stroll later I pass the eastern terminal of the Hayling Light Railway which gives passenger rides along the seafront.

Also along here is an information board about Hayling Island’s role in WW2…

…and a war memorial…

The western terminal is about a mile from the start…

My end point is just over half a mile further on - the Inn On The Beach…

So that’s it for today. Better than the first bit of Hayling Island - plenty of beach this time!

Walk 52. Emsworth to Mengham

 Today’s walk starts at the missing ‘Hampshire’ sign. (Still not replaced - come on lads - bit of civic pride…)

A short walk along a couple of roads leads to the Emsworth Channel. Fortunately the tide is low and I can walk along the foreshore…

This leads to Emsworth Mill Pond which is protected from the sea by a causeway. This seems to be a popular place - there are loads of people about, many with dogs, enjoying the autumn sunshine!

The view from the causeway with the Mill Pond to the right…

The causeway ends at a marina and I continue along a sea wall…

Past Emsworth the path runs along the shore. At high tide this route becomes impassable and there is an alternative way inland. Time to repeat my favourite warning - when walking on the coast, always check your tide times!

Further on, round Conigar Point, it becomes very obvious how far in the sea comes…

Approaching Langstone the sea wall path begins again. Just like a couple of walks ago, the path is closed for repairs at one point. And, just like a couple of walks ago, I ignore the signs and walk straight past!

I can see a strange tower poking above the trees, and when I get closer I find a handy info board…

So it’s an old mill! Very nice…

From Langstone to Hayling Island the map shows a public right of way across the mudflats. Well, it’s only just past low tide and it doesn’t look walkable to me! Is it ever passable on foot I wonder?

So. Hayling Island. Yes, it has a bridge. And yes, you can walk across it. So that’s where I’m headed next!

Once over the bridge I turn left along a road. It quickly becomes apparent that the eastern side of Hayling is a bit of a disappointment for the walker. Most of it is private land with no public right of way. So I walk for a long time along inland roads, mostly with no pavements.

Near Gutner Point there is a short stretch of footpath along the north shore of a small inlet…

…but then it is back on the road! 

Reaching the Tournerbury area I find a couple more short footpaths that take me to an area marked as Mengham on the map. I stop at a small triangular ‘green’ and decide to call it a day for today, partly because there is a handy bus stop here which will take me back to the car!

Very much a walk of two halves, this one. The first bit, on the mainland, was really good with nice scenery. The second bit, on Hayling Island, was not unpleasant (the country lanes were very pleasant) but very same-y. And not very coastal - which on a coastal walk is a bit of a negative…