Swanage Railway

Last week's seaside outing had a number of objectives:

1). See steam trains TICK
2). See the sea TICK
3). Find a Blip TICK
4). Have fish and chips on the beach TICK
5.) Paddle in the sea TICK
6). Travel on previously unseen scenic back roads TICK
7.) See swans TICK
8.) Have coffee and cake TICK
9.) Stay out of trouble MASSIVE FAIL

It seems odd to have been to the seaside and to be posting a blip that does not include the sea, but the particular reason for choosing to visit Swanage was because it has a steam preservation railway that terminates there. Since visiting it was the Prime Directive, it had to be the blip. Before finding Swanage station we had spent some time at the beach, strolling up to the restored pier and back through the town taking in a couple of antique shops. We found a bridge to the west of the station which afforded a good vantage point of the station, sidings and goods shed, and there were a variety of engines in steam, including a couple of saddle tanks, an engine with coaches taking on water and a couple of passenger trains that left, bound for Corfe Castle and beyond. The line used to run through to Wareham and there are plans for Swanage Railway to also extend that far.

When we left Swanage we went on to the somewhat quieter Studland Bay to have a paddle and dry our sandy feet in the sun, and then stopped at Corfe Castle for a tour of the castle and a coffee. An American had parked his vintage 1953 Citroën so that he could photograph it with the castle ruin as a backdrop and kindly allowed me to crib his idea and crouch next to him to get a similar shot.

We stopped again at Wareham for a look around, having been thwarted on the way in by a stroppy local who objected to my having parked in a bay that it turned out he himself had been intending to occupy (he had been in front of the car vacating the spot, at a junction, signalling a right turn, but with no reversing lights) who was so put out that he came up to my window and demanded I leave. I did, but have been bitterly regretting doing so ever since.

Unbelievably, a similar incident occurred in Swanage when we were insultingly badmouthed by a man in a wheelchair about my (perfectly respectable) parking. In the NT tea room at Corfe Castle, the waitress served us and then apologised within our earshot to the lady who had silently come up behind us while we were picking out our cake from the counter beside the till for our having pushed in! All of these incidents left a bad taste in the mouth and to have had three such incidents in one day has made me wonder if there is something about Dorset.

Up to this point we had failed to find any swans, apart from a pair we had seen in the distance as we drove over a bridge, but on the way back we parked up by the bridge, which turned out to cross the River Stour near to Spetisbury, and found four of them gliding on the river alongside a cormorant and some mallards.

L.
15.9.2012

Blip #784
Consecutive Blip #000
Day #896

Alternatives:
Deck Chairs
Swanage Pier
Passengers
Rowers At Wareham
Spetisbury Bridge

A Day Trip To Dorset, 5 September 2012 (Flickr set)

Lenses: Pentax 17-70mm, Sigma 70-300mm

Lozarhythm Of The Day:
Toy - Motoring (2012)