Old Harry's Rock (extended) (Circular)

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Photo ofOld Harry's Rock (extended) (Circular)

Author

Tito Jiménez

10,448 172 1999

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Trail stats

Distance: 11.24 mi
Elevation gain: 1,759 ft
Technical difficulty: Moderate
Elevation loss: 1,759 ft
Max elevation: 536 ft
TrailRank: 60
Min elevation: -36 ft
Trail type: Loop

Time: 5 hours 17 minutes
Coordinates: 876
Uploaded: August 3, 2016
Recorded: August 2016

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near Brownsea Island, England (United Kingdom)

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Itinerary description

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Start Time: 03/08/2016 13:50

End Time: 03/08/2016 19:07

Travel distance: 18.1 km (05:17)

Moving time: 04:34

Average speed: 3.42km/h

Vel. in Mov.: 3.96 km/h

Maximum Speed: 7.84km/h

Minimum Height: -11m

Maximum Height: 163m

Ascent speed: 183.7 m/h

Descent Speed: -218.5 m/h

Altitude gain: 465 m

Loss Altitude: -465 m

Ascent Time: 02:32

Descent Time: 02:07

DESCRIPTION:
To start this route we have two options. Cross the car by ferry from Bournemouth and park a few meters from where the boat leaves you, or leave the car parked in Bournemouth and cross the ferry without it. The route begins at the same pier. You can bring a swimsuit in case you feel like taking a bath, or even do the tour in a swimsuit if the temperature allows it.
The first part of the route crosses a large beach (several kilometers). A part of the beach is nudist and you will find posters claiming the right to be able to sunbathe naked. On the other hand, it is curious to see on the same beach people with and without swimsuits next to military landing maneuvers. This is due to a nearby military base that uses this stage as a training site. As we cross the beach we see the large pillars of white rock (chalk with some bands of flint) where we have to go. (no loss). We can even stop at some point to take a bath
When we leave the beach, we begin a comfortable climb that places us above the most representative part of this route, the Cliffs and their Columns.
Very photogenic and impressive area with white cliffs and turquoise water. It is worth staying for a while before continuing.
We arrive at the Ballard point where we leave the coast and begin a comfortable climb through the upper part of a large meadow and some fantastic views of this "small peninsula". To the northeast we can see the route we have taken, the beach and the entire coast with Bournemouth and to the south Swanage and its bay. We will reach the highest point of the route; Ballard Down, and a few meters later an obelisk that recalls the horrors of war.
We begin a descent, crossing several roads and a golf course to enter a totally different landscape. A beautiful moor with "flag trees" and depending on the season with purple heather. A very quiet part where rabbits constantly cross our path.
Little by little we reach the sea again, but on the opposite side of the peninsula from where we started. We can see Hamworthy and many houseboats just before coming full circle on this itinerary.

HISTORY:
The Old Harry Rocks are two rock columns or pillars located at Handfast Point, on the Dorset coast, in southern England, just east of Studland, about 4 km NE of Swanage and about 10 km south of the Poole and Bournemouth towns. The rocks mark the eastern end of the Jurassic Coast, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. They can be seen from the Dorset Coast Path, the Dorset section of the South West Coast Path. The cliff is rocky, made of chalk, with some bands of flint. One hundred years ago one of those great pillars, the so-called Old Harry's Wife (old Harry's wife) collapsed resoundingly in the roar of the sea, as witnessed by the chronicles and testimonies of fishermen of the time. Tired of resisting for thousands of years, the rock was overcome by the sea. But if the geologists are right, erosion will continue to carve this coastline into new pillars for millennia to come. Old Harry's children.
Legend has it that the Devil (traditionally known as Old Harry) had a dream about the rocks. Other sources point out that the possible origin of the name is that the rocks were named after a famous Poole pirate, Harry Paye, who used them to store his contraband nearby.

The route described here, as well as the GPS tracks, are indicative. It is the responsibility of the person who carries it out to take the appropriate security measures for the itinerary, which will depend on both the weather conditions and the technical and physical preparation of the person carrying it out. It is very clear that everything indicated (track and comments) is for informational purposes and without any other type of encouragement, exempting the author from any responsibility for any mishap that may be suffered by whoever carries out the activity by their own free will or induced.