Theme for the Week – Quirky Dorset Part 7

– – – Exploring The Countryside and Lanes of Dorset – – –

So this week, we are on the hunt for more odd and quirky things that you might come across when you walk my lovely county of Dorset. Yesterday we looked at the Smugglers’ Path that zig zags steeply down the face of White Nothe to reach the shoreline. But there is still another hazard to negotiate before you reach the safety of the rocks, and that is The Ladder!

The Ringstead Ladder

You see, the Smugglers’ Path finishes at the cliff top, but you still need to reach the rocky shoreline before you can get any further, and that is where the ladder comes in 🙂 ! The somewhat rickety looking contraption stretches some 20 feet from the shore to the cliff top and is not for the faint hearted!

In the picture below, you can see the view that greets you as you climb down these humble steps, a view that takes in the whole of Ringstead Bay……..and if you climb down the ladder, that is where you will be heading because there is nothing in the other direction as the tide covers the shore.

The strange thing about this ladder is that it has no handrail. Now I think that is great but in this day of extreme health and safety laws, I’m surprised no one has put a stop to it. In fact, because of coastal erosion and rock falls, there are other ways down to the shoreline but as someone who loves oddball walks, why would anyone not want to use this ladder 🙂 !

Of course, having reached the shoreline, you will still be quite some way from Ringstead and to get there involves trudging over a mile along the shingle beach. Oh, and part of it is a nudist beach! Its all a bit quirky here!!

If you are not up for a bit of adventure, then maybe stick to the main coast path 🙂 !

Thanks for stopping by.

Until tomorrow,
Your friend The Dorset Rambler

If you would like to contact me, my email address is terry.yarrow@gmail.com – comments and feedback are always welcomed.

All photographs, poems and words in this blog are the copyright of The Dorset Rambler and must not be reproduced without permission.