The Old from the New

The Old Pier, of which only these wooden stumps remain, was constructed in 1859 by the Swanage Pier and Tramway Company and was used primarily for shipping the Portland Stone for which Swanage is famous. Horses were used to pull the stone carts along the railway from the stone quay, where the stone was stacked prior to shipment, to the Pier’s end. (There will be more on this later I have no doubt.)

The New Pier was opened in 1897 and was used primarily to serve paddle steamers bringing visitors to Swanage, right up until 1966. It was more or less abandoned after this, but in 1994 the Swanage Pier Trust was formed and started on its restoration.  It is now run by volunteers and charges 80p for ‘strolling’, which helps to fund its maintenance.
 
Apparently there was extensive storm damage in March 2013, a year we were not here, but it has since been repaired and it is certainly looking very smart now. It is used for sailing, diving, fishing as well as ‘strolling’.
 
We had not planned to go very far afield from Swanage itself this week, although the whole area is a wonderful treasure trove of interesting walking and exploring. In the past we have followed several Thomas Hardy trails, walked extensively by coast and inland and visited many other places. Last time we went to Lyme Regis and took part in a fossil trail – fascinating. So, this time we had decided to stay close by, which is as well since I have now developed a really painful backache. This is not something I usually suffer from at all and I am not a good patient. I am trying to manage it with painkillers, but it would seem that I at least will definitely not be going far this week unless I make a miraculous recovery!