B&B nearDorchesterFarmhouse B&Bnear Bridport & West Bay Places to Visit in West Dorset Gray's
Farmhouse
Farmhouse B&B Accommodation near Bridport West Bay Beaminster Dorchester
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West Dorset Farmhouse Bed and Breakfast Accommodationnear Dorchester, Bridport and Beaminster supplied courtesy of West Dorset District Council Click map for a higher resolution version As the above map shows, Grays Farmhouse is between Dorchester, Bridport and Beaminster, ideally placed as a centre from which to explore an area rich in interesting places to visit and things to do, in the heart of West Dorset. Click here for a selection of nearby Interesting Places While every attempt is made to ensure that the links are all working properly, I do not have the time to check them regularly and I hope you will be patient if some are out of date. Agricultural Shows / Biking off road / Children / Coastal Attractions / Cycling / Fishing / Fossil hunting / Gardens to Visit / Golf / History / Houses to Visit / Museums / Music / Painting and Photography / Riding / Swimming / Walking / Tourist Information Agricultural Shows
Animals and Birds
Various suggestions are listed under "Children" which will be of interest to adults too. See also "Riding", and for wildlife, check out the local RSPB reserves and the Kingcombe Centre. Also, on this site, see West Dorset Area & Wildlife Biking Off RoadGuests tell us that the off-road biking in the area is superb. There is ample space to leave bikes locked up and we shall be getting a power-hose so you can wash them down easily after your ride. See "Cycling" below. Children
click above to see 360 degree image Another favourite is Monkeyworld, a serious project that rescues and rehabilitates abused apes. Rather less authentic, but popular with children, Dinosaur-museum.org.uk , Tel. 013052699880.) Lovers of Teddy Bears should visit the Teddy Bear house and the annual Teddy Bears' Picnic in Dorchester. Older children may enjoy The Tutankhamun Exhibition At
Easter Abbotsbury hosts a Great Egg Hunt and there is a Kite Festival
at Weymouth in the Spring, and on Eggardon in September. There
are summer regattas and Trawler races, Red Arrow and firework
displays along the coast. Coastal AttractionsGrays Farmhouse is near the World Heritage coast, which within a 25 minutes drive offers remarkable variety. Nearest to us is the National Trust family beach at Burton Bradstock, with golden honey-combed cliffs and an excellent cafe overlooking the beach. Slightly further afield to the east are the magnificent chalk cliffs and rock formations of the Isle of Purbeck, including Kimmeridge, Lulworth and Durdle Door, and to the west lie Charmouth and Lyme Regis. Weymouth has a long sandy beach set in a beautiful, expansive bay, and a fascinating old harbour. The east coast of Portland is unique, with disused, luxuriantly overgrown quarries right by the water's edge. At the southern tip, Portland Bill has a lighthouse overlooking a wild shoreline piled with slabs of the famous stone from which many of London's grandest buildings were created. The
cliff path on Portland's west coast provides glorious views towards
Lyme Regis down the Chesil Beach, an eleven-mile strip of shingle.
The inland water behind it, the Fleet, is a bird sanctuary, and
Abbotsbury is renowned for its swannery. click above to see 360 degree image West Bay is where "Harbour Lights" was filmed. A three year scheme to rebuild the coastal defences and harbour piers at a cost of over £17 million was completed in the winter of 2004/2005 The golden cliffs to each side are quite different in character from the chalk ones east of Weymouth, reaching their highest point between West Bay and Charmouth at Golden Cap. The marvellous coastal views, from Portland to the tip of South Devon, combined with the gentle folds of meadow and woodland close to a cliff edge full of tiny inlets, make this an idyllic stretch of coast. Coastal erosion means that this part of the cliffs is forever changing.
Charmouth and Lyme are renowned for their fossils,
and Lyme in particular is a fascinating old town with its famous
cobb and some tempting teashops! For 360 degree panoramas of coast, click on image Cycling Even
in the height of summer the lanes around us are quiet enough to
make cycling enjoyable, and there are also plenty of bridle paths
and tracks through Hooke Woods. Much of the disused railway line
from Maiden Newton to West Bay is still accessible. Bikes
may be hired at "bspoke"
in Bridport, where you can also get knowledgable advice on the best
places to cycle. Fishing
Fossil HuntingFor
360 degree panoramas of coast, click on image Gardens to Visit
Rosie
can advise you on many more worth visiting, as well as the local
village Open Garden days,and our library of garden books and magazines
would keep an enthusiast happy for hours. Golf
History
See
also Museums Houses to VisitNearby
Mapperton Manor was voted the "The nation's Finest Manor House"
by 'Country Life' It is open in peak holiday season and bank holidays.Tel.01308
862645. Slightly further afield, Forde Abbey, a magnificent family home since the 17th.Century, was a Cistertian Monastery, founded in 1140 (see above, but the house only open in summer and on certain days). http://www.bournemouth.co.uk/ptg/dd003889.htm Montecute houses much of the Tudor and Stuart collection of the National Portrait Gallery. On
a far humbler scale, Hardy's birthplace, Higher Bockhampton, is
an idyllic little cottage just outside Dorchester . Both these last
two are National Trust. Museums
Apart from general local social and natural history, there are specialist museums to be found on such widely ranging themes as Tanks (Bovington 01929405096 www.tankmuseum.co.uk ), Yeovilton Fleet Air Arm Museum, Dorchester Keep, ENIGMA (Blandford, Royal Signals Museum, 01258 482248, The Tolpuddle Martyrs, (Tolpuddle, outside Dorchester, 01305 848237), Ropemaking (Bridport, 01308 4216659), Underwater Exploration and the 'Titanic' and The Museum of Coastal Defense (Weymouth), and much more. Honiton Lace All hallows Museum www.mda.org.uk/vlmp Music and the Arts
Sherborne Abbey and Sherborne School have a full programme of events: www.concertsinsherborne.org.uk/ Abbotsbury, Burton Bradstock and Cerne Abbas also have interesting festivals. Lyme Regis has a Jazz Festival www.lymeregis.com/jazz-festival Kingston Maurward, Sherborne Castle, and Abbotsbury all host open air concerts and operas . www.westdorset.com/whatsnew.htm Painting and Photography
There is plenty of room to store your painting gear in my studio, and if the weather is bad, there are covered areas from which to work around the grounds. Dorset
Art Weeks is a biennial event. From 24May -8th. June 2008, over
300 studios, including mine, will be opening to the public in what
will be the biggest show of its kind in the country. Bridport Open
Studios is every August Bank Holiday and there are other opportunities
to see the work and studios of many local artists and craftspeople. Riding
Horse
Riding is available at Llama
Trekking in the Brit Valley SwimmingFor 360 degree panoramas of coast, click on image
There are a number of good family beaches with golden sand, notably
Burton Bradstock, West Bay, Charmouth and Lyme Regis, but bathers
must exercise caution and read notices carefully. In season dogs
are banned. Walking
Tourist Information
Bridport
01308 424901 In
addition, the following websites are very informative: c) Copyright 2007 Rosie Britton. All Rights Reserved. Site Updated March 1, 2008 |