Corfe Castle

Continuing from Beachy Head, we headed towards Weymouth that was supposed to be our destination for the day, with a brief stop at Cirencester for coffee. As we headed west towards Dorset, the overcast weather gradually gave way to sunshine. We had decided to take an extended break at Corfe, where the remains of a famous castle that dates back to medieval times. The castle is situated on the top of a knoll or hill that is a couple of hundred feet above the surrounding countryside.

Corfe Castle Ruins

We explored the castle with the aid of a tour map. The castle had an interesting history that may be found in more detail on Wikipedia. The castle was a Royalist stronghold back in Cromwell’s era. The Parliamentarians ordered the destruction of the castle in 1646 to prevent the castle being used again.

Corfe Castle Ruins No2

Despite the destruction, there are several windows and arches still remaining.

Corfe Castle Window And Gate

I asked Susan to walk through one of the arches.

Susan At Corfe Castle

Nearby the castle is the village of Corfe. After destruction, the castle provided many of the construction materials for the village. The railway line to Swanage is a later addition that served to the village. This line is no longer connected to the rest of the rail network due to dismantling of a section. This remaining section of line is now run by volunteers and steam locomotive enthusiasts that now serves tourists. Earlier during the day, a steam locomotive was busy working the line hauling several coaches full of excited people.

Corfe Village And Station

We made our way down to the station where we learned that the last train was scheduled to stop in a few minutes.

Corfe Castle Station

I made my way to the railway bridge that is located in the distance. This bridge is a recent addition to the line, having been relocated from the London area.

Corfe Station Railway Bridge

The platform on the far side was decorated from several metal trunks dating back to an earlier 20th century era.

Trunks At Corfe Station

Finally the train pulled in — One coach only! This is a diesel powered unit, similar to many units that I saw during my school days in Taunton. I am reasonably familiar with this part of England since I was incarcerated in boarding school. However, Corfe is one location that I have not visited previously.

Train To Swanage

I managed to catch the driver in his private abode as the train pulled out of the station on its way to Swanage.

Private, Driver

Looking back towards the castle, it must have been very foreboding during the middle ages.

Corfe Castle From Station

We made our way back through the village. We stopped at one store when a variety of wines were displayed in the window.

Wines In The Window, Corfe

Once inside, sunlight streaming though the window made a colorful display. On closer inspection, I noticed that the wines were grown (raised?) in the west country of England. This must be the product of a new vineyard — I don’t recall vineyards in my youth. There is even one bottle of mead at the extreme left of this image.

West Country Wines

We made our way back to the car to continue on to Weymouth.