Wednesday 3^rd June 2015 – 22/52 – Icart Point to Pleinmont

If you have ever wondered what Bear Grylls will be like when he draws his pension you will get a pretty good idea if you were to join Eric Graham on the taxing Icart to Pleinmont section of his series of around the Island walks raising money for Autism Guernsey.

As I found out when, together with friends Pauline and Tony, I joined him recently, while the man is no spring chicken he eats up the most rugged of Guernsey’s terrain in a frightening manner.

It was a perfect day of blue sky, sunshine and a light breeze. The cliffs offer stunning scenery at all times of the year but the flora and fauna on display in June is particularly impressive. Strands of white Moon Daisies interspersed with clumps of pink Campion and scarlet Foxgloves poking out of startling green bracken. At Les Tielles the vertical faces of the cliffs are hung with curtains of dark green Hottentot Fig with its distinct yellow, pink and red flowers.

Across the paths lines of wood ants carried bits of gorse to add to teeming nests while blue and brown butterflies competed for attention with Six-spotted Burnet Moths.

The bird life was particularly impressive with gulls, finches, stonechats and a number of hunting kestrels. Throughout the walk we repeatedly saw a group of three common buzzards circling overhead. At first I thought they were different birds but soon came to realise they were the same group following us. I can only conclude that from experience they have watched Eric leave less fit mortals panting in his wake, curling into an exhausted ball at the side of the path and promising a ready meal for these airborne scavengers.

Having spent my youth on the cliffs and along their base searching out caves, climbs and fishing spots it was good to relive these tales with my travelling companions. However it is clear that a number of favourite spots for scrambling down to the shore are now gone courtesy of rock falls.

If our intrepid guide Eric has one blind spot it is in relation to the many seats and benches along the route. He never notices them and hurries by oblivious to the fact that they were put there for a purpose. On the rare occasion when we sampled their delights a puzzled Eric remained standing anxious to be on with the march.

However, do not let me give you the wrong impression. On completion of the walk at the Portelet Tea Rooms we discovered that we had covered the nine miles of ground in a record time of five and a quarter hours. A record in the sense that it was Eric’s longest time covering this piece of coast which, on his own, he can cheerfully knock off in three and a half hours. This just goes to show how accommodating he can be of those of a slower pace.

If you want to remind yourself just how stunning our cliff scenery is and to do so in excellent company why not join Eric as he continues his walks for the rest of the year…..but watch out for the buzzards.

Nigel Lewis

5 June 2015

Picture of Six-spotted Burnet Moth courtesy of lightcolourshade.blogspot.com