Flowers Barrow

For the most part Purbeck appears to exist in timeless isolation, though its quiet façade hides an often rough and dramatic history. Purbeck's rugged coast and cliffs were worked by fishermen and quarrymen alike, its hills made for hard farming and harder toiling beneath them, whilst a smattering of military defences are testament to important Purbeck in our history. The land is layered with the relics of our past activities, with some sites showing a continuity in use which spans millennia. With its extensive views Flowers Barrow, high on the Purbeck coast, is one such site. With its impressive Iron Age ramparts and ditches, its Second World war pillbox, an observation post, rusting tank hulks and target markers (it's currently within the Lulworth firing ranges), Flowers Barrow has a distinctly military flavour. And although, its ancient ramparts may have half slipped into the sea, with its World War Two monuments slowly following them, it still commands this stretch of the coast and remains a predominant landmark. I could easily just sit up here and watch the day go by, especially on day as beautiful as today.