Hidden away

Hidden away in the Streamer Point nature reserve, just a few meters back from the cliff edge, are two ornamental ponds...I'd imagine they were once part of Highcliffe Castle's gardens. For years these ponds languished neglected, although through the work from volunteers they're slowly being brought back to life. Tranquil nature oases like these are essential to both wildlife and us alike.

Steamer Point

We wandered along Highcliffe beach this morning, amongst the dunes that are developing below Steamer Point. You'd imagine that the name Steamer Point may refer to a location you'd catch a steamer from. Well, nearly. There once was a Streamer here, although it wasn't going anywhere...it had reached it's final destination. When the nearby Highcliffe Castle was being built, a steamer was beached and then hauled aways inland where it was wedged in place between two large trees and used as the site office. Afterwards it remained as a beach house until around 1900.  Later during the war Steamer Point was home to a secret military establishment researching radar and communications, post war SRDE developed Britain's first satellite communications system... locally famous for it's distinctive white golf ball like dome which housed a satellite dish. Today although the steamer's long gone (the military too) the name remains, and the site is now a wildlife reserve with a section of undeveloped beach below it. Nice spot. Historically the premier location for beach parties...before the banning of fun.

Eric 44

Discovered this wartime graffiti at Steamer Point this morning, just in time I reckon, the bark's become powdery and is beginning to disintegrate, it wont be long before Eric 44 disappears from the record. I wonder who Eric was? During World War Two there were coastal batteries here, there were pillboxes along the foreshore, the USAAF were stationed nearby, and it was also the site of a secret radar and communications research facility, maybe that's how Eric found himself here, or maybe he was a passing soldier on his way to Europe?  

Writing this, 'Eric 44' seemed familiar, and on checking past posts I found I'd recorded and posted about 'Eric 44' at Steamer Point back in 2015. Now, here's a thing, it wasn't this graffiti, it was another 'Eric 44'. Looking closely though the style and form do suggest that it -could- be the same scribe for both pieces of graffiti. I thought, it could indicate that Eric was indeed stationed here, and maybe graffiti was his way of alleviating the boredom. As always with graffiti and my imagination, there's a lot of shifting assumption. My mission now is check all the suitable trees on the site to see if I can identify any more. You never know.

Root art

For about 10 years this giant coniferous root ball at Steamer Point has made for an ever changing natural sculpture, organic art. It's currently going through a rather groovy period.

Eric 44

So, what can we surmise from 'Eric 44'? Well. The nature and scaring of the graffiti would suggest that '44' is the year in which it was cut, this I think is supported by the name 'Eric', common in the period, though rare when I was a child and non existent nowadays. Also 'Eric' suggests a male. In 1944 Steamer Point was under military control as a satellite site of Christchurch Airfield and Air Defence Research Establishment (later SRDE), evidence of some of the pillboxes defending the coastline of the area can still be seen just above the inter-tidal and others long removed. So we could assume that Eric was a soldier, either regular Army or conceivably Homeguard, maybe he was in the RAF or a member of ADRE, or even USAAF maybe. Eric was quite a common American name too and the 405th Fighter Group of the USAAF was station at Christchurch in 1944 and had their headquarters at Bure Homage House which was very nearby.  So, Eric was an allied male soldier/airman station her during the Second World War.

I'm feeling an American airman/aircrew of the 405th. The style of the '44' reminds me of other American graffiti I've come across left by American throughout the forest. I wonder how right or wrong, I am.