Afton Down is a strange site as it's often difficult to tell what's old and what's been added. What looks like a Bronze-age barrow from one angle turns out to be a sand trap from another. It's obviously a barrow cemetery consisting of two groups of 3 and 8 barrows and a dyke or two, but has been severely messed about by the morons that are the Freshwater Bay Golf club. How do these people manage to get away with it? You would think that this historically interesting area which is wonderfully beautiful and relatively unspoilt for the Isle of Wight would have had some sort of preservation order placed on it, but they've simply carved it up for the benefit of a few garishly-clad plonkers who tut at you when you stop to take a few photos because it's interrupting their 'game'. It might be quite interesting to have a closer look at some of the barrows in the evening after the golfers have gone home as you can't get near some of them because you're restricted to the footpath. On a nicer note, you can visit Dimbola Lodge, the home of Julia Margaret Cameron, pioneer Victorian photographer in Freshwater Bay which is a real treat.
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Posted by A R Cane
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