Monday 31 August 2015

# 21 Walk to Seymour Tower

Just like Les Ecrehous, Seymour Tower is a Jersey icon that every local is aware of but not everyone has visited, mainly because it is situated around a mile offshore and only accessible at low tides. If you're not familiar with the area it's possible to get trapped on a sandbank as the tides come in around you. There have been a number of stories over the years of people doing just that and having to spend an unexpected amount of time stranded from the mainland.


At 4pm on Friday 21st August we met our guide, Trudi (of Jersey Walk Adventures), at the Seymour slip in St Clement, ready for our walk. Despite a mixed weather forecast we were lucky to have perfect blue skies all evening. Not being exactly sure what to expect we both arrived wearing trainers and socks, however Trudi confirmed that we would definitely be getting our feet wet and offered us the use of some water shoes. We weren't sure about these at first but they turned out to be surprisingly comfortable and ideal for the job.

We set off across the sand towards the tower and Trudi was soon sharing lots of information about the area and the local flora and fauna. We also got a close look at the rescue tower placed on one of the sandbanks to help anyone caught by the incoming tide. Apparently the lifeguards have had over 30 callouts so far this year!

The seaweed hanging from the posts shows how high the water gets

We weren't hurried and spent lots of time fishing around in the rock pools and looking at shells and seaweed. Although we were visiting at low tide there was still a lot of water around and pools to wade through so we were grateful for the water shoes.

Jersey in the distance

Nearly there

Seymour Tower is available for overnight stays and fortunately for us there was someone staying there during our walk. Overnight visitors have to be accompanied by a guide for safety reasons and he was happy for us to have a look inside and climb up to the top.






The tower sleeps eight or so in bunk beds and while it has a kitchen and toilet (well, a bag with a seat on it), it still feels pretty basic! I'm not sure I fancy an overnight stay, but it would fun to do one of the day stays that they also offer so you have the chance to watch the tide coming in and surrounding the tower.

Once we'd finished exploring and taking pictures we headed back for dry land.




The walk back took about an hour and we arrived back at the car at around 6.45pm. It was a great walk, made even more interesting by our knowledgeable guide. Next time I'd like to try one of the night walks.

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