LITTLESTONE

 

Littlestone is really just a suburb of New Romney these days, and mostly residential. There's some beautiful houses and a links golf course. It was established in the 1880s as a resort for the gentry, and is a picture of Edwardian and Victorian villas

Curious clock on the side of this house, which stands next to the beautifully converted water tower. This Grade II listed edifice was built in 1890 by Henry Tubbs to supply water to his proposed housing development and his golf club. It is now a residence. Originally it was designed to be embellished with four clock faces, which never materialised. Perhaps the lack of them is what inspired the curious timepiece on the house next  door.

At low tide, a World War II Mulberry Harbour Phoenix breakwater is visible along the coast; the caisson was unable to be re-floated as part of the post D-Day harbour construction in Normandy, so was abandoned.

The nature of the Phoenix breakwaters meant they were constructed and sunk until needed (so as to be invisible to air attack); by design they would have had the water evacuated by Royal Engineers and then been towed to France where they would have become part of the harbour. 

When the tide goes out along this stretch of coast, it really goes out, leaving behind a flat stretch of muddy sand. It's known as the Varne. This picture is taken just as the water starts to leech back over the Varne sandbank. In the distance, is Dungeness, with its' nuclear power station and the Old Lighthouse.