As part of the Company’s 25th Anniversary celebrations, the Western team went kayaking at Studland Bay in Dorset. By all accounts, everyone had a great time and would highly recommend this as a team day out. Studland Bay is home to one of the most famous landmarks on the South Coast, Old Harry’s Rock.
The chalk of Old Harry Rocks was once part of a long stretch of chalk between Purbeck and the Isle of Wight, but it was eroded away to the point where it became a headland. First caves, then arches formed as the headland was subjected to hydraulic action (a process in which air and water are forced into small cracks by the force of the sea, resulting in enlarging cracks). After being weakened by rain and wind, the tops of the arches collapsed, leaving disconnected stacks. Old Harry is the name of one of these stacks. Another stack, Old Harry’s Wife, was eroded by corrosion and abrasion to the point where the bottom was so weak that the top fell away, leaving a stump.
Various legends surround the naming of the rocks. According to legend, the Devil (also known euphemistically as “Old Harry”) slept on the ledges. According to another legend, the rocks were named after Harry Paye, the infamous Poole pirate, whose ship hid behind the rocks waiting for passing merchantmen. Another legend claims that a storm thwarted a ninth-century Viking raid, and that one of the drowned, Earl Harold, was turned into a pillar of chalk.
We highly recommend Kayaking at Studland Bay for all!!