10 - The one with the questions!

So many questions!

On Tuesday, 29th December at the Talbot Hotel, Jane and Lester Wareham hosted a quiz night to raise funds for Dianne's charities. Teams of four (and more!) paid £6.50 per head - which included supper to feed those little grey cells!

And how much did the event raise?

No prizes for answering that question - £427!

Big thanks to everyone at the Talbot Hotel and everyone who came along, without question!

Want more info about the Talbot Hotel? Contact the Talbot Hotel via their website, or ring 01747 811269.

And how much has Dianne raised so far? Over £1,000!

09 - Dianne's card games pay off!

Dianne deserves that sit down! At the end of November, she hosted an all day card sale. Anyone caught wandering around Iwerne Minster was dragged, we mean invited, in. Once they'd been fed and watered - and later, even wined - they were invited to buy greetings cards.

Cards of local landscapes were sold for £1 each and 50p from every sale was donated to Dianne's charitable funds.

So, how much did Dianne raise? A stonking £82!

Wessex Cards still have some stocks left, so if anyone else feels tempted, why not have a look at their website? Cards sold in aid of Dianne's efforts will remain at £1 until 12th January - and 50p will be donated.

08 - It’s a dog’s life as the team hit Budleigh Salterton to Sidmouth

As October gave way to November, Dianne set off on another training session.

Here's her report...

"Karine, Cocoa, Amanda and I set off in the most appalling weather to drive to Sidmouth. We had to take two cars because there are no buses to Budleigh during the winter months. The rain lashed across the road, the fog came down and it was generally diabolical but we battled on and arrived in Sidmouth. A quick run on the beach for Cocoa and then it was off to Budleigh. By the time we parked the car the rain had ceased and the clouds were parting to show blue sky."


"We started walking at 10.30, a nice, gentle stroll beside the River Otter then over the bridge and upwards. The waves were pretty amazing as they crashed onto the beach below us. I would think this must rate as one of the gentlest parts of the route because although there were some steep parts it was very easy on the feet being mostly grassy paths.

Luckily I had recited the route to the others because my map flew out of the pocket of my backpack and into the hedge. I did manage to pull it out of the brambles but a freak wind snatched the pages out of the plastic pocket they were in and straight over the cliff."


Does anyone have pages 29 to 34 of South West Coast Path by Roland Tarr?

"It wasn't a problem; the route was well marked with coastal path 'acorns'.

We arrived back in Sidmouth at about 1.15 where Cocoa had another run on the beach and into the waves and we enjoyed a well earned cup of tea in the sunshine"


Lovely walk thank you Karine, Cocoa and Amanda for your company!

07 - Steaming Success!

The Gift Fair and Coffee Morning held on the 17th October has raised a staggering £326!

Big thanks to everyone who came along and helped, to those who donated raffle prizes and to those who put their hands in their pockets too!

L-R Karine, Sheila, Dianne, Doreen, Helen

06 - The one where they meet a Bear!

Well, from just some of Ron's 50 photos, we can see that Dianne's latest training walk was undertaken in glorious weather.

Dianne agrees, "the weather was glorious and the scenery, spectacular. Our other walks have begun with us driving to our final destination and then catching a bus to the start but there are no buses from Lulworth so I telephoned my friend Melanie who runs the Black Bear Inn at Wool to ask about taxi firms. Her immediate response was "A taxi will cost a fortune. Why don't you park at the Black Bear, catch the train to Weymouth and I will pick you up from Lulworth when you finish."

So that's what they did!

Dianne continues, "We started from the clock on Weymouth seafront. The hills started at Bowleaze Cove and stopped at Lulworth Cove. You can see from the photos how steep the paths were but it was such a lovely day that we just plodded along, enjoying the views. We also met quite a few like-minded people who were happy to stand and chat while we got our breath back. I actually met someone who when I told him what I was intending to do for my birthday didn't say "you’re mad" but instead said what a wonderful way to celebrate."

"As you can see from the time on Weymouth clock we left at 10.45 and we arrived at Lulworth at 4.15 having had a morning break on top of the cliffs above Osmington Mills and lunch sitting in the sun, leaning on an old pillbox overlooking White Nothe.

Melanie collected us from Lulworth and we rounded off the day by joining the regulars at the Black Bear for a curry evening. If you are ever in Wool it’s a very friendly pub and the food is excellent."

Of course, only nice people live in Wool – it’s home to Baggy the Blogger’s parents!

Want to try the Black Bear Inn? Click here for more info!

05 - The day of diversions...

Well, it sounds like this training walk was something of a challenge…

Dianne recalls, “We were heading for Seatown to walk to Chideock to catch the bus to Seaton. We got as far as Bridport to be told by the police that the road in Chideock was blocked. The only way to get there was through Beaminster. This was our first diversion along with about a hundred other people trying to drive in both directions down a very narrow road. We made the decision to drive to Seaton and hope we could get to Seatown in time to catch a bus back to the car.”

Thankfully, the weather was glorious as Team Dianne set off.

“After about 1.5 miles of open countryside we entered a wood. Six miles later we came out of the wood and were above Lyme Regis. The walk through the woods was horrible. The path was a mass of tree roots and very narrow in places falling away to a sheer drop into the brambles. The second diversion started as soon as we left Lyme. Apart from walking across a golf course the rest of the walk was on pavements along the main road all the way to Charmouth.”

“We stopped for a cup of tea in Charmouth and could see people walking up the side of the cliff but when we got to the footbridge there was a notice saying that the through route of the coastal path was closed. Diversion number three took us along the roads again and up some very steep inclines until we reached Stonebarrow where at last we were actually walking on the coastal path towards Golden Cap. This was the only enjoyable part of the walk and the steepest. The views were stunning.”

“Ron and Phyl were taking photos when I looked at my watch and realised that we were cutting it very fine to catch the last bus back to Seaton. We went down Golden Cap a lot faster than we went up. Phyl's turn of speed at Seatown when she thought we were going to miss the bus was awesome. We made it to the bus stop with 10 minutes to spare. "

"We had arrived in Seaton at 11 a.m. and were sat on a bus back to Seaton at 7 p.m.!”

04 The one where they march on their stomachs!

On the 10th September, Dianne, Phyl and Ron walked from Seatown to Abbotsbury.

Dianne says, “This was a very different walk from the first. The weather was glorious, not quite so many cliffs and not so isolated.”

They trio began their walk from Chideock, so the increased distance hit over thirteen and a half miles. This was something of a shock for Phyl and Ron, they were aiming for eleven!

There was dissent in the camp when ten miles were hit, just as a sign showed four more to Abbotsbury.

Lunch was taken on the beach at West Bay. This wasn’t the team’s best idea as Dianne reveals, “The rise from West Bay was the toughest one on the walk.”

Afternoon tea was taken at Burton Bradstock at a café which is open all year round.

With ice-creams at West Bexington, this training leg seems to have been more focused on nourishment than stamina.

This leg proved interesting, with he coastline changing completely towards the end of this walk when it meets the Chesil Bank.

Dianne remembers, “For some of the time there is no view of the sea because you are walking behind the bank but I think in January it will be a respite from the two days we will have spent climbing up and down cliffs.

We all enjoyed this walk the views of the cliffs were amazing. There wasn't a cloud in the sky and the sea was as blue as the Med. Fingers crossed for the same again on the 24th September when we are walking Seaton to Seatown!”

03 - The first one!

Dianne has now reconnoitred the first leg of the route. Her sister-in-law, Phyl, joined the expedition and they walked along the coastal path from Sidmouth to Seaton.

“I am going to lynch any weather man I come into contact with because all week they said it was going to be sunny on Thursday, it rained almost all day. Luckily it wasn't the torrential rain that they had at home, but it wasn’t ‘the sitting on the cliff top having a picnic weather’ we were thinking about.”

The Coast Path website quoted the route as being 10 miles and tough. And it was. It took the intrepid due 4.75 of walking hours, plus time to stop for nourishment en route. Tea was taken at a café at Branscombe.

Dianne said “Despite the weather, the views were stunning. It was amazing looking back from the top of a cliff and seeing how far we had gone in a relatively short time.”

There’s much to look forward to next January!

02 How high is too high?

Now, some of you have wondered why Dianne is only running and walking to celebrate her 60th birthday.

Emails have been flooding into DiamondDianne HQ with suggestions of what else she might be prepared to do.

Top of the pile is a parachute jump. Not a high one, just high enough - if you know what I mean.

This suggestion has been put to the committee and the committee have decided they can only allow DiamondDianne to participate in this kind of event if enough of you can do it with her.

It seems unfair that you should be expected to make a decision without any experience or prior knowledge, so they've arranged for a computer simulation of a parachute jump to be available to all DiamondDianne supporters.

If you think DiamondDianne should take part in a parachute jump and you want to try too, click here to see how easy it would be.

If you don't want to try, then please click here to register your vote.

Thank you.

01 A taste of things to come...