News and Events

LATEST News UPDATE – 2nd March 2022

Saturday 26 February 2022 marks one year since the collapse in the east wing at Hurst Castle, after the sea exposed and undercut its foundations.

English Heritage has now completed the stabilisation of this damaged section. With teams working tirelessly over the last year and 22,000 tonnes of shingle and rock armour transported along the spit to protect the east wing, the charity – alongside the Culture Recovery Fund – have committed approximately £3m on works to stabilise the breach and protect Hurst Castle, bringing in a team of specialists including those with skills in marine engineering and coastal defence construction.

In forthcoming weeks, a permanent revetment sea defence engineered to provide protection for the next 50 years will be completed. Following this, English Heritage has commissioned a feasibility study of extensive geotechnical investigations around the castle and on the spit itself. This will look into understanding the forces at work on this exposed shingle causeway; and the geology under the castle and is essential in informing the best course of action with regards to the future repair of the breach. The study will take at least 6 months to complete. During this time, the east and west wings as well as the beach will remain closed for the public’s safety.

Whilst English Heritage is pleased to be able to proceed with this next stage, we must stress that there can be no quick fix to the complex issues facing the castle.  This is an ever-changing environment and despite our efforts, Hurst Castle’s east wing and west wing – where we have also detected movement – are still at risk from a myriad of threats including sea level rise and climate change.

However, from 1 April 2022, the Tudor keep at Hurst Castle – the most historic part of the castle – will again open to the public for the season. A regular ferry service will run from Keyhaven to the castle and refreshments will be available from outside the castle entrance.

We are also pleased to announce that Hurst Castle has been named to the 2022 World Monuments Watch, a selection of 25 heritage sites of worldwide significance whose preservation is urgent and vital to the communities surrounding them. These sites powerfully demonstrate pressing global challenges of climate change, imbalanced tourism, underrepresentation, and recovery from crisis, underscoring the need for greater action to support heritage places and the people who care for them. You can view the full list of 2022 Watch sites here.

Bird spotting notes

Here are a few notes from a recent visit.

All of the Brent Geese appear to have returned back to Siberia although very occasionally one or two may linger on.
Canada Goose – a pair have been seen on the marsh.
Shelduck – around 20 are still on the marsh but their numbers may reduce leaving just breeding pairs.
Eider – an adult male was seen in the Camber at Hurst by Pat last week.
Little Egret – just a handful spread across the patch.
Oystercatchers, Ringed Plovers and Redshank are now in their breeding territories but suffer huge disturbance with the amount of visitors we are experiencing.
A few Whimbrel have been seen, and heard with their unmistakable call, passing through the area en-route to their breeding grounds
4 Dunlin in beautiful summer plumage at Hurst. These are either on passage to their breeding grounds or are non-breeders.
A few Curlew and Lapwing can be seen on the marsh.
The Black-headed Gulls appear to have moved away from their usual breeding places on the marsh on the west side of the river, and gone to the east side. Their usual breeding sites are now often flooded by the high tides which cover the spartina.
Great Blacked-backed Gulls are seen in 2s and 3s.
A Med Gull was heard off the east beach last weekend. There are many east of the Lymington River.
Sandwich and Common Terns are still seen migrating across the patch and Little Terns feed in the estuary.
Gannets can be seen feeding off the Shingles Bank near the Needles.
A pair of Carrion Crows are attempting to build a nest in the Maritime Pine by the lighthouse.
Meadow and Rock Pipits are in their usual territories.

Hope that gives a summary of what’s going on.
Finally, I have seen Powered Paragliders taking off and landing in the field at the bottom of New Lane where it meets Saltgrass Lane. They create a huge amount of noise and a real intrusion into this beautiful area. I have alerted the local landowner and hope he can put a stop to it before it gets out of hand.

Kind regards
Peter