When we came face to face with an ambling lump

Travelling home from Dorchester on January 3, Christine and I decided to have a look around Southover and come back through Affpuddle. It had been raining all morning and the road at Southover end was well flooded for about 300 metres. It was a bit of a job to see where the road was.

We were just about halfway to Affpuddle when I spotted a dark lump on the roadside up ahead. The ‘lump’ moved, and we could see it was an otter at the edge of the road.

We stopped the car and the otter walked towards us and ambled alongside the car. Christine opened the door and was eye to eye with the otter. For a brief second, she thought it was going to jump into the car, but it walked on past the car and disappeared behind us. What an experience, and what a time to have no camera with us. Still, we will not forget that one.

Roger and Christine Hewitt

Six years ago I found what I am told archaeologists call a midden along the West Dorset coast. I had suspected for a while that more than mud and sand lurked below the surface as there was so much broken glass and pottery along the shore. Never has the saying been more true that one man’s trash is another man’s treasure.

I am sure some steer clear because of the health and safety dangers. The bottles and crockery are in layers with a big storm or a little landslide revealing more. A midden is an old rubbish tip but depending on how old and where they are can be a find of great historical importance.

I contacted the people who owned the land. My correspondence told of Victorian ink wells, Edwardian hair oil bottles and ribbed poison bottles. From the number of ink