SECRETS OF THE UNDERCLIFF

Coastal wildlife, clifftop walks, botanic garden and Victorian splendour
The Undercliff is a name given to the large area of coastal landslip which skirts the southern edge of the Island. A favourable climate here has resulted in a semi-tropical environment like no other on the Island. This unique, attractive, tumbling landscape is mainly covered by lush vegetation.

The "microclimate" of warm sunshine, moist air and few winter chills was recognised by leading physicians in Victorian times as ideal for the treatment of respiratory diseases, which led to the establishment of a chest hospital at Ventnor. The former hospital grounds subsequently became the twentytwo acre Ventnor Botanic Garden (below).

The development of Ventnor and St Lawrence during the mid-19th century saw the construction of many fine houses and villas and the creation of some beautiful gardens.

Importation of plants from around the British Empire enabled people to experiment with exotic species.
Botanic Gardens Ventnor

The German philanthropist, William Spindler, who lived at Old Park, had ambitious plans to create a garden village in the Undercliff. Many of the trees he planted exist to this day to perpetuate his image of a "Garden Isle".

Picturesque villages such as Bonchurch and St Lawrence and the pretty bay of Steephill Cove are there to be discovered. Bonchurch, with its central pond, is one of the Island's best preserved Victorian villages and still retains that essential, mystical charm that attracted many eminent Victorians such as Charles Dickens and the historian, Lord Macaulay, and visitors such as Karl Marx. The poet Swinburne grew up here and is buried in the New Church of St Boniface.

St Catherine's Lighthouse, below the impressive backdrop of Gore Cliff, is popular with bird-watchers. According to the season, many varieties of sea birds can be seen offshore or breeding on the cliffs. Resting passage migrants include many small land birds.

The undulating coastal footpath from Ventnor to St Lawrence passes Steephill Cove, the Botanic Garden and the Rare Breeds Park. From St Lawrence to Niton, the path veers away from the sea to take you along the the top of the inland cliff with fine views of the Undercliff below.