The Needles
South east of the charming little town of Freshwater, where the poet Lord Alfred Tennyson lived, is one of the island's most famous and spectacular attractions, the Needles. They constitute a group of pointed chalk rocks up to 100 feet (30 meters) tall, separated from the island after thousands of years of erosion. Overlooking the Needles is a pleasure Park from which a cable car leads onto the beautiful Alum beach that lies below. A short bus journey from the park is the Needles Old Battery, a set of fortifications, dating back to 1861-3 and built to ward off French invasions.