here they had walked , helen and rachel , along this quiet causeway , upon the pavement of green turf , shut in on either side by high banks of red earth , and tall hedges of shining beech , and here i followed in their steps , looking out , now and again , through partings in the boughs , and seeing on one side the sweep of the wood stretching far to right and left , and sinking into the broad level , and beyond , the yellow sea , and the land over the sea .