Blogs from Devon, England, United Kingdom, Europe - page 4

After a very welcomed rest day (spent doing laundry, playing pool, eating and chatting to the other campers; just wish the farm shop & cafe next door didn’t close on Mondays! Doh-should of checked that when booking!) we set out at 7:00am sharp for our known biggie hike…Who am I kidding, we actually ended up setting off 8:30 but hey ho we got there! Today was the day we crossed into Dartmoor! Less roads & farmers fields and more moorlands & wilderness ahead. And that was certainly true. As was the rumour that the TMW signage goes a bit sparse and map reading is needed (although technology and pre-plotted routes helped with that). It’s also the section running past Castle Drogo, and I think may be my favourite bit, being just so stunning. We passed through ... read more

A slightly restless night with rain & wind, made for a restless morning too. The rain had stopped but the wind was still strong & cold, so we packed up quick and actually got walking by 8. Off to a speedy start (for us) the wind then dropped as we descended down to a river, and we found a sunny spot to pull over for breaky and to warm up. Which we quickly did with the climb back out of the valley (shorts now back on) and enjoyed a sunny hot day for the rest of the day, traversing across Dartmoor at a slower pace; enjoying magnificent views from up high, and beautiful rivers down low. Holne was our half way stop and after a huge climb up from the river, we really enjoyed the tea ... read more

Having walked a little more than planned yesterday we figured todays walk would be shorter then planned; and yes, it technically was at 18.65km but it felt like a long one today. Maybe it was the smaller dinner (camp cooked a dried food bag), or the hotter day (sun was lovely but definitely heated things up quickly), the little hot spots on our feet that are wanting to and beginning to turn into blisters, or just that it was now our fourth day walking consecutively (most we’ve done) but we are definitely feeling it tonight. Having said that, it was also an interesting walk with many friendly locals asking us questions and being supportive, finding a veggie cafe in our current favourite village so far (Witheridge), chatting to a dad and his 11year old son also ... read more

Turns out, it’s pretty difficult to put the pack back on and get going again when you’re in a warm, friendly bnb, with a hot shower and having had a tastey cooked breaky… but we managed it and, after a few initial aches, found the rhythm fairly quickly. This 10miler part of the TMW mostly follows along the river and is rated as one of the best bits and it didn’t disappoint; it is very beautiful! Helped by the little bursts of sun rays, open & welcoming tea room mid-point stop at Withypool and the minimal elevation of this section, we enjoyed a simple & picturesque day. It was even a flat enough section that I (yes maria!) suggested adding a climb on one hill simply because it was called Cow Castle! Sad to say there ... read more

A bus, a train, another train, another bus and we made it to Lynmouth! All smooth & on time as well (Promise we are still in the south west of England!), making it about a 5hour journey, including time to grab coffee / snacks / lunches too ? Arriving in Lynmouth , we noticed the pretty river and water fountain, quirky, old buildings & shops, impressive water funicular, the chilly sea & the very friendly and helpful information centre staff; including getting to watch a 10min video on the two moors way! Excited to get going, we bought pasties for tomorrow’s lunch, saw the signs & touched the sea then headed off…along the river…backing into the valley…up behind some houses… up into the woods…up some more… and more… and more …for about 50mins totalling 276m ??! ... read more