Day: 119 18/7/94 East Portlemouth to Torcross

Weather: Fine but blustery         Distance: 18km (11.2 miles)        Total Distance: 1481 miles

Since there was no public transport to East Portlemouth and because I wasted to make an early start so I could join the family in the afternoon, I caught the bus to Salcombe and then the first boat of the day over to East Portlemouth.  There was no sign of the small ferry to start with but it soon appeared as did one other person who seemed to be using the ferry as a means of going to work.  What a great commute!

The tide was out so for the first part of the walk I was able to walk along the beaches rather than along the country lanes.  At Mill Bay however I had to cut up at the back of the beach, festooned with sailing boats and onto the National Trust path which gave good views back over the river to Salcombe and South Sands.  It still seems a very sobering thought that a couple of days later, while we were still on holiday in the area, the police found a body of a young waitress on the coast path next to the YHA on the other side of the river.

I took the lower path option and again it was the path with the most climbs and dips.  This first section of the walk was in very isolated picturesque countryside and took quite a bit longer than I thought it would because of the fairly tough going.  It was however a relief to be walking in such a beautiful area compared with yesterdays walking, which although along quiet roads hadn't been all that scenic.

Part of a rusting wreck of a tanker dominated the view at Gammon Head.  The front part of the wreck had been salvaged, but apparently once the rear section was reached it was thought too dangerous to proceed any further with the salvage operation. 

The geography at Maelcombe was very unusual.  The cliffs themselves were a couple of hundred yards inland; in front of them was a flat plane which was being farmed very successfully and then just a short drop down to the sea.  It was as if someone had just pushed the cliffs inland out of the way.  The walking as much easier along this section since it was flat.

I had thought the beach at Lannocombe would be worth seeing because my wife had spoken to some people who had been there, but I was disappointed;  it was small and grey with only a couple of cars there full of people sheltering from the wind and overcast skies.  I subsequently advised her later that it probably wasn't worth the long trip down on narrow roads to visit it.

After some more cliff top walking I arrived at Start Point, though I didn't venture all the way out to the lighthouse.  A tarmac path led northwards and then a path led to Hallsands.  I passed the hotel where I had looked into self-catering but it was expensive, so we'd chosen Kingsbridge instead.  Hallsands itself appeared a little dilapidated.  On he way down to Beesands the path went through a stretch completely covered by tall dense hedges making it very dark inside.

Beesands has a steep beach covered in tiny pebbles with a single row of cottages along the front.  At the far end of the long beach the path turned in land, past a house, and climbed steeply around a disused quarry.  Although the climb was steep and at the end of a days walking it was pleasant and enjoyable.  The path then dropped down into Torcross.

I was some 40 minutes early for the bus back to Kingsbridge, so I found a good tea shop just down an ally by the bus stop and went in and grabbed the last table.  I eventually managed to order a cream tea and ended up having to rush it, afraid that I would miss the bus.  People were whispering that the very well spoken young waitress looked like Barbara Streisand and I had to agree.

I took the bus back to Kingsbridge and then walked the ten minute walk up to High House Farm and our cottage.  As I was walking up it was starting to drizzle which turned into more persistent rain soon.  This meant that we stayed inside in the afternoon, which did not matter much as we were all tired so took it in turns to grab a sleep and look after our son.

Later, when it brighten up a bit and stopped raining, we went out for tea at the Fisherman's Arms in Averton Gifford. We had the Fish Pie and our son helped himself to our chips and garlic bread.  Afterwards we went to see the swans and six signets on the River Avon which I had seen on my last walking holiday.