England Part III - Lynmouth to Combe Martin - 12 miles, maybe more

I have to admit it. We cheated. But only a little bit.
We got a ride from the kind man at the B&B in Lynmouth to take us part way to Combe Martin. He dropped us off on the Coast Path a little past Hunter's Inn.

It was a misty morning as we struck out over the high ground on Holdstone Down. This is the best place to view the highest sea cliffs in England, but this time the mist obscured our view of the sea.
It is also the place where Jesus landed in a spaceship, which makes Holdstone Down a holy mountain charged with cosmic energy, according to The Aetherius Society. Want to know more? Go to their web site.

Into the mist but didn't feel any cosmic energy

The weather was dry and not too cold, just right for walking. My boots got a good workout.

T coming down the steps leading to Sherrycombe Water

After coming down a very steep slope to Sherrycombe Water, we were faced with an even steeper climb up the other side to Great Hangman. This little stream leads to a spectacular waterfall, which it is said was used by the crew of a German U-boat to replenish their fresh water supply during WWII.

Looking back on the path down to Sherrycombe from
halfway up the other side. Click to enlarge.... see the hikers?

Here we attained our highest elevation, and the highest sea cliff in England..... 1043 feet (318m) on Great Hangman as it is named on the maps, but we always called it Big Hangman when I lived here. Yes, this area is where I was born and brought up. This was a homecoming for me.

The stone cairn on Big Hangman.

Local tradition says that if you climb Big Hangman, you should carry a stone all the way up, and put it on the cairn, and make a wish. I knew it as "the fairies letterbox". Did I carry a stone all the way up? Of course I did. And will I tell you my wish? Definitely not! It's a secret between me and the fairies.

OK, it's not very big, but even little stones can work magic with the fairies.

As we walked towards Little Hangman, the mist began to clear, and the sun broke through the low clouds.

Looking towards Watermouth Harbour through the mist.
(Is it only me, or does this look like a giant green alligator?)

The first time I climbed Little Hangman with my dad I was three years old. A few years have passed since then.

Legend says that the hills of Little Hangman and Big Hangman get their names from a thief who stole a sheep and tied it around his neck while he rested. The sheep fell over the cliff, with predictable disastrous results for the thief. Be warned. Crime doesn't pay.

Little Hangman - the previous picture was taken at the very top.

Looking over Combe Martin harbour from Hangman Path

It was an easy downhill trek into the village of Combe Martin. This is where I was born and spent my younger years. The grey roof in the foreground is the house I grew up in, although so much changed to be unrecognisable now.
We peeked through the hedge to spy on the property where I lived and my cousins spent their summers. My dad's immaculate strawberry fields and tidy vegetable gardens are weedy and overgrown. The gateposts are crumbling.  The apple trees and the currant bushes are gone. I think I prefer to remember it as it was when I was little.

The Adventure continues.....

For more about my trip to England and the South West Coast Path, scroll down to see the next two posts.
If you have done this section of the Coast Walk, please leave me a comment and tell me about it!

England Part II - Porlock Weir to Lynmouth - 12.3 miles (or maybe more!)

Our second night was spent at the Bottom Ship Inn in Porlock Weir. Not to be confused with the Top Ship Inn in the village of Porlock one and a half miles away.

The Bottom Ship Inn, Porlock Weir

Porlock Weir is a tiny fishing hamlet, and has been a busy harbour for over 1000 years. It was visited by the Danes in 86AD and plundered by Anglo-Saxons in 1052. Thankfully, it's more peaceful now.

The Coast Path took us up towards the Worthy Toll House, where it costs 2 pounds per car (or horse carriage) to go up the steep hill towards Lynton, avoiding the even steeper Porlock Hill. However, walkers take the path to the right.

Worthy Toll House - we took the path under the arch

The path led us through Yearnor Wood and under decaying tunnels, built long ago by Ada Byron, Lady Lovelace, daughter of the poet Lord Byron, to enable her to enjoy a network of carriageways through her ornate terraced gardens at the grand house at Ashley Combe, now demolished.

A pleasant woodland walk brought us to Culbone Church, the smallest complete parish church in Britain. The chancel is 13.5 feet (4.1 m) x 10 feet (3.0 m), the nave 21.5 feet (6.6 m) x 12.33 feet (3.8 m) and the building has a total length of 35 feet (10.7 m). It supposedly seats 33 people.... but it would definitely be a bit crowded.

 

The church at Culbone, dedicated to St. Beuno.

St. Beuno was an important Welsh saint, born in the late 6th Century. He rescued St. Winnifred from King Caradog, and died in 642AD.  Celtic saints are often dedicated in West Country churches.

In the Assize Rolls of 1280, it is recorded that Thomas, the Chaplain of Culbone, was indicted "for that he had struck Albert of Ash on the head with a hatchet, and so killed him". The people of Culbone are generally much more friendly nowadays.

Parts of the building are Saxon, before 1066AD, the screen is 14th Century.

Three of the Rectors from 1348 to 1353 died suddenly, probably from the Black Death which killed one third of Britain’s entire population.  In 1544 a leper settlement for 45 people was established and a tiny window was built at the church to enable the lepers to see the blessing of the sacraments. The window is still there, but the lepers are gone.

There are two small bells in the church..... one dates from the 17th Century, and the other dates from the 14th Century and is the oldest bell in West Somerset, and it still rings!

After a short stop at the church, on with our walk, We have a long way to go today.

The Coast path is well signposted, but the mileages never seemed to agree!

Sisters Fountain

Sisters' Fountain at Glenthorne, marked by a cairn and stone cross, is one of many West Country sites associated with Joseph of Arimathea. He is reputed to have stopped there to look for water whilst sailing up the Channel to Glastonbury. Not finding any, he struck the ground with his staff and water poured forth.

The gates to Glenthorne House

Detail of the wild boars head on top of the gatepost at Glenthorne.

We followed the driveway towards Glenthorne, but the Coast Path veered off before we got to the house itself. Too bad, as I'd have loved to see it. There's an old photo of the house here. And the history of the Halliday family who built the house here.

This day's walk was a long walk.... and we were all beginning to drag a bit as we made our way towards Lynton and Lynmouth. Lots of steep rugged uphill climbs, and even more downhill, if that's possible. As we neared our destination, we came out on open moorland, populated by sturdy Exmoor ponies.

The view from the Foreland and across Countisbury Hill to Lynton and Lynmouth.

We staggered up the steps of our B&B exhausted after such a long and tiring walk, but after a cup of life-restoring tea and a piece of cake and a hot shower, we were ready to gobble down fish'n'chips at the Rising Sun Inn in Lynmouth.

The Rising Sun, Lynmouth

The 14th Century thatched Rising Sun Hotel has oak panelling, crooked ceilings, thick beachstone walls and creaking uneven floorboards. It was in one of its rooms that R.D.Blackmore wrote several chapters of his West Country classic Lorna Doone. And it is believed that the poet Percy Bysshe Shelley spent his honeymoon there with his 16 year old bride Harriet in 1812 after their elopement to Gretna Green.

The Adventure continues..........

 For more about my trip to England and the South West Coast Path please scroll down to the previous post.
If you have done this part of the Coast Walk, please leave me a message and tell me about it!

England Part I - Minehead to Porlock Weir via Bossington - 9.5 miles

Three cousins, E and T and me.  The Three Adventurers.

Three days walking the spectacular coast of North Somerset and North Devon on the South West Coast Path. Can we do it? Do we have the stamina required?  This walk is described as "challenging'. Three days is a long time to be challenged. 

The first night was spent at Glendower House in Minehead, and after a hearty full English breakfast with all the trimmings, toast and marmalade and a couple of cups of coffee to fortify us, we started off on our Adventure.

The South West Coast Path starts at Minehead and continues for 630 miles (1014km) along the coastlines of Somerset, Devon, Cornwall and Dorset, ending at Poole. We definitely weren't planning to walk the full 630 miles.... although we did meet some ambitious people on the trail who intended to do just that. Our plan was to walk approximately the first 30 miles.

 

The start of the Coast Path on the seafront at Minehead is marked by a giant pair of hands holding a map. The weather was a bit "iffy"... grey skies and some drizzle in the air. The previous week had been all sunshine and blue skies... oh well. We had our raincoats with us.

 

The Coast Path took us through farmer's fields, then woodlands, and zigzagged up steep hills,  finally emerging at the top of North Hill, giving us a good view across the Bristol Channel. Then open moorland and fairly level trails past Selworthy Beacon and onto Hurlstone Point. Some rain in the air, and at one point we were bombarded with tiny hailstones. But we didn't care! We were on an Adventure!

Rain on top of Hurlstone Point

Porlock Marsh from Hurlstone Point

The 6000 year old pebble ridge that protected Porlock Marsh was breached by a storm about 8 years ago, and now the salt water floods the area every high tide, turning it into a salt marsh.

Coming down into the village of Bossington

We followed the zigzag path down the steep hill into Bossington, crossing a wooden bridge into the village, where we found Kitnor's Tea Rooms.... ahh... it was lunchtime.... perfect timing for three hungry hikers. And if you're reading this, Kitnor's, we are so sorry about our muddy boots on your clean floor!

Kitnor's Tea Room in Bossington

Myrtle Cottage on the left and Rose Cottage on the right.

From Bossington, we walked across the salt marsh towards the village of Porlock Weir, passing a memorial to the crew of an American Liberator Bomber who crashed not far from this spot in October 1942. Of the 12 crew members, only one man survived.

Click to enlarge the pic to read the story of this wartime air tragedy.

The Adventure continues.........

If you have done this section of the South West Coast Walk, please leave me a comment and tell me about it!