He Said:
This is our last full day in the Dartmouth South Devon area and we had another hike planned, this time on the east side of the River Dart. So, off we walked down to catch the ferry across the river. We jumped onto the pier on the far side after a journey that lasted maybe 4 minutes… whew! The town on this side is Kingswear, seeing no kings around to distract us, we found our obscure way through arches, around corners, and up steps, paying a quick visit to a small church on the way.
Kingswear is a very small village, and it has not only three ferries; one for people, two for cars, but also has a train station complete with running steam trains for a journey back in time. We opted for walking instead. We had heard that this section of the coast walk was the most scenic, but what we found is that it had the most ups and downs for a trail considering that it was mostly wooded. And, considering that in one case a cove that we had to descend many steps to was: not open to the public, messy, and also not very scenic, I was disappointed. And then we immediately needed to ascend a long stairway back up the other side of the cove. In short, no reward except tired knees, but, on the other hand that’s just the kind of complaint that an old person would make, so I’ll say it was very well worth it.
After a few miles of going up and down, we got to a WWII gun complex called Brownstone Battery, capable of firing many large shell onto ships approaching the estuary. This area also had a dozen wild Dartmoor ponies roaming around on the hillsides. The old military buildings are fortified and built of concrete blocks, their doors and windows are blocked against entry now, and the dirt of 7 decades has collected inside. It’s not clear how much action this place saw in WWII, since the Germans did not actually invade, but it was probably rather light; we saw very little damage.
On we went for another couple of miles, and then we decided to walk up through the Coleton Fishacre gardens which were very well kept and full of many plants and colors…. Very nice indeed!
She Said:
A very easy start to the day today - short ferry across the River Dart to Kingswear, an affluent boating village opposite Dartmouth.
A quick poke around in the Church - St. Thomas of Canterbury, the latest Church iteration on the site (continuous since 1170 but with only the tower remaining of the original structure) then we picked up the South Coast Path right in town, close by the Kingswear Priory, with its pretty, flower-covered walls.
We had been assured by all our B+B mates that this section of the Path was the most spectacular, but we didn't think so. Yesterday's view were, by far, so much better.
But, onward...
Up and Down.
Up and Down.
Up and Down.
Up and Down.
Steeply Up and steeply Down.
Steeply Up and steeply Down.
And on and on.
This continued the entire Path. Tough on the knees. Tough on the morale. Just plain tough.
Some interesting points:
- in the wooded parts of the Path, Fire Warning Posts with poles attached. Each pole had a 2'x1' rubber flap affixed to the top, to be used to stamp out fires, should they start.
- Brownstone Battery - built in 1940 to protect the Dart Estuary, Slapton and Blackpool Sands from the Germans. Original buildings, barracks, ordinance supply sheds, lookouts and gun turrets all intact but aged and overgrown with foliage and flowers. Another reminder of the intensity of the War for England.
- Dartmoor Ponies freely grazing the hillsides to prevent the encroachment shrubs and other plants.
- we watched a sea gull dive again and again at a raven who had invaded his nest high on a cliff. Finally, the raven was driven off. Who knows what damage it might have done first.
Our reward for all this Up and Down today was Coleton Fishacre, an estate house and gardens open to the public. The gardens were in riotous full bloom with every color of rhododendron and azaleas. Plenty of other fabulous plants, too. Well worth the hike over.
However, I was not looking forward to the walk back. It was warm and my knees were screaming. We inquired about a bus that we had heard about, but no one in the reception center knew any particulars (only that there might be one, it might stop at the far end of the estate drive - 40 min. walk away - and it might come by on the half hour or hour.) A gentleman had heard us inquire and seen us standing forlornly in the car park (I was standing forlornly - R was his normal happy-to-be-surrounded-by-nature self.). This guy drove his car up to us and asked where we were going. We said the bus stop so to get back to the ferry in Kingswear. He and his wife said they would drive us to Kingswear. Yay, Yay, Yay! He loaded up our gear and we piled into the back seat with Toby, their 3 year old Foster kid, and off we all went. They were so nice. He had been working in Gilroy, CA a few years back. We talked about Monterey and Carmel and Rt. 101. He said he was happy to drive us as he had met so many wonderful people when he was in the States who had been so generous to him that he wanted to return the favors. They even said that if we wanted to visit the Kingswear Yacht Club and sit out on its deck overlooking the River Dart for a while, we could use their boat's name (Margarita) to register in. Toby was my bud by the end of the drive. They even had a tiny, silent, well-behaved dog sitting in the way back of the car. I loved them.
Instead of the yacht club, we found a small, secluded, quiet park and ate our Second Lunch there before heading down to the ferry.
We leave Dartmouth tomorrow and sail up the River Dart to Totnes. Our Dartmouth taxi driver (Tony) will meet us there with our luggage and drive us to the Totnes train station. Then, it's on to Great Malvern, the Cotford Hotel and the next leg of our adventure.
On the ferry
Even though it was up and down over and over, I'd say the views were worth it! Hope the knees hold for the rest of the trip
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